Table of Contents

1. Introduction 3

2. Phytochemical Potential 5

3. Pharmaceutical Potential 10

4. References …………………………………………………13

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 Phytochemistry and
Pharmaceutical Potential of
Cuscuta

1. Introduction
Cuscuta belonging to the Cuscutaceae family consisting of almost 152-210 species
around the world. Cuscuta is commonly called Dodder and in Punjab (Pakistan) its
Regional name is Neeli Dhar & India commonly named Ambar Bail. Cuscuta is
parasitic plants consisting of yellow, orange, red, or rarely green color. They are
called parasites because they have no chlorophyll pigments. Dodder plants take
nutrients from the host plants through vascular tissues and grow there. They have no
roots and consist of a vegetative portion that is their stem. It can able to recognize its
appropriate host plants that have not a normal transpiration rate.

The Parasitism of Cuscuta is started first by wrapping itself over the plant body as
shown in figure 1 then it makes a tiny connection with vascular tissues of the host plant
and able to penetrate to the xylem and phloem tissues of the host plant. It changes its
color from white to pink depending on the season. Seeds of Cuscuta can survive in the
soil for many years in search of an appropriate host and during this period it depends
on the endosperm of the seed for food.

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Figure 1: Wrapping of Cuscuta on the plant

It has various medicinal activities such as anticancer, antibacterial and antioxidant,

etc. Cuscuta species having a lot of applications in Biological Sciences due to
Flavonoids, glycosidic pigments, Phyto molecules along with essential fatty acids, etc
presence.

In Chinese Tradition, the aqueous extract of Cuscuta (C. chinesis Linn) for skin
treatment. Cuscuta has a herbal form and it is used to treat ovarian cancer which is
common in females. Along with antifungal and insecticidal application as well as
order to treat inflammatory effect we used the C. campestris yuncker. In ancient
times we used the whole plant body as a paste in order to treat the patient that had the
problem of headache. It has been now confirmed by modern researchers about the
commercial herbal mixture (Equiguard) consisting of very important species of
Cuscuta (C. chinesis Linn) that is used to treat the dysfunctional mechanism of gene
expression involving growth. Pharmaceutical importance of Cuscuta species is more
common C. japonica choisy is used for the treatment of acute mastitis for the lighten
the breast soreness, necrosis, apoptosis, spleen and kidney typed osteoporosis, treating
white hair and alopecia.

Another important herbal composition of Cuscuta semen is reported to treat nocturnal

enuresis (involuntary urination while asleep) & is also used for degenerative diseases.
It has also been revealed by the researcher that C. campestris is also effective to expel
parasitic worms from the human body (Anthelmintic).
C. epithymum Linn is used in ancient for the treatment of liver disorder and C.
americana L is used to treat Jaundice which is much common in new-born children.

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Various phytoconstituents have been isolated from Cuscuta grown on different host
plants e.g. phytochemicals isolated from Cuscuta Reflexa are flavonoids, dulcitol,
Sitosterol, mannitol, Quercetin, Reflexin, Lutin, Stearic, Carotin, oleic, palmitic,
glucoside, and benzopyrones.

Lupeol isolated from C. reflexa is used as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory,

antitumor, and antiprotozoal.

1.1. Phytochemistry & Pharmaceutical potential of Plant

Phytochemistry is the study of chemicals that are produced inside the plant body
primarily and secondarily metabolism. These are the chemicals extract from plant
material.
The presence or availability or production of Chemicals in plants that are used as
drugs for the treatment of different diseases is called the pharmaceutical potential
of plants.
Plants are the main source of potential new medicines and as a pharmaceutical
company seeks to achieve optically balanced drugs which are so much affected in
treating against disease.
Photochemistry and the pharmaceutical potential of plants today play an important
role to treat those diseases which were not treated anciently.

2. Phytochemical Potential
Cuscuta has been reported to contain several phytoconstituents including glycosides,
flavonoids, alkaloid, tannins, lignins and other organic substances. Besides they also
contain essential oil and trace elements. Traditionally the herbs and their extract (C.
chinensis, C. reflexa) are being consumed by the human population. Many modern
medicines are using standardized plant extracts as active constituents. Present study
explores chemical constituent and their occurrence from different plant parts and their
biological activities.

I. Flavonoids
Flavonoids are widely distributed in plants. It has been shown to have a wide
range of biological and pharmacological activities as anti-allergic, anti-
inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-microbial (antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral)
and anti-cancer. The investigation of chemical constituents of Cuscuta species
contains many compounds like C. reflexa contain flavonoids, and flavonoid
glycosides such as kaempferol, quercetin. Quercetin-3-O-b-D-apiofuranosyl-(1
2)-b-D-galactoside, hyperoside, kaempferol-3- O-b-D-glucoside, kaempferol,
quercetin, and chlorogenic acid, have been isolated from the seeds of C.
chinensis Lam. Reflexin, 5-hydroxy-7-methoxy-6-(2, 3-epoxy-3-methyl butyl)-
flavanone, is obtained from the stems of C. reflexa, 30 -methoxy-3, 40, 5, 7-
tetrahydroxy flavones and 30 -methoxy-40, 5, 7-trihydroxy flavone-3-glucoside

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 respectively from C. reflexa. Quercetin-3-O-(2-O-a-rhamnose-6-O-malonyl)-b-
D-glucoside, kaempferol-3-O-a-D-apiose-( 1 2)-[-a-L-rhamnose- (1 6)]-b-D-
glucoside, kaemp-ferol-7–rhamnosidase, kaempferol-3-b-D-glucuronide,
apigenin, hyperin, quercitin, quercetin-3-glucuronide, isorhamnetin, chlorogenic
acid, kaemoferol-7-O-α-D-glucuronide, quercetin, quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside,
stigmasterol, kaemoferol are reported in C. chinensis, while kaempferol,
quercetin, astragalin and hyperoside have been found in seed of C. australis. C.
chinensis from China and reported for flavonoids constituents as quercetin 3-O-
b-D-galactoside-7-O-b-D-glucoside.

Table no 1. Flavonoids in Cuscuta species. 

Sr. Compound Plant Structure
No
C. reflexa
C.chinensis
C. campestris
1 Quercetin C. australis
C. racemosa
C.pedicellata

C. reflexa
C. chinensis
C. racemosa
C. platyloba
C. campestris
C. odorata
2 Hyperoside C. pedicellata
C. europaea
C. gronovii
C. lupuliform

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 C. australis

C.chinensis
C. micrantha
C. campestris
3 Kaempferol C. platyloba
C. campestris
C. odorata
C. pedicellata

4 Leuteolin C. reflexa

5 Reflexin C. reflexa

C. reflexa
C. micrantha
C. campestris
6 Quercetin3-O- C. platyloba
neohesperidoside C. odorata
C. chinensis
C. pedicellata
C. europaea
C. australis

II. Alkaloids
They are naturally occurring nitrogenous organic molecules. Alkaloid uptake and
transport within the parasite are independent. One of the studies confirmed that
thirty-four quinolizidine alkaloids representing the sparteine type (e. g, sparteine,
lupanine, dehydro-, oxo- and hydroxy-derives, of sparteine and lupanine) and the
a-pyridone type (cytisine, hydroxy-N-methylcytisine, N-formyl- and N-
acetylcytisine, N-methylcytisine etc.) were detected in the host plant, instead C.
reflexa and C. platyloba Progel accumulated only 26 quinolizidine alkaloids b-
carboline.

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 Table no 2. Alkaloids in Cuscuta species

Sr. Compound Plant Structure

No

1 Cuscutamine C. reflexa
C. chinensis

2 Laceeroic acid C. reflexa

C. platyloba

C. reflexa
3 Sparteine C. platyloba

4 Agroclavine C.Monogyny
C. chinensis

5 Cytisine C. reflexa

III. Glycoside and Steroids

Soluble phenolic constituents mainly caffeic acid were also extracted from C.
reflexa. High molecular weight carboxy-methylcellulose was also found in this
plant. Cuscutin, stigmasterol and sitosterol were detected from roots of the C.
reflexa. C. japonica ethyl acetate soluble extract contains 3, 5-Di-O-
caffeoylquinic acid, 3,5-Di-O-caffeoylquinic acid, 3,4-Di-O-caffeoylquinic
acid, and methyl 3,4-Di-O-caffeoylquinate. Some recent studies show the
following chemical constituents are identified. Petroleum ether and chloroform
fraction of C. chinensis contains beta-sitosterol, d-sesamin, 9(R)-hydroxy-D-
sesamin. 22 components are identified from C. chinensis in which 4-caffeoyl-5-
coumaroylquinic acid, Chlorogenic acid, Stigmasterol are in this category. It

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 has been also reported that C. chinensis seeds contain b-sitosterol, 4-hydroxy-
3,5-dimethoxycinnamate, b-sitosterol-3-O-b-D-glucopyranoside, caffeic acid,
quercetin and Chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid, isorhamnetin.

Table no 3 glycosides in Cuscuta species

Sr. Compound Plants Structure

No

1 Cuscutin C. reflexa

2 Cuscutoside-A C.reflexa
C. chinensis

C. reflexa
3 Arbutin C.campestris
C. chinensis

C.reflexa
C.campestris
C. chinensis
4 Caffiec acid C. europaea
C. japonica
C. australis
C. japonica

5 Coumaric acid C. reflexa

Table no 4. Steroids in Cuscuta species

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 Sr. Compound Plant Structure
no

C.reflexa
1 Campesterol C. chinensis

2 Sesamin C.reflexa
C. australis

3 Stigmasterol C.chinensis
C. reflexa

Stigmast
4 glucopyranoside C. reflexa

5 Stigmast C. reflexa
acetate C. reflexa

3. Pharmaceutical Potential
Cuscuta species has a wide range of biological activity. Several studies reveal the
conformation of its potential for its acceptance in various ailments basically in the
Chinese system of medicine, used in the form of extract and decoction. The ethanolic
ext. of C. reflexa Roxb has potential antihistaminic properties. Ethanolic extract of C.
reflexa was investigated for anti-arthritic at two different Slangs. (200 mg/kg and 400
mg/kg) showed significant dose-dependent activity. In a recent study antiulcer
potential of aq. extracts of C. reflexa was investigated in rats. Up to the max. of 2000
mg/kg dose level has no mortality. Oral administration of these extracts of C.reflexa
shows dose-dependent significant protection in the pylorus ligation induced peptic
ulcerated animal.

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3.1. Antiproliferative
Recent studies reported the inhibitory effect of C. pentagona extract on the cell
viability of breast cancer cells. This indicated that higher doses of C. pentagona
extract had higher cytotoxic effects on breast cancer cells. It is expected that C.
pentagona extract inhibits cellular growth at a cellular and molecular level in
cancer cells. Antitumor activity in EAC-bearing mice has a positive effect by
chloroform and ethanol extracts of C. reflexa. Depending on the poly-phenolic
content of the hydroalcoholic and chloroform extracts of C. chinensis and C.
epithymum were 56.08, 21.49, 10.64 and 4.81, respectively. This study showed
that the chloroform extracts of C. chinensis and C. epithymum significantly
reduced the viability of the human colorectal adenocarcinoma cell line. Inhibition
of cell apoptosis was observed in Flavonoids from C. chinensis as they are
effective in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury by decreasing the protein
expression of Bax and Caspase-3 and increasing the protein expression of Bcl-2.
Chloroform extract of C. reflexa showed dose and time-dependent reduction in the
proliferation of Hep 3B cell lines through the intrinsic mitochondrial apoptotic
pathway and the extract was analysed the presence of gallic acid quercetin,
stigmasterol and sitosterol through HPTLC and showed a maximum percentage of
inhibition.
3.2. Antioxidant|
According to the recent study, it was confirmed that aerial parts of three Iranian
species of Cuscuta (C. campestris, C. monogyna and C. approximate) were
examined the polyphenolic compound, total phenolic content (TPC) and
antioxidant activity by using HPLC analysis, microplate reader and DPPH
microplate method. The HPLC analysis revealed the presence pf various
compounds in Cuscuta. Phenolic compounds were found high in C. monogyna
and C. approximate respectively. The dilute methanolic extract of C. approximate
and C. monogyna had the highest total phenolic (56.67 mg/g and 49.59 mg/g)
Alcoholic extracts of C. reflexa assessed as the good scavenger of superoxide
radical and DPPH radical. C. reflexa contain the highest total phenol content this
property could possibly related to its higher polyphenol content. It has been
analysed for the free radical-scavenging activity by using (1,1-diphenyl-2-
picrylhydrazyl) DPPH radical, inhibition of lipid peroxidation induced by FeSO4
in egg yolk, presence of phenolic compound using the Folin-Ciocalteu method and
identification of antioxidant compound in bio-autographic analysis using DPPH
agent. C. epithymum (L.) was also investigated for an antioxidant property.
Methanolic extracts exhibited good antioxidant activities of C.reflexa and C.
europrea evaluated by the measurement of total phenolic contents (TPC), total
flavonoid contents (TFC), DPPH radical scavenging Zn, Fe, Cu, Co and Pb are
analyzed by using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. Respectively, regarding
the antioxidant activity, ethanolic extract C. chinensis exhibited a significant
effect (P < 0.05) by increasing levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase
(CAT), and glutathione peroxidase, and by reducing malondialdehyde (MDA)

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 levels. C. chinensis possess antioxidant activity thus can prevent hepatic injuries
from APAP-induced hepatotoxicity in rats.

3.3. Hepatoprotective
Limited information is available on the Hepatoprotective activity traditionally C.
epithymum was used for treating liver disorders in Chittoor and Khammam
districts of Andhra Pradesh, India. It showed that the methanolic extract of C.
epithymum has significant hepatoprotective activity against CCl4 induced
hepatotoxicity by suppressing CCl4 induced cellular oxidative stress, which
supports folkloric utilization and further confirmed by the histological
investigation. This may be due following compounds like flavonoids, alkaloids,
triterpenoids, glycosides, steroids and carbohydrates. The present study has
been shown an ethanolic extract of C. chinensis at an oral dose of both 125 and
250 mg/kg showed a significant hepatoprotective effect relatively to the same
extent (P < 0.05) by reducing levels of glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase
(GOT), glutamate pyruvate transaminase (GPT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP).
Besides, the same ethanolic extract prevented the hepatotoxicity induced by
APAP intoxicated treatment as observed when assessing the liver histopathology.
Chloroform extract of C. reflexa showed the anti-hepatocellular carcinoma effect.

3.4. Anxiolytic Activity

Generally, the anxiolytic effect was evaluated by plus maze and light and dark
chamber in mice. It has been reported the methanol extract of the whole plant of
C. reflexa at doses of 200 and 400 mg/kg was evaluated. Animals were treated
orally with normal saline, extract and diazepam 5 mg/kg used as standard drug.
The extract 400 mg/kg showed a significant anxiolytic effect compared to 200
mg/kg in both models. The effect of 400 mg/kg was comparable to the standard
drug. Thus, methanol extract of C. reflexa could serve as good anxiolytic agents in
future. C. chinensis one of the ingredients of Chinese medicines use for tonifying
liver and kidney, enhances mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) activity
and as also induces neurite outgrowth in PC12 cells. As it has neurotrophic factor-
like activity the extract prevents apoptosis of PC12 cells caused by serum
deprivation.

3.5. Anti-Inflammatory activity

C. Reflexa extract showed dose-dependent inhibition of spontaneous motility
(Paralysis) of earthworms. Ether, chloroform and methanolic extract also possess
anthelmintic activity, compared with albendazole standard drug. C. chinensis
flavonoids possess the protective effect on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury,
and its mechanism may be related to inhibition of inflammatory cytokine secretion
and expression and reduce the inflammation of brain tissue by significantly
decreasing. C. campestris seeds have higher anti-inflammatory activity against
cells as HPLC analysis demonstrated that the compound quercetin was 23 fold

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 higher in processed seeds in compare to unprocessed seeds. C. chinensis possess
free radical DPPH scavenging activity and compared with the synthetic
antioxidant (BHA) as standard.

3.6. Other uses

A Chinese medicine composition for treating cataract and its manufacture C.
compacta Juss. fruit used as one of the components, has effects of the nourishing
liver, invigorating kidney, clearing heat and improving eyesight, and can be used
for treating a cataract with a short treatment course, quick action, and no
recurrence after healing. C reflexa Roxb has been used in treating sore knees and
kidney problems protects against arthritis and nephrotoxicity. Cuscuta australis for
treating blood deficiency syndrome, myasthenia gravis, medicinal composition for
treating postoperative restlessness of craniocerebral trauma. One of the studies
suggests that the mechanisms of action of C. chinensis used for neurological
disorders. C. reflexa is shown to have anti-ulcer activity in the aqueous extract at
400 mg/kg in the Pylorus ligation model by the significant reduction in gastric
volume, free acidity, total acidity and increase in pH.

4. References

i. A Review on Phytoconstituents and Biological activities of Cuscuta

species by Ateeque Ahmad, Sudeep Tandon, Tran Dang Xuan, Zulfa
Nooreen.
ii. Phytochemical screening and wound healing potential of Cuscuta Reflexa,
Journal of Chinese Pharmaceutical Sciences.
iii. A parasitic medicinal plant Cuscuta Reflexa: A Review by Pooja Saini,
Rekha Mithal and Ekta Menghani.

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