Sanguisorba officinalis

Great burnet
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Sanguisorba
Species:	S. officinalis
Binomial name
Sanguisorba officinalis L.
Synonyms [1]
List Pimpinella officinalis(L.) Lam. Poterium borealeSalisb. Poterium officinale(L.) A.Gray Poterium officinale(L.) F.B.Forbes & Hemsl. Sanguisorba altissimaMoench Sanguisorba andersoniiG.Don Sanguisorba auriculataScop. Sanguisorba baicalensisPopl. Sanguisorba bracteosaBesser ex Eichw. Sanguisorba carneaFisch. ex Link Sanguisorba cernuaBesser Sanguisorba cordifoliaOpiz Sanguisorba cylindricaCharb. Sanguisorba glandulosaKom. Sanguisorba hispanicaMill. Sanguisorba komarovianaNedol. Sanguisorba longa(Kitag.) Kitag. Sanguisorba majorGilib. Sanguisorba mediaL. Sanguisorba menziesiiRydb. Sanguisorba microcephalaC.Presl Sanguisorba montanaJord. ex Boreau Sanguisorba neglectaG.Don Sanguisorba officinalis var. dilutiflora(Kitag.) Liou & C.Y.Li Sanguisorba officinalis subsp. glandulosa(Kom.) Kamelin & Gubanov Sanguisorba officinalis var. globularis(Nakai ex T.Kawamoto) W.Lee Sanguisorba officinalis var. latifoliataLiou & C.Y.Li Sanguisorba officinalis subsp. microcephala(C.Presl) Calder & Roy L.Taylor Sanguisorba officinalis f. pallescensAsai Sanguisorba officinalis f. pilosella(Ohwi) H.Hara Sanguisorba polygamaF.Nyl. Sanguisorba praecoxBesser ex Rchb. Sanguisorba rubraSchrank Sanguisorba sabaudaMill. Sanguisorba serotinaJord. Sanguisorba tauricaJuz. Sanguisorba unsanensisNakai

The dry fruits contain the achenes which contain the seeds

Sanguisorba officinalis, commonly known as great burnet, is a plant in the family Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae. It is native throughout the cooler regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Europe, northern Asia, and northern North America.

Sanguisorba officinalis is an important food plant for the European large blue butterflies Phengaris nausithous and P. teleius . ^[2]

Description and habitats

It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 1 m tall, which occurs in grasslands, growing well on grassy banks. It flowers from June to September. ^[3]

Distribution

Species native to the majority of Europe, Asia and the West Coast of Canada and the United States. It has been introduced to the territories of Finland in Europe and Peru in South America. ^[4]

Commercial uses

Use is made of its extensive root system for erosion control, as well as a bioremediator, used to reclaim derelict sites such as landfills.

Ornamental

Sanguisorba officinalis is one of several Sanguisorba species cultivated as ornamental plants. The cultivar 'Tanna' is widely available, and has won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. ^[5] The synonym Sanguisorba menziesii is also listed as having gained the Award. ^[6]

Ethnomedical uses

It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) where it is known by the name Di Yu. It is said to cool the blood, stop bleeding, clear heat, and heal wounds (Chinese Herbal Materia Medica by Dan Bensky).

Specifically, the root is used to stop bloody dysentery, nosebleeds, and is applied topically to treat burns and insect bites.^{[ citation needed ]}

Phytochemistry

Sanguiin H-6 is a dimeric ellagitannin that can be found in S. officinalis. ^[7]

Ziyuglycoside II is a triterpenoid saponin that can be found in S. officinalis. ^[8]

References

1. "Sanguisorba officinalis L." Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
2. World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Maculinea nausithous . 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 6 October 2010
3. Plants for a Future: Sanguisorba officinalis
4. "Sanguisorba officinalis L. | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2025-08-17.
5. "Sanguisorba 'Tanna'". www.rhs.org. Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
6. "Sanguisorba menziesii". The Royal Horticultural Society. 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
7. Bastow KF, Bori ID, Fukushima Y, Kashiwada Y, Tanaka T, Nonaka G, Nishioka I, Lee KH (June 1993). "Inhibition of DNA topoisomerases by sanguiin H-6, a cytotoxic dimeric ellagitannin from Sanguisorba officinalis". Planta Med. 59 (3): 240–5. doi:10.1055/s-2006-959659. PMID   8391144.
8. Zhu X, Wang K, Zhang K, Zhu L, Zhou F (May 2014). "Ziyuglycoside II induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis through activation of ROS/JNK pathway in human breast cancer cells". Toxicol. Lett. 227 (1): 65–73. doi:10.1016/j.toxlet.2014.03.015. PMID   24680927.