Nutritional Supplement

Greater Celandine

Parts Used & Where Grown

Greater celandine grows primarily in Europe and Asia, although it has been introduced in North America. The leaves and small yellow flowers of greater celandine are used as medicine. Although the roots and rhizomes of the plant have also been used medicinally, most clinical trials have used the above-ground parts of the plant collected at the time of flowering.1

How It Works

Greater celandine, like other members of the Papaveraceae (poppy) family, contains alkaloids as its major constituents. These include chelidoxanthine, chelidonine, and coptisine. Greater celandine extracts have been shown to stimulate production of bile and pancreatic digestive enzymes in human studies.2

Animal and test tube studies have shown that the alkaloids and whole plant extract can relieve gallbladder spasms and stimulate an under-active gallbladder.3,4 Test tube and animal studies have also shown celandine extracts and purified alkaloids to have anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and antimicrobial properties.5,6,7 They have also shown greater celandine’s ability to protect animal livers from toxic substances.8,9

A double-blind trial found that a standardized extract of greater celandine could relieve symptoms of indigestion (such as abdominal cramping, sensation of fullness, and nausea) significantly better than a placebo.10 The trial used an extract standardized to 4 mg of chelidonine per capsule and gave 1–2 tablets three times daily for six weeks. An earlier, preliminary trial also found the same extract reduced symptoms in people with indigestion.11

Preliminary reports from Russia and China have reported that a tincture of greater celandine applied topically was useful for warts.12 However, these results have not yet been confirmed by double-blind clinical trials.

Several reports describe Eastern European clinical trials using semi-synthetic derivatives of greater celandine alkaloids for people with cancer.13 This injectable product goes by the name Ukrain®. The findings on this drug cannot be applied to greater celandine because the alkaloids have been modified from their original form.

References

1. Weiss RF. Herbal Medicine. Gothenburg, Sweden: Ab Arcanum and Beaconsfield, UK: Beaconsfield Publishers Ltd, 1985, 84-8.

2. Baumann JC. Effect of Chelidonium, Curcuma, absinth and Carduus marianus on the bile and pancreatic secretion in liver diseases. Med Monatsschr 1975;29:173-80 [in German].

3. Hiller KO, Ghorbani M, Schilcher H. Antispasmodic and relaxant activity of chelidonine, protopine, coptisine, and Chelidonium majus extracts on isolated guinea-pig ileum. Planta Med 1998;64:758-60 [letter].

4. Hriscu A, Galesanu MR, Moisa L. Cholecystokinetic action of an alkaloid extract of Chelidonium majus. Rev Med Chir Soc Med Nat Lasi 1980;84:559-61 [in Romanian].

5. Vavreckova C, Gawlik I, Muller K. Benzophenanthridine alkaloids of Chelidonium majus; I. Inhibition of 5- and 12-lipoxygenase by a non-redox mechanism. Planta Med 1996;62:397-401.

6. Sokoloff B, Saelhof CC, Takeuchi Y, Powella R. The antitumor factors present in Chelidonium majus L. I. Chelidonine and protopine. Growth 1964;28:225-31.

7. Molochko VA, Lastochkina TM, Krylov IA, Brangulis KA. The antistaphylococcal properties of plant extracts in relation to their prospective use as therapeutic and prophylactic formulations for the skin. Vestn Dermatol Venerol 1990;(8):54-6 [in Russian].

8. Mitra S, Gole K, Samajdar K, et al. Antihepatotoxic activity of Chelidonium majus. Int J Pharmacognosy 1992;30:125-8.

9. Mitra S, Sur RK, Roy A, Mukherjee AS. Effect of Chelidonium majus L on experimental hepatic tissue injury. Phytother Res 1996;10:354-6.

10. Ritter R, Schatton WFH, et al. Clinical trial on standardized celandine extract in patients with functional epigastric complaints: Results of placebo-controlled double-blind trial. Comp Ther Med 1993;1:189-93.

11. Kniebel R, Urlacher W. Z Allgemeinmed 1993;69:680-4.

12. Bone K (ed). Chelidonium--A medicinal poppy. MediHerb Professional Newsletter 1996;49:1-3.

13. Susak YM, Zemskov VS, Yaremchuk OY, et al. Comparison of chemotherapy and x-ray therapy with Ukrain monotherapy for colorectal cancer. Drugs Exp Clin Res 1996;22:115-22.

14. Stickel F, Pöschl G, Seitz HK, Waldherr R, Hahn EG, Schuppan D. Acute hepatitis induced by Greater Celandine (Chelidonium majus). Scand J Gastroenterol 2003;38:565-68.

15. Schulz V, Hänsel R, Tyler VE. Rational Phytotherapy: A Physician's Guide to Herbal Medicine. 3rd ed, Berlin: Springer, 1998, 168-73.

16. Blumenthal M, Busse WR, Goldberg A, et al. (eds). The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to Herbal Medicines. Austin: American Botanical Council and Boston: Integrative Medicine Communications, 1998, 425-6.

17. Ritter R, Schatton WFH, et al. Clinical trial on standardized celandine extract in patients with functional epigastric complaints: Results of placebo-controlled double-blind trial. Comp Ther Med 1993;1:189-93.

18. Benninger J, Schneider HT, Schuppan D, et al. Acute hepatitis induced by greater celandine (Chelidonium majus). Gastroenterol 1999;117:1234-7.

19. Weiss RF. Herbal Medicine. Gothenberg, Sweden: Ab Arcanum, 1988, 337.

20. Duke JA. CRC Handbook of Medicinal Herbs. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 1985, 113.

21. Mességué M. Of Men and Plants. New York: Macmillian Co, 1973.

22. Weiss RF. Herbal Medicine. Gothenburg, Sweden: Ab Arcanum and Beaconsfield, UK: Beaconsfield Publishers Ltd, 1985, 84-8.

23. Bone K (ed). Chelidonium--A medicinal poppy. MediHerb Professional Newsletter 1996;49:1-3.

24. Ritter R, Schatton WFH, et al. Clinical trial on standardized celandine extract in patients with functional epigastric complaints: Results of placebo-controlled double-blind trial. Comp Ther Med 1993;1:189-93.

25. McGuffin M, Hobbs C, Upton R, Goldberg A (eds). American Herbal Products Association's Botanical Safety Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 1997.

26. Etxenagusia MA, Anda M, Gonzalez-Mahave I, et al. Contact dermatitis from Chelidonium majus (greater celandine). Contact Derm 2000;43:47.

27. Benninger J, Schneider HT, Schuppan D, et al. Acute hepatitis induced by greater celandine (Chelidonium majus). Gastroenterol 1999;117:1234-7.

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The information presented by TraceGains is for informational purposes only. It is based on scientific studies (human, animal, or in vitro), clinical experience, or traditional usage as cited in each article. The results reported may not necessarily occur in all individuals. For many of the conditions discussed, treatment with prescription or over the counter medication is also available. Consult your doctor, practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications. Information expires December 2025.