Herbal Antibiotics: Natural Alternatives for Treating Drug-Resistant Bacteria (26 page)

Here is a more inclusive list of the berberine genera, and some of the species, that are known to date.

Hydrastis canadensis
, the American goldenseal, is perhaps the best known and most commonly used berberine-containing plant in the United States, but it is rather limited in its range and is endangered in the wild from overharvesting. The root is generally used, which, obviously, kills the plant, contributing to its difficulties in surviving in the wild. It has become a decent agricultural crop in the United States and organically grown roots are easily found these days. Wildcrafted plants should never be bought. The leaves are weaker and can be used as well as the root, but hardly anyone does. It is the only member of its genus.

Mahonia
, a genus comprising 70 or so species, is common throughout the world. Plant classification freaks really want the mahonias included in the genus
Berberis
, which is why you might see
Mahonia aquifolium
, a.k.a. Oregon grape, perhaps the best known of the mahonias, also identified as
Berberis aquifolium
. The lower branches of the mahonias tend to have berberine in them, but the roots are much higher in the alkaloid. Several mahonias are considered invasive in the United States, making them perfect for wild harvesting.

Berberis
, a genus of about 500 species of plants, also has a number of species that contain berberine. Barberry,
Berberis vulgaris
, is perhaps the best known. While the branches (especially the lower) contain berberine (scratch the stem—if it's yellow underneath the
outer bark, it's got berberine), the roots have a much higher berberine content, by at least a factor of 10. Several species of berberis are considered invasive in the United States, particularly
Berberis thunbergii
, Japanese barberry.

Coptis
, a genus of 15 or so species, also has a number of plants whose roots (rhizomes actually) contain berberine.
Coptis chinensis
, a.k.a. goldthread, is probably the best known. The genus is used for a number of reasons, one of which is that it is relatively high in berberine content, up to 9 percent by weight. The root on this genus is tiny (hence “thread”) and it takes a lot of harvesting to get much usable material. The wild species in the United States are at risk and should not be harvested commercially.
Coptis chinensis
is a major agricultural crop in China and is available in bulk, though it is rather expensive.

Phellodendron
(
not
the houseplant, which is spelled differently) is a genus of 4 to 10 species (arguments are ongoing) of trees whose bark contains berberine. The best known is probably
Phellodendron amurense.
A great invasive.

Tinospora
, a genus of 40 or so twining species of plants, contains berberine. The best known is probably
Tinospora cordifolia
. The bark and stems of this genus are used.

Corydalis
, a genus of some 470 species (this genus is sometimes considered to be part of the poppy family), has several that contain berberine, as well as hydrastine. The medicinal varieties contain a number of opioid alkaloids (try saying that 10 times fast), though in lesser concentration than the opium poppies (about one-tenth as much), and are used in part for their analgesic activity. The best known are probably
Corydalis chaerophylla
,
C. yanhusuo
, and
C. longipes.
The herb is a major agricultural crop in China and bulk purchase is pretty easy.

Argemone
is a genus of about 30 species of plants, generally called the prickly poppies. Many of the species contain berberine, the best known of which is the Mexican poppy,
Argemone mexicana.
The aerial parts are used; they contain the berberine (as does the resin), so it is a sustainable-use plant. But the berberine content is rather small and
I would not use the plant as a berberine antibacterial myself—even though it has been traditionally used along berberine lines of function; its medicinal functions are more subtle.

Nandina domestica
, the only member of its genus, is a suckering shrub, also in the barberry family. It is a rather common ornamental and I think a good choice for a berberine medicinal if you have it in your yard. The lower branches and roots are highest in berberine. Treat it as a
Mahonia/Berberis
species if you are harvesting and making medicine from it; it is pretty much identical.

The genus
Eschscholtzia
, the California poppies, is also reputed to contain berberine, but I can't find much research on it. Berberine and similar alkaloids are also present in a number of other genera such as
Coelocline
,
Archangelisia
,
Chelidonium
,
Toddalia
, and
Thalictrum.

In this section I will concentrate mostly on
Phellodendron amurense
—and to some extent on
Berberis
and
Mahonia
—however, if you take a look at the traditional uses of the berberines, you will see that they are all used similarly.

Bark, root bark, stems, roots, leaves, resin.

The alkaloids in the berberine plants, including berberine, are not very water soluble. (So if you see a study showing an aqueous extract of a berberine plant to be not as effective as an antimicrobial, you now know why.) Tinctures need to use a higher alcohol content (generally 1:5, 70 percent alcohol, 30 percent water), and the water needs to be acidic, with a pH of 1 to 6. The addition of 1 tablespoon of vinegar to the tincture mix is recommended if your water is alkaline (hard) or if you don't know. (See
chapter 9
for an extensive listing of berberine plants and their alcohol-to-water ratios.)

The berberine plants may be used as a powder for topical application, as a douche, as a wash, as a tincture, in capsules, or as a snuff.

Apply to cuts, scrapes, or infected wounds.

Dried bark of phellodendron: 1:5, 70 percent alcohol, 20–50 drops, up to 4x daily (the taste is exceptionally strong)

In acute dysenteric/diarrheal conditions:
Take 1 tsp–1 tbl morning and evening until symptoms subside. Improvement should be seen within 2 days; usually there will be some improvement within 8 hours.

Note:
The berberine plants are only about 50 percent active against cholera in clinical trials, as compared with enterotoxogenic
E. coli
, which they completely inhibit. However, if you combine the berberine plants with the root of
any
geranium species, the bark of pomegranate or the peel of the fruit, or the leaf or bark of guava the cholera organism will be completely inhibited.

As a douche:
Add
⅓
ounce tincture to 1 pint water and douche once or twice daily.

As a wash:
Add 1 ounce tincture to 2 pints water and wash the affected area morning and evening—especially good for helping acne and infected wounds.

For non-acute conditions:
Take 1 or 2 “00” capsules, up to 4x daily.

In acute dysenteric/diarrheal conditions:
Take up to 25 “00” capsules daily for up to 10 days.

Place two thin lines of root powder on a table and snort them vigorously—each line into a different nostril like those cocaine addicts on television, up to 3x daily for up to 7 days.

Caution is advised in pregnancy.

Actions

Analgesic

Antiamoebic

Antibacterial

Anticholeric

Antidiarrheal

Antidysenteric

Antifungal

Anti-inflammatory

Antisecretory

Antiseptic

Antitumor

Astringent

Diaphoretic

Expectorant

Febrifuge

Mucosal anti-inflammatory

Mucosal stimulant

Mucosal tonic

Berberine interferes with adherence of bacteria such as
Streptococcus
spp. to mucous membranes by stimulating the release of lipoteichoic acid from bacteria or by stopping the formation of complexes between the microbial surface and host cells. It inhibits the intestinal hypersecretion (by about 70 percent) induced by cholera,
E. coli,
and other intestinal disease organisms. Berberine targets the assembly of the
E. coli
cell division protein FtsZ. Basically, it is an FtsZ inhibitor, stopping replication of the bacteria.

Some studies have found berberine to be cardioprotective, antimalarial, antioxidative, cerebroprotective, antimutagenic, vaso-relaxing, anxiolytic, and anti-HIV, but these studies are all in vitro; they don't translate well and the berberine would tend to work in most of those instances only if injected.

Active Against

Berberine-containing plants are active against a wide range of microorganisms. Berberine has been the most intensively tested of the plants' alkaloids, though a number of others such as hydrastine, jatrorrhizine, and palmatine have also undergone a fair amount of study. The various antimicrobial alkaloids in the berberines tend to be active against different organisms and are highly synergistic with each other and additionally benefit from other compounds in the plants whose only known functions are to disable antibiotic-resistance mechanisms in microbial organisms. Thus, whole plant extracts, rather than isolated constituents, tend to have a greater range of action and, in my opinion, are much more effective.

This is borne out by numerous studies. As an example, researchers in Italy commented in their research paper, “The crude extract [of
Berberis
aetnensis
root extracts] was active against Candida species, this activity being higher than that of the alkaloidal fraction and berberine.”
¹
The berberine-containing plants are very good at what they do—if they are prepared and used properly (i.e., ethanolic extracts or powders used for direct-contact disease treatment rather than systemic disease conditions).

The following list is comprised of microorganisms that have been found susceptible to either individual constituents of the berberine-containing plants or crude extracts of the plants themselves (e.g.,
Mahonia
,
Berberis
,
Hydrastis
,
Coptis
,
Phellodendron
). As an example, the ethanolic extract of
Mahonia aquifolium
(as well as two of its constituents) was tested on 20 strains of coagulase-negative staphylococci, 20 strains of
Propionbacterium acnes
isolated from skin lesions of patients with severe acne, and 20 strains of
Candida
spp. isolated from chronic vulvovaginal candidiasis and found active against all of them. The Slovakian researchers comment, “The results indicate a rational basis for the traditional use of
Mahonia aquifolium
for localized skin and mucosal infection therapy.”
²
This kind of finding and commentary, at least in cultures other than the United States, is not uncommon.

Aspergillus
spp.

Aureobasidium pullulans
(black and white strains)

Bacillus cereus

Bacillus subtilis

Blastocystis hominis

Candida
spp.

Chlamydia
spp. (including
C. trachomatis
)

Corynebacterium diphtheriae

Cryptococcus neoformans

Dengue virus

Entamoeba histolytica

Enterobacter aerogenes

Epidermophyton floccosum

Erwinia carotavora

Escherichia coli

Fusarium nivale

Fusobacterium nucleatum

Giardia lamblia

Helicobacter pylori

Hepatitis B

Herpes simplex 1 and 2

Human cytomegalovirus

Klebsiella pneumoniae

Leishmania
spp.

Malassezia
spp.

Microsporum
spp.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Propionbacterium acnes

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Salmonella paratyphi

Salmonella typhimurium

Shigella
spp.

Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus epidermidis

Streptococcus mutans

Streptococcus pyogenes

Streptococcus sanguinis

Trichoderma viride
(green strain and brown mutant)

Trichomonas vaginalis

Trichophyton
spp.

Trypanosoma cruzi

Vibrio cholerae

West Nile virus

Xanthomonas citri

Yellow fever virus

Zoogloea ramigera

Use to Treat

Internally:
Dysenteric diseases of all sorts, especially those caused by resistant bacteria, as well as cholera (better used in combination with geranium root, pomegranate bark or fruit peel, or guava leaf or bark), giardia, bloody stools

Externally:
Topically for infected wounds from bacterial and fungal organisms; conjunctivitis and other eye infections, especially trachoma

Mouth, throat, vagina:
As a tincture or spray, or as a douche, for bacterial, fungal, and yeast infections of the mucous membranes of the throat, mouth, vagina