Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. (PMT, Polygonaceae family, Figure 1)), well known as He shou wu in China and Fo-ti in North America,[5] is one of the most popular perennial Chinese traditional medicinal vine-like herbs, officially listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia.[6] Various parts of the plants were utilized for different medicinal purposes. The leaves [Figure 2a], root tuber [Figure 2b] and rhizomes [Figure 2c] of this plant have been used as tonic and anti-aging agents[7,8,9,10,11,12] whereas the stem [Figure 2d] is used to alleviate insomnia and even to have an antidiabetic therapeutic activity as well.[13,14,15] Figure 1 Polygonum multiflorum Thunb Figure 2 Photos of (a) leaves, (b) tuber roots, (c) underground rhizomes and (d) stem from Polygonum multiflorum Thunb Laboratory studies and clinical practice have demonstrated that PMT possesses various biological and therapeutic actions, including anti-tumor,[16,17] antibacterial,[18] anti-inflammatory,[13] anti-oxidant,[19,20,21] anti-HIV,[22] liver protection,[23,24] nephroprotection,[25] antidiabetic,[15,26] anti-alopecia,[27,28] and anti-atherosclerotic activities.[29,30] It has been also reported to exert preventive activity against neurodegenerative diseases,[31,32,33,34,35] cardiovascular diseases and to reduce hyperlipidemia as well.[36,37]

Review of clinical studies of Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. and its isolated bioactive compounds