SPDS eBook March 2017

3/10/2017

Background on the Echinacea alkylamides (alkamides, isobutylamides)

Total alkylamide concentrations in % of dried plant part

Alkylamides

0.01 – 0.15

E. angustifolia

not present

E. pallida

E. purpura root

0.01 – 2.77

E. purpurea tops

0.02 – 0.53

References: Wills and Stuart 1999. Food Chem . 67(4): 385-388; Qu et al . 2005, Hort Science . 40(5): 1239-1242; Blaschek. In: Wichtl – Teedrogen und Phytopharmaka, 2016.

Significance (or implications)

▪ Echinacea dietary supplement sales ranked 3 rd in the conventional (mass market) channel, and 7 th in the natural channel in the US in 2015 ▪ Recent Cochrane review suggests no treatment effect, but consistently positive trends in prophylactic trials ▪ Echinacea adulteration: Parthenium integrifolium , various Echinace a spp., unidentified materials

Reference: Karsch-Völk et al., 2015. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2014, Issue 2. Art. No.: CD000530

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