By Dr. Rita Fabbri
The term Agnocasto derives from a Greek word that literally translated means "pure", hence the name "Agnus", to recall precisely the anaphrodisiac properties of this plant. Later the word "Castus" was added, further underlining the meaning of purity.
Homer defines the "Chaste tree as a" tendril to weave ", here is the etymological meaning of the genus" Vitex ".
The Greek doctor Dioscorides advised the Agnocastus to decrease libido. Pliny the Elder in his “Naturalis Historia” writes that it was scattered on the beds of Athenian women to guarantee their fidelity when their husbands went to war.
Pietro Andrea Mattioli, Sienese physician and botanist of the 16th century, wrote about the "Agnocasto" in his figurative herbarium: "... it forces the impulses of Venus both eaten fried and raw ... it is believed that not only by eating or drinking it makes chaste men but also lying on it ... ".
The "Agnocasto" is also known with the name of "pepper of the monks" because the fruits have a spicy taste and the plant was cultivated by the monks in their gardens as an anaphrodisiac in order not to betray the vow of chastity.
Among the chemical constituents of "Chaste tree there is a flavonoid, vitexin, which actually has relaxing properties. The preparations based on Chaste tree are generally used in the treatment of disorders related to the menstrual cycle.
In the popular herbal tradition, the "Agnocasto" was also used to stimulate lactation, but this effect has not yet been demonstrated.
Botanical name: Vitex agnus castus L.
Family: Verbenaceae
Parts used: Fruits
Botanical description
The Agnocasto is a small tree or shrub, up to 5-6 meters high, native to the Mediterranean. It has palmate-compound leaves with 5-7 leaflets, aromatic, dark green and white, tomentose in the lower part; the flowers are violet, tubular, gathered in long and thin spikes, bloom between June and September. Commonly the flowers of the Agnocasto are purple-lilac, sometimes white. The ideal climate is temperate and prefers cool soils; however it adapts to any type of soil as long as it is not dry. It grows well both in full sun and in dim light. It is a spontaneous and garden plant. In Italy the Agnocasto grows on the banks of rivers and in humid places. It can be used to beautify hedges. The fruits are black berries (5 mm) containing four seeds: extremely hard, aromatic smell, bitter and slightly pungent taste. The Agnocasto is not a particularly showy plant but it is very resistant.
Chemical composition
Diterpenes (e.g. rotundifuran, vitexylactone), iridoidoglycosides (e.g. aucubin, agnosias), flavonoids (e.g. casticin, vitexin), alkaloids (e.g. vaticin), essential oil (mainly composed of monoterpenes).
Therapeutic indications
The fruit of the Agnocasto acts on the endocrine system, in particular it modulates the production of some pituitary hormones. This justifies its use for the treatment of menstrual cycle irregularities and to reduce premenstrual symptoms.
Agnocasto is useful in disorders related to the menstrual cycle, such as amenorrhea (absence of menstruation), mastalgia or mastodynia (breast pain), oligomenorrhea (condition in which the interval between cycles is less than 25 days), polymenorrhea (condition in where the distance between two successive menstruation exceeds 36 days). Chaste tree is also useful in premenstrual syndrome (PMS).
Preparations equivalent to 30-40 mg / day of drug and up to 240 mg / day are used in women with PMS. Treatment of at least three months may be appropriate.
Menstrual cycle disorders and PMS are very frequently due to hyperprolactinemia associated with corpus luteum insufficiency. The adeno-pituitary secretion of prolactin is inhibited by dopamine and stimulated by the thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), the latter released by the hypothalamus. the interaction between the diterpene component of chaste tree with the dopaminergic D2 receptor located on the anterior pituitary. It appears that chaste tree acts as a selective agonist on the dopamine D2 receptor, thus inhibiting the release of prolactin. The concentration of luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone remains unchanged. It seems that some components of chaste tree (apigenin) can act on estrogen α and β receptors. Beta-endorphin receptors are also considered possible targets.
There are numerous studies that attest to the efficacy of Chaste tree in PMS and in particular in mastodynia and in psychic and somatic disorders related to the syndrome. Here are just a few, recent and particularly significant:
- In a randomized, double-blind (a), placebo-controlled study, 178 women with PMS were treated daily with 20 mg of a dry extract of Chaste tree or placebo for three consecutive menstrual cycles. Patients' self-reported improvement in the six main PMS symptoms (irritability, mood alteration, short temper, migraine, breast swelling, other menstrual symptoms including bloating) was significantly greater in the Chaste tree group. The evaluation of the doctors also showed a significant superiority of the group treated with the Agnocasto.
- In an open-label study (b), 34 women (aged 18 to 43 years) with hyperprolactinaemia were treated with a Chaste tree extract corresponding to 40 mg of dry drug per day for one month. In 27 cases, prolactin levels were significantly reduced.
- In a multicenter observational study (c) 1634 PMS patients received two capsules per day, each containing 1.6-3.0 mg of an extract, corresponding to 20 mg of Chaste tree. After a three-course treatment period, 93% showed a decrease or cessation of ailments such as depression, anxiety, craving and overhydration. 85% of physicians rated the overall assessment of clinical efficacy as good or very good and 81% of patients rated their post-treatment status as very satisfactory. The analysis of the frequency and intensity of mastodynia, found that the disturbances still present after 3 months were overall less intense.
Contraindications, special warnings and appropriate precautions for use, undesirable effects
No known contraindications, no warnings needed and no effects reported at recommended doses. Mutual attenuation of the effects may occur in patients undergoing concomitant treatment with dopamine receptor antagonists. In literature there are no data regarding the use of this plant during pregnancy, therefore Chaste tree should not be taken during gestation.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTES
- W. Wuttke et al., Vitex agnus castus: pharmacological and clinical indications, Phytomedicine 2003; 10: 348-357. "Dopaminergic compounds present in Vitex agnus castus are the clinically important compounds wich improve premestrual mastodynia and possibly also other symptoms of the premestrual syndrome. "
- H. Jarry et al., Evidence for estrogen receptor beta-selective activity of Vitex agnus castus and isolated flavones, Planta Med 2003; 69: 945-947.
- DE Webster et al., Activation of the mu-opiate receptor by Vitex agnus castus methanol extracts: implications for its use in PMS, J.Ethnopharmacol 2006; 106: 216-221.
- Schellenberg R. Treatment for the premenstrual syndrome with agnus castus fruit extract: prospective, randomized, placebo controlled study. BMJ 2001,322: 134-7
- Gorkow C. Klinischer Kenntnisstand von Agni-casti fructus. Klinisch-pharmakologische Untersuchungen und Wirksamkeitsbelege. Z. Phytotherapie 1999; 20: 159-68.
- Loch E-G, Selle H, Boblix N. Treatment of premenstrual syndrome with a phytopharmaceutical formulation containing Vitex agnus castus. J.Women's Health Gender-Based Med 2009; 9,315-20.
(a) A double-blind randomized study is defined as a clinical study or an experimental evaluation in humans where neither the patient nor the doctor know the nature of the substance being administered. In the blinded study, however, only the doctor knows the nature of the substance being administered.
(b) An open-label study is defined as a clinical study that does not possess any specific methodological characteristics (it can be a clinical study without a control group or without masking).
(c) An observational study is defined as an analytical epidemiological study in which the researcher does not intervene but limits himself to recording (observing) what happens in reality; multicentre when it is carried out in two or more centers with an identical protocol and a coordinator who is in charge of processing all the data and analyzing the results.
Other articles on "Agnocasto - Properties of" Agnocasto - Phytotherapy "
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