Hydrangea febrifuga
Species of plant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hydrangea febrifuga is a flowering plant in the family Hydrangeaceae. It is a subshrub or shrub native to central and southern China, Indochina, Malesia, and New Guinea.[1]
| Hydrangea febrifuga | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Cornales |
| Family: | Hydrangeaceae |
| Genus: | Hydrangea |
| Species: | H. febrifuga |
| Binomial name | |
| Hydrangea febrifuga (Lour.) Y.De Smet & Granados | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Synonymy
| |
National names
Traditional Chinese medicine
Dichroa febrifuga is an important herb in traditional Chinese medicine, where it is considered one of the 50 fundamental herbs.[2] The alkaloids febrifugine and isofebrifugine are believed to be responsible for its antimalarial effects.[3] In traditional preparations, it is used in conjunction with other plants such as Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice), Ziziphus jujuba and Zingiber officinale (ginger).[4]
Potential drug against autoimmune disease
Halofuginone, sold under the brand name Halocur, is a coccidiostat used in veterinary medicine. It is a synthetic halogenated derivative of febrifugine, a natural quinazolinone alkaloid which can be found in dichroa febrifuga.[5]
Halofuginone inhibits the development of T helper 17 cells, immune cells that play an important role in autoimmune disease, but it does not affect other kinds of T cells which are involved in normal immune function.[6] Halofuginone therefore has potential for the treatment of autoimmune disorders.[7]
