Western Materia Medica Anemone pulsatilla By Terry Willard ClH, PhD and Todd Caldecott ClH RANUNCULACEAE Botanical Name: Anemone pulsatilla, Ranunculaceae Common names: Anemone, Pulsatilla, Paqueflower, Passeflower, Windflower, Old Man in the Mountain. Similar species: A. occidentalis (Western Pasqueflower), A. patens (Prairie Crocus) Plant description: Pasqueflower is a perennial plant, with a simple, erect, rounded stem 8-15 cm in height. The leaves are characteristically feathery, with many lobes, covered in a soft, silvery pubescence. The flowers are solitary, terminal and pendulous, deep- purple to violet-brown, with 6 sepals and no petals, surrounding a cluster of yellow-tipped stamens and numerous pistils. The flower appears early in spring, typically as the snow is melting. The flowers give way to an elongated cluster of seeds that looks rather like a mop-head, with long, silky drooping plumes that allow the seed to be carried by the wind when mature. The sepals of A. occidentalis are white. Habitat, ecology and distribution: Various species of Anemone are found throughout Eurasia, from the British Isles, through Europe into Asia Minor and Russia, and into the Orient. In North America the Anemones (spp. pulsatilla, patens, and occidentalis) prefer high elevations and full sun, often in sub-alpine or alpine regions, but also in open fields and grasslands east of the Rocky Mountains, preferring drier, well-drained sandy soils. Part used: Aerial parts, fresh plant. History: The genus name Anemone is derived from the Greek word anemos, meaning ‘wind,’ in obvious reference to the method of seed dispersal. According to Greek mythology the Anemone sprang from the tears shed by Aphrodite as her lover Adonis lay dying. The older common name of Passeflower is derived from a Latin term that refers to the use of the roots in preparing passum, or ‘raisin-wine.’ The name ‘Pasque’ flower is derived from the French word for the original Hebrew term pesach (‘Passover’), in reference to the fact that the plant flowers early in spring. ©2011 Wild Rose College of Natural Healing All Rights Reserved. 1 Western Materia Medica Anemone pulsatilla By Terry Willard ClH, PhD and Todd Caldecott ClH RANUNCULACEAE Constituents: Anemone contains the glycoside ranunculin (2.8%) that hydrolyzes into the unstable lactone protoanemonin (1%), which dimerises into the comparatively inert anemonim upon drying. The extent to which protoanemonin degrades and how quickly in fresh plant preparations is not entirely known, but the product may be only about half as potent one year later as it was upon harvest. Dry plant preparations probably contain little or no protoanemonin and are avoided. Other constituents include the flavonoids delphinidin and pelargonidin, the saponin glycoside hederagenin, triterpenes, beta-sitosterol, and carbohydrates (Newall et al, 1996; Bradley 1992, 179; Martin et al 1988). Medical Research: Anemone is a poorly understood plant among medical researchers and thus there is little evidence to support its traditional usage. In support of its usage as an analgesic, sedative and antidepressant, one study demonstrated that both anemonin and protoanemonin have a sedative effect in experimental animal models (Martin et al 1988), but this is about the extent of the supporting data. The British Herbal Compendium describes a series of studies in which protoanemonin was shown to stimulate and then paralyze the central nervous system in experimental animals (Bradley 1992, 180). •Antifungal: Protoanemonin has demonstrated in vitro activity against fungal growth and development (Martin et al 1990; Mares 1987). •Anti-mutagen: Protoanemonin has been shown to have an anti-mutagenic activity against UV- and N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine-induced mutations in E. coli B/r WP2 trp (Minakata et al 1983). Toxicity: The toxicity data on Anemone is unclear. The toxic principle is usually attributed to protoanemonin, an acrid constituent found in many different members of the Ranunculaceae, including the medicinal Actaea rubra and the Buttercup (Ranunculus spp.). The British Herbal Compendium states that fresh plant materials have been observed to cause severe skin irritation and mucosal inflammation (“Ranunculaceae dermatitis”), and that irritation of the kidneys and urinary tract may occur through the alkylating activity of protoanemonin. Dry plant preparations, or the dried herbaceous material found in animal feed (i.e. hay) is usually not considered to be problematic because of the degradation of protoanemonin. King’s states that in higher doses Anemone can cause a violent gastritis, accompanied by a sense of constriction and tightness of the chest, with chilliness and weakness, followed by a depressant activity upon cardiac function, lowered arterial tension, and reduced body temperature (Felter and Lloyd 1893). King’s states further that sensory and motor paralysis may also occur, and in toxic doses Anemone will produce mydriasis (pupil dilation), stupor, coma, and convulsions (Felter and Lloyd 1893). Herbal action: antidepressant, anxiolytic, analgesic, antispasmodic Indications: nervousness, depression, anxiety, sadness, grief, pain, insomnia, amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea, orchitis, otitis, neuralgia ©2011 Wild Rose College of Natural Healing All Rights Reserved. 2 Western Materia Medica Anemone pulsatilla By Terry Willard ClH, PhD and Todd Caldecott ClH RANUNCULACEAE Contraindications and cautions: Anemone is avoided in sthenic conditions with symptoms of heat and inflammation. Given its irritant effects Anemone is best avoided in gastrointestinal or urinary tract inflammation, and because it exerts a depressant effect upon cardiac function it is avoided in bradycardia. Anemone is also best avoided during pregnancy and lactation. Medicinal uses: Anemone is among the most useful antidepressants and anxiolytics in the material medica, but is used primarily for those conditions that are marked by coldness and nervous debility. Anemone is often the first plant to flower, rising out of the melting snow, and because of this is seen by many cultures as representing the rejuvenating power of rebirth, even in hardship. Thus Anemone is indicated whenever there are apparent obstructions to happiness, helping to provide courage and strength to move to the next level. The ragged, mop-like appearance of the seeds heads suggests a disorganized consciousness that is easily swayed by influences (i.e. the wind). Although not trophorestorative per se, Anemone exerts its influence by pacifying undue excitement, lifting the spirits, and providing the ability to rest and relax. It is best used along with trophorestoratives in full doses, such as Avena or American Ginseng. Anemone is indicated in a weak, open and soft pulse, sometimes irregular, sometimes thin, with a creamy, thick, whitish coating upon the tongue. The mood will be gloomy, with a tendency to weep, brood and worry, imagining only desperate scenarios and seeing only the negative. It is often used in times of acute crisis of in patients that have just received bad news and cannot cope, as in patients who have a just received a difficult diagnosis (e.g. cancer). In insomnia Anemone is particularly indicated in patients that think too much and worry while lying in bed, and have a difficult time getting warm. Anemone has also earned a prominent reputation in the treatment of reproductive disorders in both men and women. It acts as an emmenagogue, used in the treatment of amenorrhea in nervous and anemic patients, with coldness as the prominent symptom (Felter and Lloyd 1893). It is used in digestive disorders, particularly from overindulgence in fats and pastries, in bilious conditions and in constipation caused by dietary indiscretions and from anxiety. In dysmenorrhea Anemone is helpful as an antispasmodic, with similar indications as in amenorrhea, and also in leucorrhoea, “…with a free, thick, milky, or yellow, bland discharge and pain in the loins” (Felter and Lloyd). The patient may also complain of poor libido, expressing some anxiety around the sexual act, with pain upon intercourse and poor vaginal lubrication. Anemone is indicated in epididymitis and orchitis from an STD infection or from viral parotitis, indicated by “…a dark-red, congested, enlarged, and sensitive testicle” (Felter and Lloyd 1893). Similarly, Anemone may be helpful in orchitis and varicoceles secondary to venous congestion “…which stops short of inflammation” (Felter and Lloyd 1893). Anemone is also used in urethritis, spermatorrhea and ©2011 Wild Rose College of Natural Healing All Rights Reserved. 3 Western Materia Medica Anemone pulsatilla By Terry Willard ClH, PhD and Todd Caldecott ClH RANUNCULACEAE prostatorrhea, and in incontinence from nervous debility. Anemone is an important remedy in headache, particularly in menstrual headaches and migraines associated with anemia and decreased cerebral blood blow. It is also stated to be a helpful remedy in acute upper respiratory tract viral infection, with a thick, abundant nasal catarrh, and a dry, tight, painful cough. In children Anemone is helpful in nightmares, given before bed, and also in enuresis that occurs with or without a disturbed, frightful sleep. Anemone is used in both herbal medicine and in homeopathy in otitis media, especially with a thick, yellow non-bacterial discharge, impaired hearing and tinnitus. Anemone is also indicated in the treatment of hordeolum (sty), chronic conjunctivitis, glaucoma, or eyestrain with orbital pain. Anemone is similarly used for