You may have heard of artemisinin before – the best-known ingredient in Artemisia annua, the annual mugwort . Especially in recent years, artemisinin has increasingly attracted scientific attention – and that's no surprise, since it boasts a whole range of astonishing properties . It's no coincidence that Chinese researcher Youyou Tu received the Nobel Prize in 2015 for the rediscovery of this "revolutionary ingredient."
But what makes artemisinin so special? What remarkable properties does it have, and how can we benefit from them? In this article, we'll take you into the world of this extraordinary plant substance.
Contents
Artemisia annua - a little botany
Artemisia annua , also known as annual mugwort , is a plant in the daisy family. It originates from Asia, where people have cultivated it for over 2,000 years . There, it is known as "Quinghao" and is associated with numerous beneficial properties. This is hardly surprising, since in addition to the valuable artemisinin, Artemisia annua contains a wide variety of other wonderful plant substances , which are primarily hidden in its fine, serrated leaves.
Because annual mugwort is a very robust plant that spreads quickly, it has now also conquered other regions of the globe – including numerous countries in Europe. Here, its wild forms (A-2) are often found in the wild or cultivated. Our own variety, Artemisia annua anamed (A-3 for short), is also cultivated exclusively.
As the name "annua" suggests, Artemisia annua is an annual plant . Its botanical name comes from the Greek goddess Artemis , the highly respected goddess of the hunt, the moon, and the forest.
Artemisia annua: The Nobel Prize Plant 2015
In 2015, the Chinese researcher Tu Youyou was awarded the Nobel Prize for the rediscovery of the ingredient artemisinin, extracted and isolated from Artemisia annua.
In fact, she was the first to bring a Nobel Prize in Science to China.
In 1968, she successfully rediscovered the plant, and in 1971, during the Vietnam War, she identified the artemisinin in it as part of the secret "Project 523." Numerous ancient Chinese texts were analyzed and various plants were examined. Since the research team discovered mentions of annual mugwort in several texts, it quickly became the focus of their research . However, the researchers initially failed to find an extraction method that did not destroy the valuable artemisinin.
Finally, Tu Youyou discovered a recipe in a text by the Chinese alchemist and inventor Ge Hong (341 BC) that would change everything.
Following these instructions, the Project 523 team performed a low-temperature extraction . Through further intensive research, they finally managed to isolate pure artemisinin crystals from annual mugwort.
Initially, however, the publications remained anonymous for two reasons. First, scientists during this period were viewed poorly by the communists and were even publicly punished. Second, publications from China were not taken seriously during this period.
Semi-synthetic artemisinin is now even being produced and used for various purposes. However, even the world's most expensive laboratory has not been able to produce this ingredient independently! Numerous studies have now been conducted examining the potential of this ingredient.
What is artemisinin?
Artemisinin is a secondary plant compound, more specifically a sesquiterpene. It is found in the oil glands of the leaves and flowers of the annual mugwort, from which it is extracted using hexane. However, this process is highly environmentally harmful due to the gasoline released and is also expensive, which is why the price of artemisinin is correspondingly high.
The artemisinin content of common wild Artemisia annua plants is 0.05–0.1%. Our Artemisia annua anamed is an exception, with a proud content of up to 1.4% . This means that the A-3 variety has a consistently up to 20x higher artemisinin content, offering more content for the same price.
Properties and uses of artemisinin
Artemisinin has numerous properties, and there are many studies worldwide investigating additional applications. The most important properties include:
Insecticide and acaricide
There is some evidence that artemisinin has insecticidal and acaricidal effects, meaning it has a deterrent effect against insects and ticks. Several studies have already examined these effects.
For this reason, Artemisia annua is often used in organic farming as a natural insect repellent . Read more about the uses and benefits of Artemisia annua as a pesticide here .
Antioxidant
Furthermore, some studies suggest that artemisinin may have antioxidant effects. The antioxidant potential of a substance is determined by its ORAC value. Indeed, Artemisia annua has an astonishingly high ORAC value of over 72,000 . By comparison, the "anti-aging wonder" coenzyme Q10 has a mere 7,000.
For this reason, our Artemisia annua ointment is a rich care product that not only provides your skin with comprehensive nutrients, but can also act as an effective anti-aging treatment .
At this point we would like to point out that we expressly market Artemisia annua leaf cuttings and leaf powder as raw materials - this corresponds to the current legal situation.
20x higher artemisinin content: Our Artemisia annua anamed (“A-3”)
As we have already mentioned, our Artemisia annua anamed (A-3) shows a significantly higher artemisinin content than all wild forms.
How is this possible? A-3 is a unique subspecies of annual mugwort, researched and cultivated by our partner organization anamed with various scientists from three continents . It was developed to offer everyone a uniform, consistent Artemisia annua product with a reliable artemisinin content. Our special breed is a completely pure, natural plant form based exclusively on traditional plant breeding – entirely without genetic modification.
Artemisinin in research
Because artemisinin exhibits promising properties, several scientific institutions have naturally explored its potential properties. Some researchers attempted to find efficient methods to isolate the compound from the plant, while others sought new processes to produce partially synthetic artemisinin. Here are a few examples of well-known institutions working on artemisinin:
- Max Planck Institute: Researchers at the Max Planck Institute dedicated themselves to developing an efficient synthesis method for artemisinin and to researching the whole plant extract of Artemisia annua.
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Harvard TH Chan School: A research group at the Harvard TH Chan School investigated various properties and uses of artemisinin.
- University of Cape Town: Researchers at the University of Cape Town have specialized in synthesizing and testing new artemisinin derivatives.
Artemisinin: Industrial Marketing
Now that the numerous properties of artemisinin have been studied in more detail, various companies are focusing on profiting from its commercialization. They are attempting to isolate the active ingredient and sell it at a high price, relying on questionable methods such as synthesis using genetically modified yeast. They hope to be able to produce large quantities of artemisinin independently of the plant.
However, we at teemana are convinced that Artemisia annua is not a "silver ball" preparation, meaning it is not a piece of silver surrounded by dirt; it is not the molecule of artemisinin surrounded by impurities, requiring "purification." Purification is a poorification, a deliberate depletion of the product.
In total, annual mugwort contains over 600 different valuable ingredients, all of which have varying degrees of solubility. There's simply no need to isolate individual substances and sell them at high prices.
For this reason, we continue to offer you only the full-fledged plant.
Conclusion
Artemisinin is undoubtedly a promising plant compound that is gaining increasing recognition - this is also underlined by the fact that the Chinese researcher Youyou Tu received the Nobel Prize for its rediscovery.
Since we can only provide you with a fraction of the available information, you can find further information and studies on this specific ingredient on the Internet or in specialist literature.
