In three separate scientific studies, the ancient Chinese herb gou teng, also known as cat’s claw (Uncaria rhynchophylla), has been shown to improve the symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease.
A total of 60 patients participated in the study, with 30 taking the herbal formula and 30 in the placebo group. Each took either the herbs or a placebo three times a day for twelve weeks. The researchers found that the herbs effectively improved sleep dysfunction in the Parkinson’s patients and that the improvements lasted an additional four weeks after completion of the study.
Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder, and according to the Parkinson’s Foundation, affects more than 10 million people worldwide. The disease primarily affects nerve cells in a part of the midbrain called the substantia nigra, responsible for muscle movement. The degeneration of these nerve cells results in a reduction of the neurotransmitter dopamine, causing tremors, difficulties with balance, slow movements, and rigidity.Gou Teng and Parkinson’s Disease
The way that gou teng is thought to stabilize Parkinson’s symptoms has been explored by Li Min, a doctor of Chinese medicine, and was discussed in a 2011 article in New Scientist. Li Min, associate dean of Chinese medicine and the director of the Mr. & Mrs. Ko Chi Ming Centre for Parkinson’s Disease Research at Hong Kong Baptist University, and her team were looking into the effect of gou teng on Parkinson’s symptoms.Parkinson’s symptoms like tremors, rigidity, and difficulty with muscle movement are caused by the progressive deterioration of the cells in the brain that produce dopamine, and previous research has suggested that the excess of a protein called alpha-synuclein may be the culprit. Current treatments for Parkinson’s focus on boosting levels of dopamine, which only partially alleviates symptoms, and does not affect these proteins, which gather in clusters. It is thought that the proteins accumulate into clusters because the brain is not able to remove them effectively through a process called autophagy—a type of programmed cell death. It was observed that mice without the genes needed for autophagy rapidly developed Parkinson’s-like symptoms.
According to Li, autophagy is the only known process that clears out abnormal proteins within cells. “Enhancing this pathway may be the key to treating Parkinson’s,” she says in the article.
Li’s team searched gou teng for active compounds, testing which ones could increase the rate of autophagy to remove the alpha-synuclein clusters. One of the compounds they isolated—an alkaloid called isorhy—stimulated autophagy for alpha-synuclein at a similar rate as the drug rapamycin. Rapamycin is a drug usually used to suppress the immune system in patients receiving organ transplants but has been recently suggested as a candidate for Parkinson’s treatment because it prevents nerve cell death in flies with Parkinson-like disease. However, because it suppresses the immune system, it would have serious side effects for people with Parkinson’s, whereas gou teng has been used for millennia and is considered extremely safe.
Gou Teng/Cat’s Claw (Uncaria rhynchophylla)
In Chinese medicine, gou teng is a class of herbs that extinguish wind and stop tremors and has been used for this purpose for more than 2,000 years. Gou teng belongs to the Rubiaceae family and is also known as uncaria vine and gambir. The plant grows as a woody vine that has hooked, claw-shaped thorns that resemble a cat’s claws. Gou teng is used in Chinese medicine to treat the “shakes” associated with conditions like Parkinson’s disease and is also used to treat liver conditions that can lead to high blood pressure, as studies are now showing.Wind in Chinese Medicine
Gou teng particularly affects the liver, which is seen as the source of internal wind in Chinese medicine. Although this isn’t the type of wind that you find outside, blowing through the tree branches or scattering a freshly raked pile of leaves, it shares the same characteristics within the body.Wind, in the Chinese medicine concept, is used to describe specific characteristics inside the body, namely, its disordered, erratic, and uncontrolled nature. Exterior wind also exists in Chinese medicine, but is different as it comes from external climatic conditions, and can, like internal wind, contribute to illness. The internal wind has the characteristics of erratic movement, tremors, stiffness, and increasing problems controlling the body’s movements. This internal wind can come about for various reasons, but in cases of Parkinson’s disease, it is commonly due to a blood deficiency.
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