Medical attributes of Passiflora spp.

Medical Attributes of Passiflora sp. - Passionflower

by Christopher Cousin, Anastasya Menaker, and Samantha Tellip
Wilkes University
Wilkes-Barre, PA

July, 2013

Passiflora, known commonly as the passionflower, is a genus that consists of 500 species of flowering plants that exist mostly as vines belonging to the Passionflower family (Passifloraceae). The various species of this genus are distributed in the warm temperate and tropical regions of North and South America and to a lesser extent in Asia, Australia, and Africa (Dhawan, et. al. 2004). Passionflower extracts have been shown to have

Several different species of Passionflower have been widely employed as folk medicine because of their anxiolytic, spasmolytic, sedative, and narcotic effects (Ozarko 2001; Barbosa 2008; Rodriguez-Fragoso 2008). A hydroethanolic extract of the Passionflower can help reduce seizure severity, depression, anxiety, and insomnia (Miyasaka 2007; Sarris 2011; Singh 2012). Decoctions of the leaves and roots of Passiflora foetida have been used to treat asthma and various neurological disorders (Krishnaveni 2008). Passiflora incarnata is the most commonly used plant as a traditional medicine for the management of anxiety, insomnia, epilepsy, and morphine addiction. Extracts of this species have been used in several studies to treat anxiety and have shown positive results (Akhondzadeh, et. al. 2001; Dhawan 2001; Miyasaka 2007, Elsas 2010). Anxiety is a very common mental health problem throughout the general population and herbal medicines, including Passionflower, are a popular treatment.

Several compounds have been isolated from Passionflower, including flavonoids, apigenin, luteolin, quercetin, harman alkaloids, kaempferol, vitexin, maltol, and ethyl maltol (Rodriguez-Fragoso 2008). The largest accumulations of flavonoids in Passiflora incarnata were found in the leaves between the pre-flowering and flowering stages of the plant (Menghini 1988). A preclinical study (Li 1991) has shown that flavone luteolin possesses a variety of pharmacological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and anticancer activities (Li 1991). The ability of luteolin to inhibit angiogenesis, to induce apoptosis, to prevent carcinogenesis in animal models, to reduce tumor growth in vivo and to sensitize tumor cells to the cytotoxic effects of some anticancer drugs suggests that this flavonoid has cancer chemo preventive and chemotherapeutic potential (Li 1991).

Flavonoids also exhibit significant hormone activity (Zand 2000). The flavonoids apigenin and luteolin were found to be more effective at preventing pregnancy than ethinyl estradiol (Hiremath 2000), which is used in the commonly prescribed oral contraceptives. Apigenin, a flavone that is an aglycone of several naturally occurring glycosides, has been found to be an active ingredient of passionflower and acts by binding to central benzodiazepine receptors, possibly causing anxiolytic effects without impairing memory or motor skills (Rodriguez-Fragoso 2008; Svenningsen, et. al. 2006).

A tri-substituted benzoflavone moiety (BZF) has been isolated from the bioactive methanol extract of Passiflora incarnata. The BZF moiety has exhibited encouraging results in the reversal of tolerance and dependence of several addiction-prone psychotropic drugs (Dhawan 2003). Passiflora incarnata has also been shown to possess significant CNS depressant properties such as glycosides, alkaloids, and phenolic compounds and volatile constituents haven been reported as major phytoconstituents (Dhawan, et. al. 2004).

A double-blind randomized trial compared the efficacy of Passiflora incarnata extract with oxazepam in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder. The study was performed on 36 outpatients diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder. Passiflora extract and oxazepam were effective in treatment of the disorder and no significant difference was observed between the two protocols at the end of the trial. The study results suggest that Passiflora extract is an effective drug for the management of generalized anxiety disorder, and low incidence of impairment of job performance with Passiflora extract compared to oxazepam is an advantage (Akhondzadeh, et. al. 2001). Another study also found an improvement in job performance in favor of the group that used the Passiflora extract to treat anxiety, due to a lower rate of drowsiness, depression, and anxiety compared to a normal standard (Miyasaka 2007).

Passionflower also has some negative side effects, including occupational allergic disease in humans (Giavina-Bianchi 1997), severe nausea, vomiting, drowsiness, prolonged QTc and episodes of non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (Fisher 2000). Dizziness, confusion, ataxia, and altered consciousness have been linked to use of a specific herbal product, Relaxir, produced mainly from the fruits of passionflower (Rodriguez-Fragoso 2008).

Passiflora incarnata has been widely studied and has shown many positive results in the management of anxiety, insomnia, epilepsy, and morphine addiction, but more remains to be learned about side effects and chemical activity.

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This paper was developed as part of the BIO 368 - Medical Botany course offered at Wilkes University during the summer of 2013. Course instructor was Kenneth M. Klemow, Ph.D. (kklemow@wilkes.edu). The information contained herein is based on published sources, and is made available for academic purposes only. No warrantees, expressed or implied, are made about the medical usefulness or dangers associated with the plant species in question.

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This page posted and maintained by Kenneth M. Klemow, Ph.D., Biology Department, Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18766. (570) 408-4758, kklemow@wilkes.edu.