Thunder God Vine on Arthritis

NANJING, ChinaScientists studying glycosides from the Chinese herb known as Thunder God Vine (Tripterygium wilfordii) have further elucidated the active constituents of this botanical remedy on inflammatory factors in autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis. They published their results online ahead of print July 15 in the journal Fitoterapia.

Acknowledging the pharmacological actions of the glycoside wilforde A (T1) are not well-defined, the researchers compared T1 with Triptolide (TP), which is considered to be the active ingredient in Thunder God Vine glycoside formulas. They induced various swelling and immune dysfunction in rats, then administered the test preparations. There was no benefit from T1 administration, whereas TP showed significant improvements to the parameters. The researchers concluded TP should be controlled as a supplement standard in order to ensure safe and effective medication.