Salvia miltiorrhizaBurge (Danshen): a golden herbal medicine in cardiovascular therapeutics

Abstract

Salvia miltiorrhiza Burge (Danshen) is an eminent medicinal herb that possesses broad cardiovascular and cerebrovascular protective actions and has been used in Asian countries for many centuries. Accumulating evidence suggests that Danshen and its components prevent vascular diseases, in particular, atherosclerosis and cardiac diseases, including myocardial infarction, myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury, arrhythmia, cardiac hypertrophy and cardiac fibrosis. The published literature indicates that lipophilic constituents (tanshinone I, tanshinone IIa, tanshinone IIb, cryptotanshinone, dihydrotanshinone, etc) as well as hydrophilic constituents (danshensu, salvianolic acid A and B, protocatechuic aldehyde, etc) contribute to the cardiovascular protective actions of Danshen, suggesting a potential synergism among these constituents. Herein, we provide a systematic up-to-date review on the cardiovascular actions and therapeutic potential of major pharmacologically active constituents of Danshen. These bioactive compounds will serve as excellent drug candidates in small-molecule cardiovascular drug discovery. This article also provides a scientific rationale for understanding the traditional use of Danshen in cardiovascular therapeutics.

Naturally occurring anti-cancer compounds: shining from Chinese herbal medicine

“…2) is a derivative of phenanthrenequinone isolated from the dried root or rhizomes of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge. Tanshinone IIA is the primary bioactive constituent of tanshinones [502], which has various pharmacological effects, including anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and anti-atherosclerotic activities, and cardiovascular protection [503][504][505][506]. Tanshinone exhibits anti-cancer activities in stomach, prostate, lung, breast, and colon cancers, through inducing cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, autophagy, and inhibiting cell migration [507][508][509][510][511][512][513][514][515].…”

Comparative Pharmacokinetics of Hydrophilic Components in Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge. and Carthamus tinctorius L. in Rats That Underwent Cerebral Ischemia Reperfusion Using an HPLC-DAD Method

“…This herb pair has been used historically in China and other countries in Asia to treat cardiovascular and CVDs (Qin et al, 2009;Liu et al, 2011;Chen et al, 2017b;Zhang et al, 2017b). Danshensu (DSS), salvianolic acid A (SAA), and salvianolic acid B (SAB) are the main hydrophilic components of Danshen (Figure 1) (Li et al, 2018c). Hydroxysafflor yellow A (HSYA) is a bioactive component of the dried flower of Honghua ( Figure 1) (Hui et al, 2018).…”

Danhong injection in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases: Pharmacological actions, molecular mechanisms, and therapeutic potential

“…Both herbs are well known to improve blood circulation, eliminate blood stasis, and relieve menstrual pain [15]. Salviae Miltiorrhizae has many pharmacological activities, such as anti-oxidation, suppressing platelet adhesion and aggregation, improving microcirculation, improving hemorheology, and regulating blood lipids [16][17][18]. The main bioactive ingredients of Salviae Miltiorrhizae injection include several water-soluble bioactive compounds (Danshensu, salvianolic acids, protocatechuic aldehyde, rosmarinic acid, and caffeic acid) [16,[19][20][21][22][23].…”

“…Salviae Miltiorrhizae injection also contains trace amount of lipophilic compounds, such as tanshinone II A and cryptotanshinone. The cardiovascular actions of Danshensu, and salvianolic acids have been intensively investigated in the past decade, which supports the clinical utility of these compounds against platelet aggregation and thrombus formation, promoting fibrin degradation, protecting against myocardial ischemia, and improving the microcirculation [16,[19][20][21][22][23]. Protocatechuic aldehyde is another hydrophilic component of DHI.…”

“…Protocatechuic aldehyde has many pharmacological effects, such as anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidation, anti-platelet aggregation, regulation of energy metabolism, inhibition of proliferation and apoptosis. Therefore, protocatechuic aldehyde is effective in improving angina pectoris, inhibiting myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury, and cardiomyocyte apoptosis associated with cardiovascular disease [16,[19][20][21][22][23]. Most of the salvianolic acids is composed of Danshensu combined with other organic acid compounds.…”