Trifolium pratense

Trifolium pratense

(Chinese medicine and plant Atlas)

[synonym] red clover, red shucao, red Holland qiaoyao, red alfalfa, cauliflower (domestic forage plants), clover (Jiangxi herbal medicine manual).

[source] the inflorescence, branches and leaves of Trifolium pratense.

[plant morphology] Trifolium pratense

Perennial herbs, 30-80 cm high, with sparse hairs. Leaves with 3 leaflets, alternate; petiole long; leaflets ovate or oblong, 3-5 cm long, apex obtuse or concave, base round cuneate, margin hairy, serrate; stipules ovate, apex very sharp. Flowers numerous, densely capitate racemes, from leaf axils, with large involucre, involucre ovoid; calyx tubular, calyx teeth 5, sharp, hairy; corolla butterfly, reddish or lavender; stamen 10, two body; pistil 1, style filiform, beardless. Pods small, enveloped in persistent calyx, most containing 1 seed. Seeds reniform, yellowish brown or yellowish purple. The flowering period is from May to June.

It is cultivated or wild all over China.

[collection] harvest from June to July.

[chemical constituents] the whole herb contains chickpeanin A and B (i.e. formononetin, genistein and daidzein). The isoflavones of Trifolium pratense, trifolin, etc. Chickpea sprout a, B, genistein and daidzein all have estrogen effect. The estrogenic activity per 100 g of hay was equivalent to 0.550-0.565 μ g of estradiol or 2-17 μ g of diethylstilbestrol or 8-30 μ g of diethylstilbestrol. Chickpea sprout a and trifolin also have antifungal effect. The content of isoflavone was higher in the aerial part and lower in the root; in the growth period, the content was higher in the flowering period. Among all kinds of isoflavones, chickpeanin A and B are the main components. In addition, it contains flavonoid salidroside and Trifolium pratense.

Calculated by dry weight, the protein content reached 23% at the late growth stage, and contained various essential amino acids. Sugar content is 24.4%, including sucrose, glucose, fructose, xylose and starch. There are carotene, vitamin D and E in the whole plant. The contents of α and β carotene were 4.3 mg% and 53.6 mg% in spring and 3.2 mg% and 45.9 mg% in summer.

The leaves contain folic acid, 5-formyltetrahydrofolate, a small amount of sterols, glycerides, hydrocarbons, phospholipids, glycolipids and other lipids. The flowers contain many kinds of flavonoids, such as triglyceride, isorhamnetin, trifolinol, salicylic acid, p-hydroxycinnamic acid and volatile oil (including furfural). The content of Alfalfa phenols in fresh grass was about 15.5 μ g / g, mainly in leaves, and less in hay.

[pharmacological action] it can inhibit Paramecium in vitro (0.2% alcohol extract can stop Paramecium in 30 minutes). It can be used as antimalarial drug, expectorant and antispasmodic in the treatment of pertussis and bronchitis. The glycosidic components, such as triglyceride, isotriglyceride or trifolianol, have no physiological activity. Its pollen has antibacterial effect on some gram negative bacilli. Its fruit has estrogen like effect on rats. It has been reported that its aqueous extract has some anti-tumor effect on rats by oral administration or intraperitoneal injection, which can prevent the growth of sarcoma-45, but it has no effect on Ehrlich cancer. The fresh preparation of this extract is invalid, and its sterilized extract must be stored at 4 ℃ for more than 100 days before it can play its role. Therefore, it is speculated that its effective component may be a denatured egg White matter, not alkaloids. This plant can cause photoallergic dermatitis and globular hair to livestock. Cattle and sheep can cause salivation, loss of appetite and other toxic symptoms, which is related to the content of Alfalfa phenol.

[function indications] Chinese medicine plant Atlas: "antispasmodic, cough, asthma. The whole herb is made into ointment to cure local ulcer. "