PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES:
glycyrrhizic acid Description:Most people know licorice as a sweet-tasting ingredient in candy. It is also a very powerful herb in treating many different illnesses and has a long history of use. The Chinese use it in many formulas often to balance the actions of other herbs, and have so for thousands of years. It has undergone much scientific research as well. It is a perennial, shrub-like plant that grows in temperate regions up to 7 feet high. It is a native of the Mediterranean and Middle East and is also grown in Europe. The roots and runners are harvested in the fall and are the parts with the most activity.
glycyrrhizic acid Function:Glycyr0rhizin is changed in the liver to glycyrrhetinic acid. Both these compounds promote the activation of interferon, a potent, naturally produced antiviral compound. Once interferon is activated, white blood cells are also called into play along with killer T cells to help fight against the virus. This is how licorice exerts its effect on cold viruses, herpes simplex I and possibly even HIV. Licorice also shows some antibacterial effects, but these are due more to the flavonoids than glycyrrhizin. One of its possible active principles, glycyrrhizin, is a glycoside that combines two parts of glucuronic acid and one of glycyrrhetinic acid. Glycyrrhizin has many known effects, including anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic and steroid-like, and it is used in Japan today to treat hepatitis and allergies. However, its metabolism has been little studied, and much remains to be learned about the action on the human body of glycosides derived from crude drugs such as Glycyrrhiza root.
Summary and conclusions of this meeting held to evaluate certain food additives and ingredients, flavoring agents, and a natural consituent of food. Includes specifications information, acceptable daily intake values, and other toxicological recommendations for some food additives and ingredients, heavy metal (As, Pb, Cd, and Hg) limits for some food additives, safety evaluation results for certain flavoring agents, and toxicological recommendations for glycyrrhizinic acid. Annexes include a list of members, further information needs, and general considerations
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