1.
In an abstract by Müller and Schneider (1999)
1066 patients were classified into four groups: 73.8% suffered from urinary tract
infections, cystitis or other inflammatory complaints, 14.2% from irritable bladder,
9.3% from stones and 2.7% from miscellaneous complaints. 56% of patients in the
first group also received antibiotic therapy.
All patients received a dry aqueous extract of birch leaf (4-8:1) at various daily
doses (from 180 to 1080 mg or more) for irrigation of the urinary tract.
In most cases the treatment period was 2-4 week. After this period the symptoms
disappeared in 78% of patients in the first group, in 65% in the second group and
in 65% in the third group. The symptoms disappeared in 80% of patients treated
with, and in 75% of those going without, antibiotics.
Both physicians and patients considered the efficacy to be very good (39% and
48% respectively) or good (52% and 44% respectively) (Müller and Schneider,
1999).
2. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study, 15 patients
with infections of the lower urinary tract were treated with 4 cups of birch
leaf tea or placebo tea daily for 20 days.
Microbial counts in the urine of the birch leaf tea group decreased by 39%
compared to 18% in the placebo group. At the end of the study, 3 out of 7 patients
in the verum group and 1 out of 6 in the control group no longer suffered from a
urinary tract infection (Engesser et al, 1998).
3. An aqueous birch leaf extract of Betula pendula inhibits the growth and
cell division of inflammatory lymphocytes.
Leaf extracts of Betula pendula have been traditionally used for the treatment of
patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or osteoarthritis.
We investigated the anti-proliferative capacity of an aqueous leaf extract of Betula
pendula (BPE) on human primary lymphocytes in vitro, because activated
lymphocytes play a major role in the initiation and maintenance of RA.
Lymphocyte proliferation and cell division was measured by the activity of
mitochondrial dehydrogenases and by using the membrane-permeable dye
carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimidyl ester (CFSE), respectively. Apoptosis
was analyzed by surface staining of phosphatidylserine and intracellular activation
of effector caspases 3 and 7 in comparison to the drug methotrexate using flow
cytometric and photometrical analysis.
In addition, the impact of the extract on cell cycle distribution was investigated by
propidium iodide staining of DNA. For the bioassays BPE concentrations of 10-
160 μg/mL were investigated. A phytochemical analysis, using LC-MS and HPLC,
was conducted to identify the polyphenolic constituents of the birch leaf extract.
Leaf extracts of Betula pendula inhibited the growth and cell division (CD8(+): 40
μg/mL: 45%; 80 μg/mL: 60%; 160 μg/mL: 87%) (CD4(+): 40 μg/mL: 33%; 80
μg/mL: 54%; 160 μg/mL: 79%) of activated, but not of resting T lymphocytes in a
significant dose-dependent manner. The inhibition of lymphocyte proliferation due
to apoptosis induction (compared to untreated control: 40 μg/mL: 163%; 80
μg/mL: 240%; 160 μg/mL: 348%) and cell cycle arrest was comparable to that of
methotrexate. LC-MS analyses showed that the extract contains different
quercetin-glycosides.
Our results give a rational basis for the use of Betula pendula leaf extract for the
treatment of immune disorders, like rheumatoid arthritis, by diminishing
proliferating inflammatory lymphocytes.
4. Antioxidant Activity of Dry Birch (Betula Pendula) Leaves Extract
The aim of this work was to investigate the antioxidant activity of a dry leaf
extract from Betula pendula Roth.
The total flavonoid content was determined. Some of the most commonly used
methods were applied to evaluate the antioxidant capacity of the extract in vitro
and in vivo.
The in vivo assay was performed after acute and chronic administration of the
extract into white albino rats, in a dose of 100 and 500 mg/kg bw. The antioxidant
potential of the plasma was determined using FRAP reagent.
A total flavonoid content of 42.5 mg/g was found, expressed as quercetin.
The antioxidant activity against ABTS was concentration and time dependent.
For example the concentration of 200 μg/ml led to 70.95% – 99.46% scavenging
activity. DPPH scavenging activity was found to be about 98% at a concentration
of 80 μg/ml. The extract possesses antioxidant potential, comparable with that of
Trolox, in acute application.
In chronic application, poorer results are observed, probably due to
biotransformation and elimination processes.
Dried birch leaf extract has a relatively high antioxidant potential and
could be used as a natural source of antioxidants.
5. Treatment of actinic keratoses with birch bark extract: A pilot study
Birch bark contains a variety of apoptosis-inducing and anti-inflammatory
substances such as betulinic acid, betulin, oleanolic acid and lupeol.
Therefore, birch bark extract may be effective in the treatment of actinic keratoses.
To address this issue, a pilot study using a standardized birch bark ointment was
performed.
Twenty-eight patients with actinic keratoses were enrolled in this prospective,
non-randomized pilot study. Fourteen patients were treated with birch bark
ointment only; fourteen patients received a combination therapy with cryotherapy
and birch bark ointment.
Treatment response was assessed clinically after two months. Clearing of more
than 75 % of the lesions was seen in 79 % of the patients treated with birch bark
ointment monotherapy. The response rate of the combined treatment modality was
93 %. Therapy with birch bark ointment was well tolerated. In this pilot study, a
standardized birch bark extract was effective in the treatment of actinic keratoses.
This therapy is easy to perform and it has no side effects. Birch bark ointment may
be a new therapeutic option for actinic keratoses.
6. In one clinical trial, the treatment of purulent wounds with 20% tincture of
birch buds in 70% alcohol was performed on 108 patients (83 patients had
superficial wounds, 10–deep wounds, 15–cavitary wounds).
Good results were obtained after using the birch buds tincture in all the patients,
including patients with antibiotic-resistant infections. Birch bark tea also has strong
medicinal properties and was traditionally used by American Indians for pain relief
(it contains natural aspirin).
Recently it was discovered that the bark of B. alba L. causes apoptosis in abnormal
skin cells. The active ingredient is betulinic acid, a pentacyclic triterpene. In
studies conducted with mice carrying human abnormal skin growths, these growths
were completely inhibited without toxicity.
Betulinic acid is currently undergoing preclinical development for the treatment or
prevention of malignant skin growths. Betulin, betulinic acid and ursolic acid also
have strong anti-inflammatory activity similar to gluco-corticoids and are antiviral
and can be used against warts externally.
7. A chemical found in birch bark helps wounds heal faster and with less scarring
than ordinary creams, researchers say.
Tests on a gel, which contains betulin, showed it healed burn wounds quicker in 86 per
cent of patients, compared to a typical gel used for burn treatment.
The extract of birch bark - used for centuries as a natural remedy - has previously been
shown to help with skin wounds.
Previously, the gel has been found to speed up wound healing in patients who had
patches of skin cut out for surgical graft procedures.
It is being developed as a prescription medicine for epidermolysis bullosa (EB), rare
inherited skin disorders that cause the skin to become very fragile and blister.
For this condition, as well as wounds from burns, there are very limited treatment options,
the creators said.
The team, led by Quentin Frew, recruited 57 patients with superficial burn wounds - which
usually take no more than three weeks to heal.
The burns had been caused by fire, scalding or touching hot objects within two days of
the trial starting.
Each patients applied the birch-bark gel to one half of the wound, and a standard gel to
the other half at least once every two days until their skin had healed.
The half treated with the birch-bark gel showed significantly better improvements than the
standard gel, New Scientist reports.
At a three and 12 month follow up, the appearance of the birch-bark treated skin was
more like that of healthy skin in its texture and pigmentation.
The slower a burn wound takes to close, the more visible scars may be.
Therefore, the fact the wound closed a day earlier when treated with the birch-bark gel
may explain why it looked better many months later.
Wounds treated with Oleogel-S10 took an average of 7.6 days to heal, compared to 8.8
days with the standard gel.
The main ingredient in birch bark – a chemical called betulin – appears to be the key
ingredient in birch bark,
Mr Frew said betulin appears to be the key ingredient causing the effects.
However, he added several other molecules, including oleanolic acid, have also been
shown to have anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, which could also make an
impact.
The topical product is formulated with the betulin chemical from the bark and sunflower
oil.
It works by causing the keratinocytes - cells that regenerate the outer layer of the skin - to
migrate and to branch the tissue between the wound and skin around it.
'The goal in treatment of superficial partial thickness burns is wound healing without
complications,' the authors said in the report in Burns Journal.
8. According to new research from China, a compound found in the bark
of the birch tree could offer useful new treatments for obesity, heart
disease and diabetes .
The study revealed the drug, called betulin, was found to reduce cholesterol levels
when tested on animals, and helped to prevent diet-induced obesity by targeting
genes involved in producing harmful blood fats, as well as lowering the risk of
diabetes through improved insulin sensitivity.
The research, by scientists at the Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences and
published in the journal Cell Metabolism, said that betulin is found in abundant
levels in birch bark, with its potential for medical treatments discovered during a
screening of different compounds in a search for a drug that would target key gene-
activating proteins .
These sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs) work to activate genes
for cholesterol, fatty acids and triglyceride blood fats, and betulin was shown to
reduce the activity of genes normally activated by SREBPs.
When animals used to a high-fat diet were given betulin, the cholesterol-lowering
drug lovastatin or an inactive salt solution, both drugs caused over-fed mice to gain
less weight than the inactive solution. The animals who had taken betulin used up
more calories while those who took lovastatin lowered the amount of lipids taken
up from their diet.
The study noted "These data support the notion that inhibition of SREBP pathway
may be useful strategy to treat type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis . Betulin can
serve as a leading compound for pharmacological control of metabolic diseases ."
9. Betula pendula Roth leaves: gastroprotective effects of an HPLC-
fingerprinted methanolic extract
In this study, a methanolic extract of Betula pendula leaves (BLE) was
investigated for its gastroprotective effects against 90% ethanol-induced ulcer in
rats. Oral pretreatment of rats with BLE (100, 200 and 400 mg kg− 1) significantly
reduced the incidence of gastric lesions induced by ethanol administration as
compared with misoprostol (0.50 mg kg− 1).
Furthermore, BLE inhibited the increase in malondialdehyde (MDA) and
prevented depletion of total sulhydryl and non-protein sulhydryl groups in rat
stomach homogenate when compared with ethanol group. With regard to the effect
of lipid peroxidation in vitro, BLE showed the ability to reduce methyl linoleate
autoxidation. Chemical characterisation of the main biologically active constituents
of BLE was also achieved by means of high-performance liquid chromatography
with photodiode array and mass spectrometry detection, showing the presence of
myricetin-3-O-galactoside, quercetin glycosides, kaempferol glycosides.
