Rhynchophylline is an

alkaloid Alkaloids are a broad class of natural product, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. Some synthetic compounds of similar structure may also be termed alkaloids. Alkaloids are produced by a large varie ...

found in certain ''

Uncaria ''Uncaria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the Family (biology), family Rubiaceae. It has about 40 species.''Uncaria'' At: World Checklist of Rubiaceae At: Kew Gardens Website. (see ''External links'' below). Their Range (biology), distribut ...

'' species (Rubiaceae), notably '' Uncaria rhynchophylla'' and '' Uncaria tomentosa''. It also occurs in the leaves of '' Mitragyna speciosa'' (kratom) and Mitragyna tubulosa, a tree native to Thailand. Chemically, it is related to the alkaloid

mitragynine Mitragynine is an indole-based alkaloid and is one of the main Psychoactive drug, psychoactive constituents in the Southeast Asian plant ''Mitragyna speciosa'', commonly known as kratom. It is an atypical opioid that is typically consumed as a p ...

. Rhynchophylline is a non-competitive

NMDA antagonist NMDA receptor antagonists are a class of drugs that work to antagonize, or inhibit the action of, the ''N''-Methyl-D-aspartate receptor ( NMDAR). They are commonly used as anesthetics for humans and animals; the state of anesthesia they ind ...

(IC₅₀ = 43.2 μM) and a

calcium channel blocker Calcium channel blockers (CCB), calcium channel antagonists or calcium antagonists are a group of medications that disrupt the movement of calcium () through calcium channels. Calcium channel blockers are used as antihypertensive drugs, i.e., as ...

. ''

'' species have had a variety of uses in traditional herbal medicine, such as for lightheadedness, convulsions, numbness, and hypertension. These uses have been associated with the presence of rhynchophylline and have encouraged its investigation as a drug candidate for several cardiovascular and central nervous system diseases; however, few clinically relevant studies have been conducted.

References

{{Ionotropic glutamate receptor modulators Calcium channel blockers Mitragyna alkaloids NMDA receptor antagonists Spiro compounds Methyl esters Ethers Oxindoles

See also

References