Dioscorea cirrhosa. 薯 莨 Shǔ làng  Family: Dioscoreaceae  
PART USED: Dry tuber
Nature- cool   FLAVOR: Slightly bitter, harsh
FUNCTIONS
1. Arrest bleeding, activate Blood, nourish Blood.[1]
INDICATIONS
1. Vaginal bleeding, bleeding after childbirth, dishcharge of blood from mouth, hematuria, bleeding from upper digestive tract, anemia.[1]
PREPARATIONS: Dry tuber 9-15 g.[1]
References
Inner Path can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Research

Effect of the active component isolated from the alcohol extract of Dioscorea cirrhosa Lour on blood pressure of rats. [Article in Chinese]
Xia CL, Zhong C.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
To isolate the active component from Dioscorea cirrhosa Lour and test its activity in lowering blood pressure.
METHODS:
The serial components were obtained from the total extract, ligroin extract, ethyl acetate, n-butyl alcohol extract and water extract. The isolated active components were administered in rats via the common carotid artery canulation and tail vein injection to test their effects on blood pressure.
RESULTS:
The component A isolated and purified from normal butanol showed obvious effect in lowering the blood pressure of rats.
CONCLUSION:
The isolated active component from Dioscorea cirrhosa Lour possesses obvious blood pressure-lowering activity.
PMID: 20118011   Nan Fang Yi Ke Da Xue Xue Bao. 2010 Jan;30(1):160-2.  ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Efficacy of water fraction from Dioscorea cirrhosa on oxidative stress and apoptosis in H9c2 cardiomyocytes induced by H2O2
Chunhua Liu, Dingyan Lu, Jingrui You, Yuan Lu, Jia Sun, Jie Pan, Yonglin Wang, Aimin Wang, Yanyu Lan, Yongjun Li, Ting Liu
Abstract
Objective: To investigate the efficacy of water fraction from Dioscorea cirrhosa (WF) on oxidative damage and apoptosis of cardiomyocytes induced by H2O2, and to study its mechanism.
Methods: Cell viability was measured by the MST assay kit. The content of malondialdehyde (MDA), release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and activity of catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were detected by biochemical kit. The content of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was assessed by nonfluorescent probe 2' ,7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate (DCFH-DA). JC-1 was used to analyze the mitochondrial membrane potential (mtΔΨ) and Annexin-V-FITC/PI staining was applied to assess apoptosis of H9c2 by flow cytometry. Moreover, the expression of B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), Bcl-2-associated X (Bax), caspase-3, caspase-9, cleaved-caspase-3 and cleaved-caspase -9 proteins was determined by western blot analysis.
Results: WF increased cell viability and decreased LDH leakage in H9c2 cells exposed to H2O2. WF treatment decreased ROS and MDA level, enhanced SOD and CAT activities, improved mtΔΨ and inhibited apoptosis. Western blot analysis demonstrated that the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax was increased and the expression cleaved-caspase-3, caspase-3, cleaved-caspase-9 and caspase-9 were decreased in group treated with WF.
Conclusion: WF protects H9c2 myocardial cells on H2O2-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis by scavenging ROS, improving antioxidant capacity, protecting mitochondrial and regulating the proteins expression related to apoptosis.
J Tradit Chin Med 2021 Feb;41(1):51-58. doi: 10.19852/j.cnki.jtcm.2021.01.007. PMID: 33522197 DOI: 10.19852/j.cnki.jtcm.2021.01.007 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov