''Plantago asiatica'', is a self-fertile,

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

of genus ''

Plantago ''Plantago'' is a genus of about 200 species of flowering plants in the family Plantaginaceae, commonly called plantains or fleaworts. The common name plantain is shared with the unrelated cooking plantain. Most are herbaceous plants, though a ...

''. The plant is native to East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, etc.). It grows really well in disturbed areas like roadsides or even dirt roads. It is valued for its use in

folk medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

and it also can be used in cooking. Common names include Chinese plantain, obako, arnoglossa, and Asiatic plantain.

Description

The plant is a perennial herb that up to and has short and thick rootstock with numerous fibrous and fasciculate roots. It has short stems with a rosette of broadly ovate to broadly elliptic leaves. Thin or very thin papery leaf blades are long, wide, sparsely pubescent, three to seven veins, obtuse to acute apex, broadly cuneate to surrounded base and decurrent to petiole, margins are entire, repand, serrate or dentate. Petioles long, sparsely pubescent. The plant has erect spikes of high, with many small, white, hairless flowers, and oval sepals that are long, tube corolla with five oval lobes, and four stamens. The fruits are oval-shaped pyxis of high and m wide, which have four black seeds inside that are up to long. The plant can be a weed in uplands, fields and gardens and it can host aphid and red spider. Blooming period: April – August, fruiting period: June- September.

Habitat

The plant can grow in many regions, such as mountain slopes, ravines, riverbanks, fields, roadsides, wastelands, lawns.

Cultivation

The plant is hardy, and it can grow in all USDA zones. It likes full sun or part shade, and it can adapt to sandy, loamy, and clay soils with good drainage. Acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils are suitable for this plant.

Medicinal use

Traditionally, the plant was used to treat liver disease, stomach problems and urinary system inflammation. According to

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...

, all parts of the plant are medicine to cool heat and promote urination, cause

diuresis Diuresis () is increased urination (polyuria) or, in the related word senses more often intended, the physiological process that produces such an increase or the administration of medications to encourage that process. It involves extra urine pro ...

, clear damp-heat, brighten the eyes and dislodge phlegm. The leaves and the seeds have anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antitussive, cardiac, diuretic, expectorant, haemostatic efficacy. The roots can be made into a

decoction Decoction is a method of extraction by boiling herbal or plant material (which may include stems, roots, bark and rhizomes) to dissolve the chemicals of the material. It is the most common preparation method in various herbal-medicine systems. De ...

to treat coughs. Scientific studies have shown that ''Plantago asiatica'' petroleum extract has a significant antidepressant effect, and the hot water extracts of P. major and P. asiatica have anti-leukaemia, anti-cancer and anti-viral activities, as well as the activity of regulating cell-mediated immunity. The seed gel extract can work as a lubricant to promote laxation of humans, and the PSE (Plantago asiatica L. seed extract) can contribute to the treatment or prevention of obesity and relative symptoms as a potential dietary supplement. The Plantaginis Semen inhibits the activities of XOD (

Xanthine oxidase Xanthine oxidase (XO, sometimes XAO) is a form of xanthine oxidoreductase, a type of enzyme that generates reactive oxygen species. These enzymes catalyze the oxidation of hypoxanthine to xanthine and can further catalyze the oxidation of xanthin ...

) significantly, and it can be used in the reduction of hyperuricemia and the treatment of gout. Plantamajoside can be isolated from Plantago asiatica, and it has antioxidant and anti-glycation effects. Thus it can be used to study the effects of natural herbal supplements to prevent diabetic complications. Pregnant women need to avoid using this medicine, which may cause uterine activity and laxation. Patients cannot take

lithium Lithium (from el, λίθος, lithos, lit=stone) is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3. It is a soft, silvery-white alkali metal. Under standard conditions, it is the least dense metal and the least dense solid el ...

carbamazepine Carbamazepine (CBZ), sold under the trade name Tegretol among others, is an anticonvulsant medication used primarily in the treatment of epilepsy and neuropathic pain. It is used as an adjunctive treatment in schizophrenia along with other medi ...

with plantain at the same time. ''Plantago asiatica'' can cause side effects, such as

anaphylaxis Anaphylaxis is a serious, potentially fatal allergic reaction and medical emergency that is rapid in onset and requires immediate medical attention regardless of use of emergency medication on site. It typically causes more than one of the follow ...

, chest congestion, sneezing, watery eyes, occupational asthma, and gastric concretion.

Toxicology

The pollen has allergenic

glycoprotein Glycoproteins are proteins which contain oligosaccharide chains covalently attached to amino acid side-chains. The carbohydrate is attached to the protein in a cotranslational or posttranslational modification. This process is known as glycos ...

s and components that can bind

IgE Immunoglobulin E (IgE) is a type of antibody (or immunoglobulin (Ig) " isotype") that has been found only in mammals. IgE is synthesised by plasma cells. Monomers of IgE consist of two heavy chains (ε chain) and two light chains, with the ε c ...

which can mediated sensitization, contributing to seasonal allergy.

Culinary use

The plant is suitable for cooking with grains and stews, and it can also be added to herbal wines. The leaves of the plant are used in many Japanese dishes, especially soups.Willcox, Bradley and Willcox, Graig. ''The Okinawa Diet Plan'' In Vietnam, the young leaves are boiled, fried, or made into soup with meat or prawns. It also can be fried with salt, or boiled with Yin Chen ( ''Artemisia capillaris'' herba) to make Yin Chen Tea.

References

External links

Plantago asiatica
{{Authority control asiatica Medicinal plants Plants used in traditional Chinese medicine Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus