Traditional Chinese herb slows aging signs in worms and mice
Pu Y, Su C, Wang X, Chen H
Medicinal Plants
Breviscapine-rich Erigeron breviscapus, a daisy-family wildflower from the mountains of southwest China, has long been used in folk medicine, and this study gives that tradition a lab-tested mechanism for slowing cellular aging.
Researchers fed an extract of a small daisy-family herb used in Chinese medicine to tiny roundworms and to mice bred to age fast. The worms lived up to about 19% longer and stayed more active, and the mice showed less scarring and cell damage in their liver and kidneys. The herb seems to work by boosting the cell's own antioxidant defenses and by calming a self-destruct process that damaged cells trigger. Human benefits haven't been shown.
Key Findings
EBHM extended average C. elegans lifespan by up to 18.68% and improved stress resistance and motor function.
Lifespan extension disappeared in aak-2, sir-2.1, daf-16 and cep-1 mutants, showing dependence on the AMPK-SIRT1-FOXO/p53 pathway.
In SAMP8 mice, EBHM reduced senescent (SA-β-gal-positive) cells, collagen deposition and α-SMA in liver and kidney, lowered MDA, raised antioxidant enzyme activity, and shifted apoptosis markers (lower Bax and CASP3, higher Bcl-2).
chevron_right Technical Summary
An extract from Erigeron breviscapus, a traditional Chinese medicinal plant, extended worm lifespan by up to 18.68% and reduced aging-related damage in the liver and kidneys of fast-aging mice. It works by switching on cellular energy and stress-defense pathways, though these are animal results and not proof of benefit in people.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Erigeron breviscapus alleviates senescence via AMPK-SIRT1 signaling by modulating FOXO3a-mediated antioxidant defense and p53-dependent apoptosis.
Erigeron breviscapus Hand-Mazz. (EBHM) is a well-documented herbal medicine with recognized antioxidant, anti-apoptotic, and anti-inflammatory bioactivities. However, its anti-senescence effects an...
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Erigeron breviscapus is a Chinese species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. It has been found only in China, in the provinces of Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Sichuan, Tibet, and Yunnan.