Echinacea purpurea, commonly referred to as the purple coneflower, is native to the United States and was first discovered by Native American Indians as a medicinal herb. Liquid extracts of Echinacea purpurea were evaluated for the capacity to stimulate total immunoglobulin immune responses in male CD1 (Charles River Laboratory) mice infected with an antigen of SRBC (sheep red blood cells). A c...

Alkylamides present in Echinacea species have reported immunomodulatory actions, yet their direct effects on T lymphocytes, key mediators of antiviral immunity, are poorly understood. We hypothesized that constituents present in ethanolic extracts of Echinacea species exert direct immunomodulatory effects on human Jurkat T cells. Modulation of IL-2 production by submaximally stimulated Jurkat c...

BACKGROUND With a traditional medical use for treatment of various ailments, herbal preparations of Echinacea are now popularly used to improve immune responses. One likely mode of action is that alkamides from Echinacea bind to cannabinoid type 2 (CB2) receptors and induce a transient increase in intracellular Ca2+. Here, we show that unidentified compounds from Echinacea purpurea induce cytos...

The Effect of Hormone Seed Priming Using Gibberellic Acid on Germination Characteristics and Seedling Growth Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)

Common symptoms of upper respiratory infections, such as sore throat, cough, and inflammation, are often caused by bacteria, sometimes as a complication of virus infection. Extracts of Echinacea purpurea (Asteraceae) have been advocated traditionally for use by individuals suffering from these symptoms, although the underlying basis for the beneficial effects of Echinacea is not known. We hypot...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the safety and efficacy of 2 extracts of echinacea for preventing upper respiratory tract infections. DESIGN Three-armed, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. SETTING Four military institutions and 1 industrial plant. PARTICIPANTS Three hundred two volunteers without acute illness at time of enrollment. INTERVENTIONS Ethanolic extract from Echinac...

Extrapolations from pharmacological research have led some authors to suggest restrictions or contraindications for the use of Echinacea. This article examines the known chemistry and pharmacology of the various Echinacea species and products, and challenges some of these popular concepts. In particular, the hypotheses that Echinacea is a T cell activator and that it will accelerate pathology i...

The genus Echinacea (Asteraceae) is native to North America and consists of nine species (McGregor 1968). E. angustifolia DC, a narrow leafed species, is distributed on barrens and dry prairies from Minnesota to Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, the Dakotas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba (McGregor 1968; Kindscher 1989; Foster 1991). E. angustifolia grows lower an...

Echinacea has gained considerable attention because of its increasing economic value and use as a medicinal plant. The genus Echinacea, Asteraceae, is represented by eleven taxa found in the United States and in south central Canada. Echinacea purpurea is the most widespread species (McGregor 1968) and the most widely cultivated medicinal species of the genus (McKeown 1999). Echinacea species h...

The aim of this study was to investigate radioprotective properties of Echinacea purpurea tablets in vivo. We analysed lymphocyte chromosome aberrations (CA), micronuclei (MN), apoptosis of leukocytes and haematological parameters in a group of radiation workers who were identified as carrying dicentric chromosomes in their lymphocytes. All radiation workers were taking two 275 mg Echinacea tab...