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Juniperus chinensis

Juniperus Chinensis is a plant with folklore but no proven medical uses; is an effective insect repellant. It may have protective effects against colon cancer, and the lone rat study assessing glucose tolerance noted fairly remarkable anti-diabetic effects.

Our evidence-based analysis on juniperus chinensis features 25 unique references to scientific papers.

Kamal Patel
Research analysis led by Kamal Patel.
All content reviewed by the Examine.com Team. Published: Sep 30, 2013
Last Updated:

Summary of Juniperus chinensis

Primary Information, Benefits, Effects, and Important Facts

Juniperus Chinensis is a plant that is a functional house decoration as it has some insect repellant properties. It has some folklore usage for some things, which has spurred limited amounts of research into the herb. Nothing substantial has been conducted though.

Currently, we have lackluster fat burning potential and one study in rats on blood glucose. This study on blood glucose is actually quite remarkable in effect size, but it needs to be replicated in another animal models since the active drug it was compared to might not have been properly evaluated chosen. The effects on colon cancer cells appear to be promising, but no studies have compared the potency of the active component (Widdrol) against an active drug control or used any living models to test; currently preliminary.

It does have a historical use of being an abortifacient (inducing abortions) so it is probably prudent to not consume Juniperus containing products if pregnant; no studies have been conducted on this, however.

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Things To Know & Note

Primary Function:

Also Known As

byakushin

Caution Notice

Examine.com Medical Disclaimer

  • Anti-abortifacient means it can induce abortions via contractions of the uterine wall

  • Both the water-soluble and fat-soluble portions have benefits

How to Take Juniperus chinensis

Recommended dosage, active amounts, other details

The only animal evidence at this moment in time used 50-150mg/kg in rats, which is an estimated human dose of:

  • 550-1,600mg for a 150lb person

  • 700-2,200mg for a 200lb person

  • 900-2,700mg for a 250lb person

There is no assurance that these dosage ranges are optimal for human consumption

Scientific Research on Juniperus chinensis

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1Sources and Composition

1.1Sources

Juniperus Chinensis (of the Cupressaceae family) is a Korean folk remedy sometimes referred to as byakushin and general East Asian tonic that moonlights as a house plant, and has a folklore history for anti-tumor, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, abortifacient, anti-platelet, vasorelaxing, and anti-viral activities.[1][2][3][4] It does not appear to have a history of medicinal usage beyond these folklore uses, although the abortifacient properties (induce abortion) of the Juniperus genera has been noted.[5]

It also appears to be used as an insecticide and insect repellant via the aromatic components.[6][7]

Some folklore history that is seemingly unremarkable; potential use as an abortifacient (not necessarily a good thing) and as an insect repellant against mosquitoes

1.2Composition

It contains various compounds such as:

  • Widdrol, with 15.88g being extracted from 10kg in this study (0.001%; may not be reflective of total content)[1]

  • (4-hydroxy-2-isopropylphenyl)ethanoic acid[8]

  • The lignans Epi-calocedrin[8] and other lignans such as hibalactone, isohibalactone, and 7-oxohinokinin[9]

  • The bioflavanoids "Hinikoflavone" and Kayaflavone,[10] the former possible being a type of Hinokiflavone.[11] Other flavanoids are Quercetin, naringenin, taxifolin, aromadendrin and isoquercitrin[12]

  • 2-arylpropane-1,3-diol[9]

  • Totarol and totalorone, as well as the diterpenes 1,3-dioxototarol, isototarolenone, and 1-oxo-3β-hydroxytotarol[13] as well as other diterpenoids[14]

  • (+)-1-hydroxy-1,3,5-bisabolatrien-10-one[15]

  • The courmarin Umbelliferone[9]

  • Podophyllotoxin at 0.00009% dry weight[16][17]

  • Yatein at 0.0008% dry weight[17]

  • Beta-sitosterol[18]

  • Essential Oils Sabenine (19.8%), Limonene (14.2%), bornyl acetate (17.5%), and elemol (18.6%) comprising most of the weight; with 29 other oils totalling the final 30%[19]

Widdrol appears to be the major component in Juniperus Chinensis that is seen as unique to this plant, although some other compounds (such as the flavanoids) appear to also be relatively unique

2Interactions with Fat Metabolism

2.1Interventions

A water extract of Juniperus Chinensis was given at 1% of the diet to normal rats fed a high-fat diet for 79 days noted that Juniperus was able to attenuate the rate of weight gain to 85.9% of high fat control, but failed to match the normal chow diet (leanest of all three groups); no changes in food intake were reported.[20] The Juniperus group appears to have higher levels of active AMPK than the high fat control, but not to the level of lean control.

May have weak anti-obese effects, but nothing remarkable

3Interactions with Glucose Metabolism

3.1Interventions

A study in alloxan-induced diabetic rats (model of type I diabetes), the berries of Juniper were crushed and extracted with either water or ethanol.[21] Acutely, 50-150mg/kg of the ethanolic extract orally significantly reduced blood glucose from 479-491mg/dL to 72-110mg/dL with no apparent dose-dependence; these acute serum glucose levels were lower than non-diabetic control (118mg/dL).[21] These potent acute effects seem to be concentrated in the ethanolic extract, and significantly outperformed Glibenclamide over 9 hours (Glibenclamide reducing glucose to 64% of baseline levels and the ethanolic extract reducing them to 40% at 9 hours) with increasing efficacy up until that time point.[21] A limitation of this study is using Glibenclamide in an alloxan-diabetic model (as Glibenclamide reduces glucose by stimulating beta-cells of the pancreas) so the degree of potency may appear more than it actually is.[21] 

Only one study with seemingly remarkable effects with the ethanolic extract of Juniper fruits, which really needs to be replicated; way too preliminary to make any conclusions

4Interactions with Cancer Metabolism

4.1Colorectal

Widdrol appears to exert cytotoxic and anti-proliferative effects on colonic adenocarcinoma HT29 cells in a dose-dependent manner, associated with an increase in caspase activity (indicative of apoptosis via mitochondrial damage).[1] Apoptosis induced by Widdrol appears to occur at the G1 phase of the cell cycle (increasing the cell population in G1 from 38.6% to 53.3% at 113uM after 30 minutes; decreasing a bit then elevating to 79.9% at 24 hours),[1][22] and may be secondary to a rapid and quick activation of p21 via phosphorylation.[22][23] Secondary to activation of p21, Cdk2 and cyclin E are both downregulated.[23]

A significant downregulation of Mini-Chromosome Maintenance (MCM) proteins was observed in cells that accumulated at G1,[22][23] MCM proteins protect the genome from damage[24] and tend to be overexpressed in cancer cells,[25] so their suppression by Widdrol may preserve pro-apoptotic damages to the genome of cancer cells. A subsequent study noted that the MCM protein MCM4 specifically was downregulated to 40% of control.[23]

Widdrol appears to activate p21 and reduce MCM proteins, which may make the genome vulnerable to oxidative damage

Widdrol, at 216uM concentration, is able to directly induce DNA strand breaks in vitro in colon cancer HT29 cells while its effects in normal mouse fibroblast cells (SC-1) that concentrations of Widdrol up to 562uM were not significantly cytotoxic; suggesting selective cytotoxicity in tumor cells and no alteration of MCM proteins was noted.[23]

Appears to directly damage DNA in cancer cells, with the same concentration not apparently damaging healthy cells

References

  1. ^ a b c d Widdrol from Juniperus chinensis induces apoptosis in human colon adenocarcinoma HT29 Cells.
  2. ^ Screening of Main Japanese Conifers for Antifungal Leaf Components, Sesquiterpenes of Juniperus chinensis var. pyramidalis.
  3. ^ Antimicrobial properties of heartwood, bark/sapwood and leaves of Juniperus species.
  4. ^ San Feliciano A, et al. Antineoplastic and antiviral activities of some cyclolignans. Planta Med. (1993)
  5. ^ Agrawal OP, Bharadwaj S, Mathur R. Antifertility effects of fruits of Juniperus communis. Planta Med. (1980)
  6. ^ Repellency of Milled Aromatic Eastern Red Cedar to Domiciliary Cockroaches (Dictyoptera: Blattellidae and Blattidae).
  7. ^ Carroll JF, et al. Essential oils of Cupressus funebris, Juniperus communis, and J. chinensis (Cupressaceae) as repellents against ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) and mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) and as toxicants against mosquitoes. J Vector Ecol. (2011)
  8. ^ a b Chang CI, et al. A new phenolic and a new lignan from the roots of Juniperus chinensis. Nat Prod Commun. (2010)
  9. ^ a b c Lignans from leaves of Juniperus chinensis.
  10. ^ Studies on flavonoids in the leaves of Coniferae and allied plants. V. Relation between the distribution of bisflavonoids and taxonomic position of the plants.
  11. ^ Hinokiflavone.
  12. ^ Lim JP, et al. Free radical scavengers from the heartwood of Juniperus chinensis. Arch Pharm Res. (2002)
  13. ^ Three new diterpenes, 1,3-dioxototarol, isototarolenone, and 1-oxo-3β-hydroxytotarol, from the roots of Juniperus chinensis.
  14. ^ Lee CK, Cheng YS. Diterpenoids from the leaves of Juniperus chinensis var. kaizuka. J Nat Prod. (2001)
  15. ^ Serra S. Enantioselective synthesis of the bisabolane sesquiterpene (+)-1-hydroxy-1,3,5-bisabolatrien-10-one and revision of its absolute configuration. Nat Prod Commun. (2012)
  16. ^ Ali AM, et al. Antitumour-promoting and antitumour activities of the crude extract from the leaves of Juniperus chinensis. J Ethnopharmacol. (1996)
  17. ^ a b Extractives ofJuniperus chinensis L. I: Isolation of podophyllotoxin and yatein from the leaves ofJ. chinensis.
  18. ^ Chang CI, et al. A new labdane-type diterpene from the bark of Juniperus chinensis Linn. Nat Prod Res. (2008)
  19. ^ Essential oil composition of Juniperus chinensis from the plains of northern India.
  20. ^ Kim SJ, et al. Anti-obesity effects of Juniperus chinensis extract are associated with increased AMP-activated protein kinase expression and phosphorylation in the visceral adipose tissue of rats. Biol Pharm Bull. (2008)
  21. ^ a b c d Ju JB, et al. Comparison between ethanolic and aqueous extracts from Chinese juniper berries for hypoglycaemic and hypolipidemic effects in alloxan-induced diabetic rats. J Ethnopharmacol. (2008)
  22. ^ a b c Kwon HJ, et al. Widdrol induces cell cycle arrest, associated with MCM down-regulation, in human colon adenocarcinoma cells. Cancer Lett. (2010)
  23. ^ a b c d e Yun HJ, et al. Widdrol activates DNA damage checkpoint through the signaling Chk2-p53-Cdc25A-p21-MCM4 pathway in HT29 cells. Mol Cell Biochem. (2012)
  24. ^ Liang DT, Hodson JA, Forsburg SL. Reduced dosage of a single fission yeast MCM protein causes genetic instability and S phase delay. J Cell Sci. (1999)
  25. ^ Forsburg SL. Eukaryotic MCM proteins: beyond replication initiation. Microbiol Mol Biol Rev. (2004)

This page is regularly updated, to include the most recently available clinical trial evidence.

Each member of our research team is required to have no conflicts of interest, including with supplement manufacturers, food companies, and industry funders. The team includes nutrition researchers, registered dietitians, physicians, and pharmacists. We have a strict editorial process.

This page features 25 references. All factual claims are followed by specifically-applicable references. Click here to see the full set of references for this page.

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