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- The inner bark of cat's claw is used to make liquid extracts, capsules, and teas.<a href="#hdng0">(More...)</a>
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The inner bark of cat's claw is used to make liquid extracts, capsules, and teas. <a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> Cat's claw has been used for centuries in South America to prevent and treat disease. It has been used for a variety of health conditions, including viral infections (such as herpes and HIV), Alzheimer's disease, cancer, and arthritis.<a href="
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[1]</a> Cat's claw has been used to support the immune system and promote kidney health, as well as to prevent and abort pregnancy.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> There is not enough scientific evidence to determine how well cat's claw works for any health problem, including arthritis, HIV, or cancer.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> Small studies in humans have shown a possible benefit of cat's claw in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, but no large trials have been done.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> Though rare, side effects may include headaches, dizziness, and vomiting. Women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant should avoid using cat's claw because of its past use for preventing and aborting pregnancy.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> Few side effects have been reported for cat's claw when it is taken at recommended dosages.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> In laboratory studies, cat's claw stimulates part of the immune system, but it has not been proven to reduce inflammation or boost the immune system in humans.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> Because cat's claw may stimulate the immune system, it is unclear whether the herb is safe for people with conditions affecting the immune system.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> Cat's claw grows wild in many countries of Central and South America, especially in the Amazon rainforest.<a href="
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/catclaw/" TARGET="_blank"
[1]</a> In IEC-18 cells, all antioxidants were equally effective as anti-apoptotic agents. These results indicate that dietary antioxidants can limit epithelial cell death in response to oxidant stress. In the case of green tea and cat's claw, the cytoprotective response exceed their inherent ability to interact with the injurious oxidant, suggestive of actions on intracellular pathways regulating cell death.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Ascorbic acid was significantly more potent than green tea or cat's claw (P < 0.05), with green tea being more effective than cat's claw (P < 0.05). The EC 50 activities for these antioxidants against DPPH are summarized in Table 5. This rank order of potency contrasts the rank order of potency in protecting epithelial cells form DPPH-induced apoptosis.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> DPPH had no effect on media LDH levels in AGS cells but significantly raised levels in IEC-18 cells (Table 4 ). This response was attenuated by cat's claw or green tea (P < 0.05) but not ascorbic acid (Table 4 ).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Using the media release of BrdU-labeled DNA as an index of early necrotic cell death, it was observed that peroxynitrite treatment induced necrosis in AGS cells (P < 0.001). This effect was reduced by either cat's claw (P < 0.001) or green tea (P < 0.01) but not ascorbic acid (Figure 7 ).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> In AGS cells, ascorbic acid caused a reduction in the apoptotic response to peroxynitrite (P < 0.01). Both cat's claw or green tea treatment were more effective than ascorbate in reducing the apoptotic response to peroxynitrite (P < 0.05, Figure 6 ).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Ascorbic acid treatment was less effective than either green tea or cat's claw in attenuating hydrogen peroxide-induced apoptosis in AGS cells (P < 0.01).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Green tea and cat's claw were equally protective against peroxynitrite and H 2 O 2, but green tea was more effective than cat's claw in reducing DPPH-induced apoptosis (P < 0.01). Necrotic cell death was marginally evident at these low concentrations of peroxynitrite and H 2 O 2, and was attenuated both by cat's claw and green tea (P < 0.01).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Using media release of BrdU-labeled DNA fragments as an index of early stage necrosis, it was noted that DPPH (3 μM) did not raise rates of necrosis above that evident in untreated control AGS cells (Table 4 ). Antioxidants did not change this response with the exception of cat's claw, which reduced this assay of early stage necrosis (P < 0.01) when compared to either control (untreated) values or the cells treated with DPPH.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> The induction or necrosis by H 2 O 2 in AGS cells was prevented by cat's claw, green tea and ascorbic acid (P < 0.01).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Figure 6 Apoptosis, measured as by histone-associated cytosolic DNA fragmentation, in AGS cells treated with peroxynitrite (300 μM) alone or in combination with cat's claw, green tea extract or ascorbic acid (10 μg/ml).<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> We chose to evaluate cat's claw and green tea for several reasons. Beyond being extracts and hence they are made up of a collection of phytochemicals, in contrast to vitamin C, these "teas" are used for health maintenance in various cultures. Recently, both green tea and cat's claw have been reported to reduce the expression of inflammatory genes; responses that are linked to apoptosis and proliferation.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> At concentrations of green tea or cat's claw that had minimal quenching effects on the oxidant signal itself, a significant benefit to cellular systems was seen. This may reflect the combined contributions of intracellular antioxidants with the exogenous antioxidant.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a>
Values for apoptosis for green tea or cat's claw, but not ascorbate, were lowered to a level that was indistinguishable from control, untreated cells.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> The hydrogen peroxide signal, determined by spectroscopy at 240 nm, was quenched by ascorbic acid but not by the decoctions, green tea or cat's claw.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> The aqueous extract of freeze-dried cat's claw ( Uncaria tomentosa or Uncaria guianensis ), vitamin C or green tea was standardized to give a stock solution (25 mg/ml) and filtered at 20 μm using a Whatman paper N° 4.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Cat's claw has been described as a potent inhibitor of the transcription factor NF-κB activation, preventing the expression of TNFα and inducible nitric oxide synthase. These immune/inflammatory products are associated with gastritis and epithelial cell death and hence cat's claw may have utility in limiting gut inflammation. This matches its ethnomedical use in South America where it is used to treat gastritis and other forms of chronic inflammation like arthritis.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> There are no competing interests for BK Reuter or F. Angeles. Both MJS Miller and M Sandoval have financial interests in Rainforest Phytoceuticals, LLC who supplied the cat's claw used in this study.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> The South American ethnomedicine, Cat's claw (Vinicol™), Uncaria guianensis, was obtained as a freeze dried concentrate from Rainforest Phytoceuticals, LLC, Delmar, NY. This concentrate is prepared in accord with ethnomedical traditions, where a decoction is made from the bark, and the solutes concentrated by freeze drying the decoction.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a> Sandoval-Chacon M, Thompson JH, Liu X, Mannick EE, Sadowska-Krowicka H, Charbonnet R, Clark DA, Miller MJS. Anti-inflammatory actions of cat's claw: the role of NF-κB. Alimentary Pharmacol Ther. 1998; 12 :1279"1289. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2036.1998.00424.x.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a>
Cells were treated with DPPH (3 μM), H 2 O 2 (50 μM), peroxynitrite (300 μM) and/or supplemented with 10 μg/ml of each antioxidant (cat's claw, green tea, ascorbic acid), and incubated for 6 h.<a href="
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=61450" TARGET="_blank"
[2]</a>
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