Perennial herbaceous rough-haired plant of the gourd family. The root is elongated, thick, juicy. Stems 2-3 m long, climbing with unbranched tendrils. The leaves are petiolate, alternate, broad-cordate, 5-7-lobed, wavy-toothed, 15-17 cm long. Flowers are unisexual (dioecious plants), regular, five-parted, in axillary inflorescences; men’s collected in bunches, women’s – shield; corolla fused-petaled, yellow-white. The calyx of female flowers is twice as short as the corolla. The fruit is berry-like, spherical, red or yellow. Blooms in June – July.
Spread. Perestenia dioecious grows mainly in the western forest and forest-steppe areas of Ukraine among shrubs, near fences, most likely as a wild plant.
Procurement and storage . Radix Bryoniae roots are used for medicinal purposes. Preference is given to roots from 2-3-year-old plants. Raw materials are harvested in autumn. The dug roots are carefully washed from the ground and used fresh or cut into circles, strung on a thread and dried. 15-16% of dry raw material is obtained. Store separately from other raw materials, following the rules for storing poisonous plants. Fresh roots can be stored all winter in the cellar in the same way as, for example, carrots or radishes.
The plant is unofficial.
Chemical composition. Root plants contain glycosides (briomarid, briodulcoside, briobioside, brionol), triterpene oxymonocarboxylic acid, sterol, tannins, resins, sugars and other substances.
Pharmacological properties and use. Dicotyledon has laxative, diuretic, expectorant, pain-relieving, hemostatic and local irritant properties, in small doses it depresses the central nervous system. As a medicinal product, this plant is widely used in folk medicine. Scientific medicine also recognizes the plant as an antirheumatic and laxative. In small doses, fennel products are given internally as a strong laxative, for swellings of various origins and pain in the heart area, for migraines, increased nervous excitability and epilepsy, to calm coughs, in case of uterine bleeding and scanty menstruation, and as an anthelmintic for roundworms. There are data on the effective use of fennel in hypertension (the course of treatment is 3-4 weeks). With rheumatic and gouty pains, intercostal neuralgia, fresh juice is rubbed into painful places, ointment or tincture. For this, as well as for the treatment of colds, an infusion of fresh roots on Provencal or sunflower oil is used. Homeopathic medicines are also prepared from fresh roots. It must be remembered that the sedum belongs to poisonous plants, so the medicine from it must be strictly dosed. In case of overdose, nausea, vomiting, bloody diarrhea, inflammation of the kidneys, damage to the central nervous system are observed. In case of severe poisoning, death occurs from paralysis of the respiratory center. External use of the plant requires caution. When rubbing, it is necessary to treat as limited areas of the body as possible. therefore, the medicine from it must be strictly dosed. In case of overdose, nausea, vomiting, bloody diarrhea, inflammation of the kidneys, damage to the central nervous system are observed. In case of severe poisoning, death occurs from paralysis of the respiratory center. External use of the plant requires caution. When rubbing, it is necessary to treat as limited areas of the body as possible. therefore, the medicine from it must be strictly dosed. In case of overdose, nausea, vomiting, bloody diarrhea, inflammation of the kidneys, damage to the central nervous system are observed. In case of severe poisoning, death occurs from paralysis of the respiratory center. External use of the plant requires caution. When rubbing, it is necessary to treat as limited areas of the body as possible.
Medicinal forms and applications .
Internally – infusion of dry roots (1 teaspoon of raw material per 600 ml of boiling water) 25-30 ml three times a day before meals;
tincture of dry roots (prepared in a ratio of 1:10) 20-30 drops 3 times a day;
half a glass of infusion (1 tablespoon of dry roots per 200 ml of boiling water) is drunk on an empty stomach as a strong laxative; root powders are taken 0.5 g three times a day as a laxative;
freshly squeezed root juice of 4-8 g with water 1-2 times a day (no more than 10 g per intake) or tincture of 30 g of roots per 700 g of wine for 1 tablespoon several times a day as a diuretic for dropsy.
Externally – rubbing with fresh juice (until watery blisters appear), tincture of dried roots (prepared in a ratio of 1:10), emulsion (1 teaspoon of crushed fresh roots per 100 ml of oil) or ointment (2 teaspoons of 30% root tincture mixed with a quarter of a glass of unsalted lard or butter or fresh juice mixed with butter or petroleum jelly in a ratio of 1:4).