OBJECTIVE To investigate the efficacy of hypericum extract WS 5570 (St John's wort) compared with paroxetine in patients with moderate to severe major depression. DESIGN Randomised double blind, double dummy, reference controlled, multicentre non-inferiority trial. SETTING 21 psychiatric primary care practices in Germany. PARTICIPANTS 251 adult outpatients with acute major depression with...

St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) is a traditional herbal medicine that is used for the topical treatment of superficial wounds, burns and dermatitis. The characteristic metabolites of St John's wort are the photodynamic active plant pigment hypericin and the phloroglucin-derivative hyperforin. To date, no studies on immunomodulatory properties of topical preparations of St John's wort have...

Hypericum triquetrifolium Turra. is a valuable medicinal plant owing to source of many bioactive compounds. Hypericin is one of the significant components among these compounds. The aim of this study was to develope an efficient method allowing to improve hypericin production from calli and cell suspension cultures of Hypericum triquetrifolium Turra. Callus formation was obtained from axenic le...

The phloroglucinol derivative hyperforin has been recently shown to be a major antidepressant component in the extract of Hypericum perforatum. Experimental studies clearly demonstrated its activity in different behavioral models of depression. Moreover clinical studies linked the therapeutic efficacy of Hypericum extracts to their hyperforin content, in a dose-dependent manner. The molecular m...

OBJECTIVES To assess the efficacy and safety of hypericum extract (STEI 300, Steiner Arzneimittel, Berlin) compared with imipramine and placebo in patients in primary care with a current episode of moderate depression. DESIGN Randomised, double blind, multicentre, parallel group trial for 8 weeks. SETTING Trained panel of 18 general practitioners from four German states: Bavaria, Berlin, Rh...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of treatment with water, n-butanol and ether extracts of Hypercom perforatum L. on epileptogenesis in rabbits. Animals from the control group received solvent-ethanol, and the kindling model of epilepsy was used. Epileptic focus was induced in Chinchilla rabbits by stimulation of the hippocampus. The following parameters were determined: ...

This special issue on the genus Hypericum (family Hypericaceae) consists of 12 articles focusing on recent advancements related to biosynthetic pathways, biotechnology, molecular biology, genomics, pharmacology, and related disciplines. Hypericum is well-known for its medicinal properties. There are about 487 Hypericum spp., which are distributed across every continent except Antarctica. Althou...

Results Thirty-two studies met the inclusion criteria. Clinical studies were divided into three categories: survey studies (n=11), safety studies (n= 8), and efficacy studies (n= 13). Six studies were randomized controlled trials. The most common herbs studied were St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum L.) (n=3), garlic (Allium sativum L.) extract (n=2), and senna (Cassia senna L.) (n=2). Studi...