PARTE UTILIZADA= Used part: Raíz, corteza y frutos. 

ACCIÓN FARMACOLÓGICA= Pharmacological action: Antibacteriano, para afecciones gastrointestinales, hepáticas, biliares, urunarias y cardiocircularorias, febrífugo y depurativo. 

POSOLOGÍA: Decocción (una cucharadita de café por taza), 2 o 3 tazas al día. 

COMPOSICIÓN QUÍMICA= Chemical composition: Casi toda la planta contiene alcaloides (2-3 %) entre los que destaca la berberina, junto con otros alcaloides isoquinoleínicos : protoberberinas, tetrahidroprotoberberina, bisbencilterahidroisoquinoleína, aporfinas, proaporfinas. Los frutos contienen dextrosa, levulosa, ácidos cíticos, tartárico y málico, goma, pectosa. La semillas pueden contener trazas de alcaloides. 

ZONA GEOGRÁFICA= Geografical zone: Europa central y meridional , Estados Unidos. 

ÚLTIMOS AVANCES EN LA QUÍMICA Y ACTIVIDADES BACTERIOLÓGICAS EN LAS PLANTAS MEDICINALES= Medicinal plants, last advances on chemistry and bacteria activities on the medicinal herbs

This paper presents a study regarding the evaluation of the main alkaloid (berberine) from different parts of Berberis vulgaris from the West side of Romania (Arad), the antioxidant activity of exts., and obtaining and characterization of B. vulgaris ext./b cyclodextrin complexes.  The max. concn. of berberine was found in bark (.apprx.6%), followed by root (3.8%), and the least was found in leaves and fruits (by using the high performance liq. chromatog. anal.).  Leaves and fruits have the best antioxidant activity (revealed by DPPH free radical scavenging assay).  B. vulgaris ext./b cyclodextrin complexes were obtained with good yields (>69%) by using the ethanol-water soln. method, the particles obtained having dimensions between hundreds of nanometers to micrometers (by SEM anal.), and the complex formation was confirmed by thermogravimetry (.apprx.2% mass loss in the 100-275°C temp. interval) and differential scanning calorimetry (endothermal peak with an energy consumption of .apprx.116 J/g, corresponding to the dissocn. of the biocompounds/cyclodextrin complex).

Antioxidant activities of the ethanolic exts. of roots, twigs and leaves of common barberry (Berberis vulgaris) and Croatian barberry (Berberis croatica) were studied.  All the exts. were found to possess some radical-scavenging and antioxidant activities, as detd. by scavenging effect on the DPPH free radical, reducing power and b-carotene-linoleic acid model system.  With the exception of the b-carotene-linoleic acid test, antioxidant activity correlated well with the content of main plant antioxidants, phenols and flavonols, which suggests an important role of these compds. in overall antioxidant activity of investigated plant organs.  The antioxidant activity varied mostly in relation to the organ, while no significant statistically differences were found between B. vulgaris and B. croatica.

Origins: Pastures, thickets, and fence rows.

Uses: The fruit is rich in Vitamin C and has been used in treating certain vitamin deficiencies. The root bark, which is astringent, has been used to treat diarrhea, dysentery, and jaundice. In Europe, a root infusion is used to treat chronic dyspepsia.

------------

Origin:
Distributed in Northwestern Himalayas.

Action:
Root and bark—used for ailments of gastrointestinal tract, liver, gallbladder, kidney and urinary tract, respiratory tract, also as a febrifuge and blood purifier.

1) Fitoterapia : vademecum de prescripcion. 4ta. ed. Barcelona : Masson, 2003, p. 92.

2) HADARUGA, Daniel I., et al. Berberis vulgaris extract/b -cyclodextrin nanoparticles synthesis and characterization.  Revista de Chimie (Bucharest, Romania). 2010, vol.61, nº7, p.669-675.
 
3)  ZOVKO KONCIC, M., et al. Evaluation of antioxidant activities and phenolic content of Berberis vulgaris L. and Berberis croatica Horvat. Food and Chemical Toxicology. 2010, vol.48, nº8-9, p.2176-2180.

4) ALONSO, Jorge R. Tratado de fitomedicina : bases clínicas y farmacológicas. Buenos Aires : ISIS, 1998, p. 175.

5) A guide to medicinal plants of Appalachia/ Krochmal, Arnold; Walter, Russel S.; Doughty, Richard M.: USA: U.S.D.A Forest Service:,1959

6) Khare, C.P./ Indian Medicinal Plants. -- Nueva Dheli: Springer, 2007 . - p. 836.