Mulberry

Chinese Name: Shang ye
Medical Name: Folium mori
Latin Name: Morus alba
Origin: Leaf
Taste: Bitter and sweet

Quotes from Chinese historical sources

THE HERBAL CLASSIC OF SHEN-NONG: "In flavour it is bitter, sweet and cold. It is used mainly to treat high fevers with perspiration."

SUPPLEMENT TO MATERIA MEDICA: "Benefits the Five Organs and the joints; enhances the circulation of blood and of Qi energy."

RI HUA ZI MATERIA MEDICA: "It is warm and not poisonous. It benefits the Five Organs and the joints; and prevents adverse energy from rising. Simmered in water before drinking, it can assuage the pain of sweating wind-wet-evil, and alleviate blood stasis associated with contusions."

COMPENDIUM OF MATERIA MEDICA: "Folium mori is a medicine for Yangming energy (one of the Yang channels located interior to the Taiying and Shaoyang channels, where the Yang-energy develops to its final stage) of hands and feet, cures fevers in chronic consumptive diseases with coughing, clears the vision, promotes hair growth and eliminates diabetes."

Western Research

Planta Med. 2002 Oct;68(10):932-4.
Hepatoprotective and free radical scavenging activities of prenylflavonoids, coumarin, and stilbene from Morus alba.
Oh H, Ko EK, Jun JY, Oh MH, Park SU, Kang KH, Lee HS, Kim YC.
Professional Graduate School of Oriental Medicine, Wonkwang University, Iksan, Korea.
Chemical investigation of the EtOH extract of Morus alba L. (Moraceae), as guided by free radical scavenging activity, furnished 5,7-dihydroxycoumarin 7-methyl ether (1), two prenylflavones, cudraflavone B (2) and cudraflavone C (3), and oxyresveratrol (4). Compounds 1 and 4 showed superoxide scavenging effects with the IC(50) values of 19.1 +/- 3.6 and 3.81 +/- 0.5 microM, respectively. Compound 4 exhibited a DPPH free radical scavenging effect (IC(50) = 23.4 +/- 1.5 microM). Compounds 2 and 4 showed hepatoprotective effects with EC(50) values of 10.3 +/- 0.42 and 32.3 +/- 2.62 micro, respectively, on tacrine-induced cytotoxicity in human liver-derived Hep G2 cells

Arch Pharm Res. 1999 Feb;22(1):81-5.
Antioxidative flavonoids from the leaves of Morus alba.
Kim SY, Gao JJ, Lee WC, Ryu KS, Lee KR Kim YC.
Dept. of Sericulture & Entomology, National Institute Agricultural Science and Technology, RDA, Suwon, Korea
Nine flavonoids (1-9) were isolated from the leaves of Morus alba (Moraceae). The structures of compounds were determined to be kaempferol-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (astragalin, 1) kaempferol-3-O-(6"-O-acetyl)-beta-D-glucopyranoside (2), quercetin-3-O-(6"-O-acetyl)- beta-D-glucopyranoside (3), quercetin-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (4), kaempferol-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->6)- beta-D-glucopyranoside (5), quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->6)- beta-D-glucopyranoside (rutin, 6), quercetin-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl- (1-->6)-beta-D-glucopyranoside (7), quercetin-3,7-di-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside (8) and quercetin (9) on the basis of spectroscopic and chemical studies. Compounds 7 and 9 exhibited significant radical scavenging effect on 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical.