Cuscuta is a special physiological structure of the parasitic plant, which consists of cells without chloroplasts, the use of climbing vine-like structure to climb on other plants, and from the part of the contact with the host to extend the spikes, poking into the host up to the phloem, to absorb nutrients to survive, and furthermore, will be stored into the starch granules in the tissues.

Effects of Cuscuta:

Nourishing the liver and kidneys, consolidating the essence and shrinking urine, stabilizing the fetus, brightening the eyes and stopping diarrhea. Used for impotence and spermatorrhea, residual leaking of urine, dysuria and frequent urination, lumbar and knee pain and weakness, dimming of the eyes and tinnitus, kidney deficiency and fetal leakage, fetal restlessness, spleen and kidney deficiency and diarrhea; external treatment of vitiligo. Properties:Sweet flavor, warm nature. It can be used for kidney and spermatorrhea, nourishing the liver and improving eyesight, stopping diarrhea, and tranquilizing the fetus. It is used for kidney impotence, spermatorrhea, frequent urination, lumbago; deficiency of liver and kidney, blurred vision, vision loss; weakness of spleen and kidney, loose stools and diarrhea; deficiency of liver and kidney, fetal restlessness.

Cuscuta's role:

1, aphrodisiac effect Experimental evidence: Cuscuta has the effect of improving the sexual vitality of Drosophila melanogaster, so that the mating rate increased significantly, and the strength of its role and the concentration of the drug into a positive correlation. For hydrocortisone-induced "yang deficiency" model in mice, the use of Cuscuta chinensis can make the symptoms of yang deficiency have a certain degree of recovery, but failed to restore the animals to the level of the normal control group. The experiments showed that the decoction of Cuscuta chinensis, when administered by gavage to "Yang-deficient" mice, significantly increased their body weights, kidney weights, thymus weights, leukocyte counts, erythrocyte counts, hemoglobins, and the activity of superoxide dismutase; and that gavage of Cuscuta chinensis significantly prolonged the swimming time and the survival time of the mice under the condition of hypoxia. It also enhanced the non-specific resistance of mice.

2 Endocrine effects It has been reported that the aqueous extract of Cuscuta chinensis, when given to female rats by gavage, can increase the weight of the anterior pituitary gland, ovaries and uterus, but has no effect on the plasma level of luteinizing hormone (LH); increase the number of HCG/LH receptors in the ovaries of the rats, and reduce the Ka value compared with that of the control group. The aqueous extract of Cuscuta chinensis, when administered by gavage to ovariectomized rats, increased LH secretion in the pituitary gland of ovariectomized rats in response to luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LRH) injection, and its plasma LH level was the highest at 90 minutes after the injection, which could be increased by 241.58%. Therefore, the authors concluded that Cuscuta chinensis could increase the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian luteinizing function, and this effect was not due to their direct stimulation of pituitary luteinizing hormone secretion, but rather due to the increase of pituitary responsiveness to LRH and ovarian responsiveness to LH.

3. Effects on heart rate and blood pressure The soy sauce of Cuscuta chinensis (made from Cuscuta chinensis and soybean cake), the infusion, and the tincture can enhance the contractility of the isolated toad heart, and the former can increase the heart rate, while the latter two can reduce it. The former can increase the heart rate, while the latter two can reduce it. The infusion is given to anesthetized dogs intravenously, and has the effect of lowering the blood pressure.

4, delaying the formation of cataracts Research shows that: Cuscuta chinensis aqueous extract to the rat gavage, the use of galactose-induced cataracts in rats have delayed the formation of the percentage of transparent lens is 33.3%. The mechanism of action is that Cuscuta chinensis reduces aldose reductase activity, enhances polyol dehydrogenase, hexokinase and glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity, and inhibits and corrects the abnormal changes of enzymes in the lens of cataract-induced cataract-induced rats.

5, other effects of the whole plant of Cuscuta chinensis aqueous extract 1g / kg to the mouse gavage, can significantly reduce the excitability and paroxysmal spasm induced by electrical stimulation of mice, and can make phenobarbital anesthesia in hypoxic mice to enhance the effect of prolonged survival time. The extract antagonized the excitatory effect induced by amphetamine and showed obvious nociceptive activity.