Nile and Mediterranean regions.
Europe, north Africa, west Asia; Introduced into many temperate region.
Weed of cultivation.
Annual.
Euphorbia helioscopia is a widespread and variable species and several subspecies have been proposed. Chinese material all belongs to subsp. helioscopia.
Euphorbia helioscopia, the sun spurge or madwoman's milk, is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae. It is a herbaceous annual plant, native to most of Europe, northern Africa, and eastward through most of Asia.[1][2][3]
Additional folk names include wart spurge, summer spurge, umbrella milkweed, and wolf's-milk. [4][5]
It is an annual plant growing in arable land and disturbed ground. It grows to 10–50 cm tall, with a single, erect, hairless stem, branching toward the top. The leaves are oval, broadest near the tip, 1.5–3 cm long, with a finely toothed margin. The flowers are small, yellow-green, with two to five basal bracts similar to the leaves but yellower; flowering lasts from mid-spring to late summer.[3][4]
It is highly poisonous. Active ingredients are extracted from it for use in pharmaceutical industry. It is also a plant used in Chinese traditional medicine.[6] Its extract has been found to inhibit hepatocellular carcinoma in vivo in mice[7] and in vitro in human cells.
Euphorbia helioscopia contains the jatrophone-type diterpenoids euphoheliosnoid A, B, C[8] and D[6] and other toxic diterpenes such as euphoscopins, epieuphoscopins euphornins, cuphohelioscopins and euphohelionone.[9]
Four esters of 12-deoxyphorbol (12-deoxyphorbol-13-phenylacetale-20-acetate, 12-deoxyphorbol-13-dodec-dienoate-20-acetate, 12-deoxyphorbol-13-[2-methyl-cis-2-butenoate]-20-acetate and 12-deoxyphorbol-13-[2-methyl-cis-2-butenoate]) can be isolated from the fresh aerial parts. These substances are the major skin irritants found in the plant.[10]
m-Hydroxyphenylglycine and 3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine are two amino acids that can be isolated from the latex of E. helioscopia.[11]
Hydrolysable tannins can be found in E. helioscopia. Helioscopinin A (1,6-(S)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl-2,4-(S)-dehydrohexahydroxydiphenoyl-3-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose), helioscopinin B (1,6-(S)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl-3-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose), helioscopin A (1,6-(S)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl-2,4-(R)-elaeocarpusinoyl-3-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose) and helioscopin B (1,3,6-tri-O-galloyl-2,4-(R)-elaeocarpusinoyl-β-D-glucose) can be found together with eight other tannins: corilagin, punicafolin, geraniin, elaeocarpusin, furosin, terchebin, mallotusinin and carpinusin.[12] Helioscopinin-A shows anti-allergic and anti-asthmatic activities in guinea pigs. It is suggested that this compound exerts its activities through antagonism on leukotriene D4-induced responses.[13]
Euphorbia helioscopia, the sun spurge or madwoman's milk, is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae. It is a herbaceous annual plant, native to most of Europe, northern Africa, and eastward through most of Asia.
Additional folk names include wart spurge, summer spurge, umbrella milkweed, and wolf's-milk.
