Catechu, also known as catechu paste, baby catechu, and black catechu, is a catechu tree of the Fabaceae family, Albizia genus. It is used to clear away heat, promote fluid production, and stop bleeding. It is mainly used to treat cough due to lung heat, hemoptysis, diarrhea, and indigestion in children; it can be used externally to treat long-lasting sores, skin eczema, aphtha, and tonsillitis.

The effects and functions of catechu

1. Hepatoprotective and choleretic effects:

The d-catechin and epicatechin contained in this product have significant hepatoprotective effects. D-Catechin 150 mg/kg has a protective effect on liver damage caused by carbon tetrachloride. It can significantly reduce alanine aminotransferase (ALT), reverse inverted albumin/globulin (A/G), increase glutathione sulfur transferase (GST) activity, and enhance liver detoxification function. D-catechin can also antagonize liver damage caused by muscarine, phalloidine and acetaminophen. It also has a significant protective effect on hepatic steatosis in rats caused by homocysteine ​​sulfide S and malonic acid and hepatic steatosis in rats caused by low-protein and high-fat diet. Subcutaneous injection of d-catechin 50mg/kg also has a significant protective effect. In addition, d-catechin can also significantly prevent hepatic steatosis caused by uracil-6-carboxylic acid or ethanol. The hepatoprotective effect of D-catechin is related to its promotion of intrahepatic ATP synthesis, lysosomal membrane stability, free radical scavenging, antioxidant effect, and possible anti-endotoxin and anti-fat infiltration effects. The hepatoprotective effect of tea essence is also related to its strong free radical scavenging effect. Duodenal administration of catechin 50mg/kg or 75mg/kg can also significantly increase bile flow in anesthetized dogs or rats, and the effect lasts for 3h or 60-80min respectively.

2. Impact on immune function:

In the absence of antigen, d-catechin does not affect the migration of leukocytes, but in vitro tests inhibit the migration of normal human leukocytes that are sensitive to purified protein derivative (PPD) antigens, and its inhibitory effect on leukocyte migration is stronger in patients who have been infected with hepatitis B and are sensitive to hepatitis B surface antigen, indicating that it can amplify cell-mediated immune responses and promote the clearance of hepatitis B antigens. D-catechin can also restore the lymphocyte count to normal in patients with chronic hepatitis, and promote the transformation of lymphocytes induced by PPD in patients with chronic liver disease who are positive for old tuberculin. For normal people's peripheral blood Ts cells, d-catechin can activate them and inhibit the blastema cell transformation induced by concanavalin A (ConA). However, for patients with chronic liver disease, d-catechin can significantly inhibit Ts function and inhibit the production of Ig.

3. Anti-pathogenic microorganism effect:

In vitro antibacterial tests show that the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of catechu against Staphylococcus aureus is 2.8lmg/ml, Staphylococcus albus is 5.63mg/ml, beta-hemolytic Streptococcus is 5.63mg/ml, and Candida albicans is 5.63mg/ml. It has also been reported that catechu is effective against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Diphtheriae, and Proteus. Shigella dysenteriae, typhoid bacilli, etc. have inhibitory effects. In the drug susceptibility test of 5% catechu suspension against 68 strains of Shigella dysenteriae, the sensitivity rate to Shigella flexneri and Shigella baumannii was 100%. In addition, it also has a significant inhibitory effect on viruses and certain fungi. Wine

4. Inhibition of intestinal motility and anti-diarrheal effect:

Ingestion of catechu water solution can inhibit the movement of duodenum and small intestine in fasting rabbits and promote cecal retrograde peristalsis, but has no obvious effect on the colon. D-catechin can also inhibit the amine-generating enzyme of bacteria in the large intestine, blocking the production of indole substances and causing constipation.

5. Hypoglycemic effect:

Indian folk use catechu to treat diabetes. The epicatechin contained in this product can promote insulin secretion in rats in an ATP, temperature and concentration-dependent manner. Injection of 30 mg/kg twice a day for 4 days can increase the insulin content in rat pancreatic islets by 30%. Epicatechin can also promote the synthesis of DNA in pancreatic islets. D-catechin also has a hypoglycemic effect on rabbits.

6. Effect on blood and cardiovascular system:

Catechin has significant anti-platelet aggregation, anti-thrombosis and other effects. It shows a concentration-dependent inhibition on rabbit platelet aggregation induced by ADP, AA and collagen; catechin also significantly inhibits thrombosis in rats and can reduce the content of thromboxane A2 (TXA2) without significant effect on 6-Keto-PGF1a. D-catechin can delay the increase in serum cholesterol caused by lanolin. In addition, two isomers were isolated from catechu with cholesterol-lowering activity. D-catechin can constrict the blood vessels of isolated rabbit ears, and first inhibit and then excite the isolated heart. Intravenous injection of catechu can reduce skeletal muscle tone, blood pressure and breathing in guinea pigs. D-catechin can enhance the tyrosinase activity and inhibit the tyrosine decarboxylase activity, thus reducing the level of adrenaline in the body, which may be related to the antihypertensive effect. D-catechin can inhibit the oxygen uptake of various tissues such as rat brain, liver, kidney, heart and pig aorta, especially the heart.

7. Other functions:

Subcutaneously burying 30mg of catechu can significantly delay the latent period of writhing reaction in mice caused by acetic acid, and significantly reduce the number of writhing times. Subcutaneously burying 40mg of catechu for 5 hours has no obvious local irritation reaction, indicating that catechu has a certain analgesic effect. Catechu has an inhibitory effect on Ehrlich ascites cancer in vitro. Catechin has anti-radiation, white blood cell-increasing and anti-tumor effects, and can prevent the spread of tumor cells by inhibiting the adhesion between tumor cells and fibrin. Catechin tannic acid can promote the absorption of vitamin C in guinea pigs lacking vitamin C, and can inhibit the formation of bladder stones in experimental rats, which may be related to its ability to lower the pH of urine.

The above introduces the "Effects and Functions of Catechu-The Medicinal Value of Catechu", I hope it will be helpful to friends in need.

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