Pharmacological basis of Evening Primrose Oil in Premenstrual Syndrome — An evidenced based approach

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is a recurrent luteal-phase condition associated with somatic emotional and behavioral symptoms. Frequently reported symptoms include breast discomfort, mood swings, fluid retention and food cravings. The exact etiology of PMS is unknown; however, the underlying mechanism is a complex interaction between fluctuations in ovarian steroids and central neurotransmitters as well as peripheral effects of hormones. Therefore, surprisingly a wide range of treatments are not available with satisfactory outcomes. Evening Primrose Oil (EPO) is one of the most popular for the management of PMS. EPO is a valuable fixed oil extracted from the Oenothera biennis seeds. It comprises essential fatty acids, including linoleic acid, Gamma-Linolenic Acid (GLA), and Vitamin E, which have been used in various treatments. It has been clinically shown to improve psychological (mood and sleep disturbances) and physical symptoms (breast pain/tenderness, bloating, fatigue) in women suffering from PMS. The rationale put forward for investigating the use of EPO in PMS is thataffected women appear to have abnormal levels of essential fatty acids; hence administrating linoleic acid and GLA in the form of EPO could potentially alleviate the symptoms of PMS.

The use of dinoprostone versus evening primrose oil for cervical ripening in women who will undergo hysteroscopy: A randomized controlled trial

Objective@#To compare the efficacy of Dinoprostone gel versus intravaginal evening primrose oil capsule as cervical ripening agents for operative hysteroscopy…. and to compare the length of time to achieve a 10mm cervical dilatation prior to operative hysteroscopy.@*Methods@#This is a two-arm randomized controlled trial done in a tertiary training institution. Group A and B received Dinoprostone gel and EPO for cervical ripening, respectively. Population consisted of women admitted for operative hysteroscopy, aged between 19-56 years old, and with closed cervix. @*Results@#Thirty-eight (38) patients mostly pre-menopausal with mean age of 41, without history of uterine surgery, and presented with abnormal uterine bleeding, were included. Significant difference was observed in initial cervical dilatation between Dinoprostone gel(5.63 mm) versus EPO(4.21mm). Most patients in EPO group were pain-free while Dinoprostone group experienced tolerable pain. Use of Dinoprostone was 4x more expensive versus EPO. @*Conclusion@#Both agents were effective in dilating the cervix prior to operative hysteroscopy. Nevertheless, EPO may be superior and acceptable due to reduced cost, patient convenience and acceptability, and ease of administration.

The Role of Fish Oil and Evening Primrose Oil against the Toxicity of Fenitrothion Pesticide in Male Rats

Pollutants in the environment and exposure to them lead to medical ailments around the world. The present studyaimed to evaluate the protective effect of evening primrose oil and fish oil against fenitrothion pesticide-inducedtoxicity in rats. Male Wistar rats weighing 150-220 g, were randomly distributed into seven groups, the firstserved as control. The second group received fenitrothion, the third and fourth groups were supplemented withfish oil and evening primrose oil, respectively. Rats of group five were exposed to fish oil and fenitrothion. Thesixth group was exposed to evening primrose oil and fenitrothion. Rats of the seventh group were exposed to fishoil and evening primrose oil and fenitrothion. The results showed that the activities of serum alanineaminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), and the levels of bilirubin (BIL), total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), glucose (GLU),cholesterol (CHOL), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), very low-densitylipoproteins cholesterol (VLDL-c), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were noticeably increased in ratsadministered fenitrothion. However, the level of serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) andglutathione (GSH) were markedly decreased. It was found that fish oil and evening primrose oil decreased thephysiological unsettling influences initiated by fenitrothion. Moreover, the antioxidant properties of these oilssupported the bioactive roles of its defensive impacts on fenitrothion toxicity. Finally, the present findings suggestthat these oils may be utilized as preventive components against the toxicity of fenitrothion because of theirantioxidant properties.

Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis) Oil in Management of Female Ailments

Oenothera biennis with the common name of “evening primrose” is containing a valuable fixed oil with commercial name of EPO. Evening primrose oil has two types of omega-6-fatty acid including linoleic acid (60%–80%) and γ-linoleic acid (8%–14%). Essential fatty acids are considered as essential compounds for body health, especially among women. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of evening primrose oil in the management of women ailments. The document was prepared by investigation in scientific articles of electronic resources (Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, Wiley, Scopus, and Springer) by keywords of evening primrose oil and women. The results of our investigations showed that evening primrose oil has been the subject of several clinical studies, including premenstrual syndrome (PMS), hot flash, mastalgia, fibroadenomas, gestational diabetes, cervical ripening, and dilation. The major clinical studies are focused on mastalgia, followed by PMS. The results of studies confirmed the evening primrose oil's efficacy in women health, but the immediate response should not be expected from it, therefore, it should be regularly used up to 4 or 6 months.

Development of a Complete Atrioventricular Block Associated with Intake of Evening Primrose Oil / 대한내과학회지

A complete atrioventricular block is seen in patients due to a variety of causes, including drugs. The resolution of a drug-induced atrioventricular block is often accomplished by drug discontinuation. We report a case of a complete atrioventricular block in a 31-year-old woman following a month of treatment with evening primrose oils. After excluding all other likely causes of conduction disorders, an adverse effect of the evening primrose oils seemed to be the most likely diagnosis. After discontinuation of the oils, no associated symptoms or conduction disturbances were observed for 4 months after discharge. We stress the reconsideration of taking medicines and functional foods continuously as most patients are not aware of the hazards they pose.

A Study on the Statistical Method for the Target Component of a Glucose-lowering Functional Material in Extracts of Evening Primerose Seeds

BACKGROUND: The use of the extracts from evening primrose seeds as a health functional food has been gradually increased. Therefore, the monitoring and screening process has been considerably required for its quality control. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to estimate the measurement uncertainty associated with determination of penta-o-galloyl β-D-glucose (PGG) in extracts from evening primrose seeds by high-performance liquid chromatography. METHODS: The sources of measurement uncertainty was expressed in accordance with mathematical/statistical theories of GUM & EURACHEM Guide. The expanded uncertainty was calculated by using the relative standard uncertainty between analytical result and sources of uncertainty in measurement (sample weight, final volume, extraction volume, standard solution, matrix and instrument etc). RESULTS: In the results of 95% confidence interval, the uncertainty in measurement was 10,253.34 ± 1,844.50 µg/kg (k = 2.0). CONCLUSION: In this study, it showed that the value of uncertainty in measurement for determination of PGG in extracts from evening primrose seeds by HPLC has about 18.0% influence on PGG contents of the analytical results. The results would be very useful for the monitoring and screening of evening primrose seeds marketed in Korea for its quality control as dietary supplement.

In vitro and in vivo anti-Helicobacter pylori activities of FEMY-R7 composed of fucoidan and evening primrose extract / 한국실험동물학회지

Effects of FEMY-R7, composed of fucoidan and evening primrose extract, on the bacterial growth and intragastric infection of Helicobacter pylori as well as gastric secretion were investigated in comparison with a proton-pump inhibitor pantoprazole. For in vitro anti-bacterial activity test, H. pylori (1x10(8) CFU/mL) was incubated with a serially-diluted FEMY-R7 for 3 days. As a result, FEMY-R7 fully inhibited the bacterial growth at 100 microg/mL, which was determined to be a minimal inhibitory concentration. In addition, 6-hour incubation with H. pylori, FEMY-R7 inhibited urease activity in a concentration-dependent manner, showing a median inhibitory concentration of 1,500 microg/mL. In vivo elimination study, male C57BL/6 mice were infected with the bacteria by intragastric inoculation (5x10(9) CFU/mouse) 3 times at 2-day intervals, and simultaneously, orally treated twice a day with 10, 30 or 100 mg/kg FEMY-R7 for 7 days. In Campylobcter-like organism-detection test and bacterial identification, FEMY-R7 exerted a high bacteria-eliminating capacity at 30-100 mg/kg, comparably to 30 mg/kg pantoprazole. In contrast to a strong antacid activity of pantoprazole in a pylorus-ligation study, FEMY-R7 did not significantly affect gastric pH, free HCl, and total acidity, although it significantly decreased fluid volume at a low dose (10 mg/kg). The results indicate that FEMY-R7 eliminate H. pylori from gastric mucosa by directly killing the bacteria and preventing their adhesion and invasion, rather than by inhibiting gastric secretion or mucosal damage.

The Effect of Evening Primrose Oil for the Prevention of Xerotic Cheilitis in Acne Patients Being Treated with Isotretinoin: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND: The most common adverse effects of oral isotretinoin are cheilitis, skin dryness, dry eyes, and conjunctivitis, whereas evening primrose oil (EPO) is known to improve skin moisture and transepidermal water loss (TEWL) in healthy adults and atopic patients. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of EPO in preventing xerotic cheilitis in acne patients being treated with oral isotretinoin. METHODS: Forty Korean volunteers of Fitzpatrick skin types III and IV, having moderate acne, were enrolled and randomized to receive either isotretinoin with or without EPO for 8 weeks. The efficacy of treatment was evaluated on the basis of global acne grading system scores, number of inflammatory and noninflammatory lesions, TEWL, corneometry, physician's global assessment, and patient satisfaction. RESULTS: The results after 8 weeks of treatment showed that the TEWL of the lip increased significantly during isotretinoin treatment, whereas the TEWL of the hand dorsum showed no significant change. The increase of the TEWL of the lip was more definite in the control group than in the experimental group. The number of acne lesions decreased significantly in both groups, and there were no differences between them. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that the addition of EPO improved xerotic cheilitis in acne patients being treated with oral isotretinoin. However, besides TEWL and corneometry assessments, additional studies are required for a complete understanding of the role of EPO in xerotic cheilitis in acne patients being treated with oral isotretinoin.

Anti-Helicobacter pylori activities of FEMY-R7 composed of fucoidan and evening primrose extract in mice and humans / 한국실험동물학회지

Helicobacter pylori-eliminating effects of FEMY-R7, composed of fucoidan and evening primrose extract, were investigated in mice and humans. Male C57BL/6 mice were infected with the bacteria by intragastric inoculation (1x10(9) CFU/mouse) 3 times at 2-day intervals, and simultaneously, orally treated twice a day with 10 or 100 mg/kg FEMY-R7 for 2 weeks. In Campylobcter-like organism-detection test, FEMY-R7 markedly reduced the urease-positive reactivity. In a clinical sudy, human subjects, confirmed to be infected with Helicobacter pylori, were orally administered twice a day with a capsule containing 150 mg FEMY-R7 for 8 weeks. FEMY-R7 significantly decreased both the Delta over baseline-value in urea breath test and the serum pepsinogens I and II levels. The results indicate that FEMY-R7 not only eliminates H. pylori from gastric mucosa of animals and humans, but also improves gastric function.

Dose-Dependent Effects of Evening Primrose Oil in Children and Adolescents with Atopic Dermatitis

BACKGROUND: Previous clinical trials with evening primrose oil in atopic dermatitis (AD) treatment have shown different results. In addition, the optimal dose and duration of treatment with evening primrose oil have not yet been determined. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to investigate the dose-response treatment effects of evening primrose oil on clinical symptoms of AD and serum concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids. METHODS: Forty AD patients were enrolled for the study and randomly divided into 2 groups: those who received evening primrose oil 160 mg daily for 8 weeks and those who received 320 mg of evening primrose oil twice daily for 8 weeks. We evaluated the Eczema Area Severity Index (EASI) scores of all AD patients at weeks 0, 2, 4 and 8. In addition, we measured the levels of serum fatty acids, including C16 : 0 (palmitic), C18 : 2n (linoleic), C18 : 3n (linolenic) and C20 : 4 (arachidonic acid) using gas chromatography. RESULTS: The serum fatty acid levels C18 : 3n and C20 : 4 were higher in the 320 mg group than in the 160 mg group, with statistical significance. After evening primrose oil treatment, EASI scores were reduced in the 2 groups. The improvement in EASI scores was greater in the 320 mg group than in the 160 mg group. There were no side effects seen in either group during the study in the 2 groups. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that the 320 mg and 160 mg groups may be equally effective in treating AD patients and show dose-dependent effects on serum fatty acid levels and EASI scores.

Dose-Dependent Effects of Evening Primrose Oil in Children and Adolescents with Atopic Dermatitis

BACKGROUND: Previous clinical trials with evening primrose oil in atopic dermatitis (AD) treatment have shown different results. In addition, the optimal dose and duration of treatment with evening primrose oil have not yet been determined. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to investigate the dose-response treatment effects of evening primrose oil on clinical symptoms of AD and serum concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids. METHODS: Forty AD patients were enrolled for the study and randomly divided into 2 groups: those who received evening primrose oil 160 mg daily for 8 weeks and those who received 320 mg of evening primrose oil twice daily for 8 weeks. We evaluated the Eczema Area Severity Index (EASI) scores of all AD patients at weeks 0, 2, 4 and 8. In addition, we measured the levels of serum fatty acids, including C16 : 0 (palmitic), C18 : 2n (linoleic), C18 : 3n (linolenic) and C20 : 4 (arachidonic acid) using gas chromatography. RESULTS: The serum fatty acid levels C18 : 3n and C20 : 4 were higher in the 320 mg group than in the 160 mg group, with statistical significance. After evening primrose oil treatment, EASI scores were reduced in the 2 groups. The improvement in EASI scores was greater in the 320 mg group than in the 160 mg group. There were no side effects seen in either group during the study in the 2 groups. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that the 320 mg and 160 mg groups may be equally effective in treating AD patients and show dose-dependent effects on serum fatty acid levels and EASI scores.

In Vitro Release of Evening Primrose Oil Microspheres / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE:To study the release characteristics of Evening primrose oil microspheres in vitro. METHODS:UV spectrophotometry was adopted to determine the accumulated release of microspheres under different media,and the drug release behaviors in vitro were fitted using zero-order,first-order and Higuchi equations. RESULTS:The accumulated release of microspheres in the gastrointestinal liquid (within 6 h) was up to(92.84?0.35)%;under the media of artificial gastric juice,the release of drug conformed to Higuchi equation:Q=5.941t1/2—11.083(r=0.991 7); under the media of artificial intestinal juice,the release of drug was in line with first-rate equation:ln(100—Q)=—0.487 4t+4.588(r=0.996 4). CONCLUSION:This method is simple,accurate and reproducible,and it can be used for the determination of the release rate of the Evening primrose oil microspheres.

The Suppressive Effect of Evening Primrose Oil on Murine Contact Sensitivity

BACKGROUND: Evening primrose oil(EPO) is a rich source of cis-linoleic acid and gammalinolenic acid(GLA) and has been used as a therapeutic agent in various skin diseases such as atopic dermatitis. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the suppressive effect of EPO on murine contact sensitivity. METHODS: BALB/c mice were divided into 3 groups, positive control, experimental and negative control groups: the positive control group represents a group of mice which were sensitized and challenged with DNFB, the experimental group represents EPO-pretreated positive control group and the negative control group represents a group of mice which were challenged only. The changes of ear thickness were measured, and H & E staining and immunohistochemical staining for ICAM-1 expression of ear skin were performed to evaluate the histological changes of each group. RESULTS: The Pretreatment of mice with EPO resulted in suppression of contact sensitivity by more than 82%. On H & E staining, only a mild inflammatory reaction was observed in the dermis. Also ICAM-1 expression of keratinocytes, the intensity of the staining was significantly decreased in the experimental group compared with positive group. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates that EPO was able to suppress the induction of contact sensitivity.

Effect of Eveing Primrose on Plasma Cholesterol Levels and Immune Response to Sheep Erythrocytes

Evening primrose oil(EPO), which contains 72% cis-linoleic acid and 9% cisgamma linolenic acid, has been clinically used for treatment of number of diseases in human and animals. And it is also known to lower cholesterol(CHO) level of hypercholesterolaemic individuals. But the role of EPO as CHO-suppressant is controversial, and the relationship of EPO to CHO level in immune regulating activities is unclear at present. To evaluate the effect of evening primrose on the normal plasma CHO-levels, rabbits were fed with evening primrose seed(EPS) or injected with evening primrose seed-extract(EPE), and measured the plasma CHO-levels by duration of treatment. Both of EPS and EPE did not influence the plasma CHO-levels until 4 day treatment and thereafter the levels were significantly reduced. For the investigation of the EPE-effect on immune response to sheep erythrocytes(SRBC), mice were injected with EPE for 4 days before SRBC-sensitization or with CHO just before SRBC, Sensitization or with CHO in regulating effect of immune response was evaluated by the measuring the footpad swelling reaction and antibody response to SRBC. EPE itself did not influence Arthus reaction but it remarkable reduced delayed type hypersensitivity(DTH) and antibody production in comparison with control. CHO slightly increased Arthus reaction and DTH, but it somewhat decreased antibody responses. However, CHO significantly recovered the EPE-induced decrement of DTH and humoral immunity. There results led to that conclusion the evening primrose triggers the decrease of plasma CHO-levels and immune responses, and suggested that the mechanisms responsible for the nonspecific immune inhibitory effect of evening primrose might be partially due to the decrement of the CHO-levels.

Self-emulsifying preparation of evening primrose oil / 第二军医大学学报

Objective:To search for the optimum formula for the self emulsification of evening primrose oil. Methods: Through solubility experiment, orthogonal screen and drawing phase diagram, taking the degree of emulsifying, the volume of the rest oil and emulsion particle size as parameters,the oil, non ionic surfactant and flux for the optimum formulation were screened. Results: In the formulation of evening primrose oil, taking Tween 85 as the non ionic surfactant and propylene glycol as the co surfactant can get the best effect of emulsifying. Conclusion: The optimum formula for self emulsification of evening primrose oil is evening primrose oil, Tween 85 and propylene glycol,with their proportion being 5∶7∶3.

THE BENEFICIAL EFFECT OF EVENING PRIMROSE OIL ON ZINC DEFICIENT RATS / 营养学报

Zinc deficient rats were injected subcutaneously each day for 3 weeks with 250 ?l evening primrose oil (EPO, containing 10% Y-linolenic acid and 73% linoleic acid) or safflower oil (SFO, containing 77% linoleic acid only) and compared with zinc supplemented group (ZnS) and zinc deficient group (ZnD) without injections. At the end of the experiment, rats were killed under anaesthesia, organ weights, zinc content of kidneys, blood cholesterol and fatty acid compositions were determined. The results showed animals in EPO group had the best recoveries both in deficient symptoms and in body weights,the zinc content of kidneys was the highest, the serum cholesterol level was significantly lower than those of SFO and ZnD groups, but no difference from ZnS group. The total percentage of 22-C and above(?-6)polyunsatured fatty acids was the highest among those four groups. These results indicated that?-linolenic acid was beneficial to zinc deficient rats in growth, zinc utilization and the metabolism of essential fatty acids.