Sage (Salvia divinorum or Salvia officinalis), is one of the best known medicinal plants, belongs to the Laminaceae, family of the mind and grows in mild climates.
The whole plant, including leaves, is dark green, hairy and gives off a typical aroma.
Phytochemical analysis reveals a good number of substances useful for human health
- Terpenoids: monoterpenoids, diterpenoids, triterpenoids, sesquiterpenoids
- Phenolic compounds: tannins, coumarins, flavonoids (ellagic acid, quercetin, chlorogenic acid, epicatecin, rutin and luteolin-7-glucoside, epicatechin, epigallocatechin gallate
- Glycoside derivatives: saponins, flavonoid glycosides, cardiac glycosides
Sage extracts have hindered the early stages of colon carcinogenesis by showing chemo-preventive effects (4), preventive or therapeutic activity against angiogenesis-related disorders (5), anti-proliferative activity against tumour cells (6), mutagenic and antimutagenic potential (7), antinociceptive properties on chemical nociception behavioural patterns involving an opioid mechanism (8).
It contains vitamin K and rosmarinic acid (an acid also found in rosemary), which act as antioxidants to combat inflammation and oxidation (1) (2).
Sage leaves contain triterpenoids, such as ursolic acid and oleanoic acid and tannins (3).
It also has properties to improve memory function of brain .
Other interesting components found in sage
- camphor
- 1,8-cineole
- α-thujene
- α-pinene
- β-pinene
- myrcene
Many sage species, among which, used in the medical field:
- Salvia officinalis
- Salvia somalensis
- Dolomitic sage
- Sage polystachya
- Sage lavandulfolia
- Salvia chamaedryoides
- Sage apiana
- Salvia rhytidea
- Austrian Sage
- Salvia wiedemannii Boiss
- Salvia miltiorrhiza
- Salvia adenophora
- Salvia x jamensis
References____________________________________________________________________
(1) Kelm MA, Nair MG, Strasburg GM, DeWitt DL. Antioxidant and cyclooxygenase inhibitory phenolic compounds from Ocimum sanctum Linn. Phytomedicine 2000 Mar; 7 (1): 7-13. 2000. PMID: 12240.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10782484
(2) Malencic D, Gasic O, Popovic M, Boza P. Screening for antioxidant properties of Sage reflexa hornem. Phytother Res 2000 Nov; 14 (7): 546-8. 2000. PMID: 12230.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=Malencic%20D%2C%20Gasic%20O%2C%20Popovic%20M%2C%20Boza%20P
(3) European Scientific Cooperative on Phytotherapy. Salviae officinalis folium. 2nd ed. New York: Thieme; 2003. ESCOP Monographs; pp. 452-5.
(4) Pedro DF, Ramos AA, Lima CF, Baltazar F, Pereira-Wilson C. Colon Cancer Chemoprevention by Sage Tea Drinking: Decreased DNA Damage and Cell Proliferation. Phytother Res. 2016 Feb;30(2):298-305. doi: 10.1002/ptr.5531.
(5) Keshavarz M, Mostafaie A, Mansouri K, Bidmeshkipour A, Motlagh HR, Parvaneh S. In vitro and ex vivo antiangiogenic activity of Salvia officinalis. Phytother Res. 2010 Oct;24(10):1526-31. doi: 10.1002/ptr.3168.
(6) Kontogianni VG, Tomic G, Nikolic I, Nerantzaki AA, Sayyad N, Stosic-Grujicic S, Stojanovic I, Gerothanassis IP, Tzakos AG. Phytochemical profile of Rosmarinus officinalis and Salvia officinalis extracts and correlation to their antioxidant and anti-proliferative activity. Food Chem. 2013 Jan 1;136(1):120-9. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2012.07.091.
(7) Vuković-Gacić B, Nikcević S, Berić-Bjedov T, Knezević-Vukcević J, Simić D. Antimutagenic effect of essential oil of sage (Salvia officinalis L.) and its monoterpenes against UV-induced mutations in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Food Chem Toxicol. 2006 Oct;44(10):1730-8. doi: 10.1016/j.fct.2006.05.011.
(8) Rodrigues MR, Kanazawa LK, das Neves TL, da Silva CF, Horst H, Pizzolatti MG, Santos AR, Baggio CH, Werner MF. Antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory potential of extract and isolated compounds from the leaves of Salvia officinalis in mice. J Ethnopharmacol. 2012 Jan 31;139(2):519-26. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2011.11.042.