''Bupleurum falcatum'', also known as sickle-leaved hare's-ear, Chinese thoroughwax, sickle hare's ear and sickle-leaf hare's ear, is a species of

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 ...

in the family Apiaceae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Western Asia Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Ana ...

. ''Bupleurum falcatum'' has been used in Chinese medicine for over 2,000 years as a "liver tonic". ''Bupleurum falcatum'' has been found to possess

antidepressant Antidepressants are a class of medication used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain conditions, and to help manage addictions. Common side-effects of antidepressants include dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, hea ...

properties, mediated through the serotonergic & noradrenergic systems (although the precise mechanism remains to be found).

References

falcatum Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Apiaceae-stub