PDR for Herbal Medicines

S54/OCIMUM BASILICUM

Ocimum basilicum

See Basil

Oenanthe aquatica

See Water Fennel

Oenanthe crocata

See Water Drop wort

Oenothera biennis

See Evening Primrose

Oilseed Rape

Brassica napus

DESCRIPTION

Medicinal Parts: The medicinal parts of the plant are the

roots and seeds.

Flower and Fruit: The flowers are in racemes with 4 upright,

splayed sepals. The 4 petals are yellow, 11 to 14 mm long,

almost twice as long as the calyx, with an orbicular-elliptical

surface. TJ*cre_are 2 short and 4 long stamens. The ovary is

superior, with 4foseti calpels. The fruit is 4.5 to 11 cm long

and is a dehiscent pod opening on 2 sides with a septum and

20 to 40 seeds. The seeds are globose and approximately 1.5

to 3 mm in diameter.

Leaves, Stem and Root: Oilseed Rape is an annual or

biennial herb that grows up to 1.4 m high. The leaves are

alternate with a bluish bloom; the lower ones are petiolate

and pinnatisect, with relatively large terminal lobes and are

slightly pubescent. The middle and upper leaves are sessile,

partly clasping, simple, glabrous, dentate or entire. The stem

of larger plants is branched. The root is thin and spindle-

shaped.

Habitat: Europe, North Africa, U.S.

Production: The seeds are cold-pressed and then refined.
Rapeseed oil is the cold-pressed and refined oil from the ripe
seeds of Brassica napus.

PDR FOR HERBAL MEDICINES

Not to be Confused With: Rapeseed oil may be adulterated

with resins and mineral oil. Sinapis arvensis is a permitted

substitute.

Other Names: Colza, Cole, Rape, Rape Seed

ACTIONS AND PHARMACOLOGY

COMPOUNDS

Fatty oil: chief fatty acids: oleic acid (60%), linoleic acid

(20%), linolenic acid (10%), as well as palmitic acid, stearic

acid, eicosanoic acid, behenic acid. Varieties with high

erucic acid content (40 to 50%) are no longer cultivated

(reduction of the erucic acid content in the Common Market

countries to below 5%)

Sterols: beta-sitosterol, campesterol, brassicasterol, estered

to some extent

EFFECTS

Rapeseed oil, when ingested in high dosages over an

extended period of time, is cardiotoxic. The drug is chiefly

used as a substitute for olive oil and in the manufacture of

salves and liniments.

INDICATIONS AND USAGE

No medicinal indications

PRECAUTIONS AND ADVERSE REACTIONS

No health hazards are known in conjunction with the proper

administration of designated therapeutic dosages of the oil,

which is low on erucic acid.

DOSAGE

Storage: Store in the dark, in well-filled containers.

LITERATURE

Butcher RD, Goodman BA, Deighton N, SnDth WH, Evaluation

of the allergic/irritant potential of air pollutants: detection of

proteins modified by volatile organic compounds from oilseed

rape (Brassica napus ssp. oleifera) using electrospray ionization-

mass spectrometry. Clin Exp Allergy, 25 (1995).

Hansel R, Keller K, Rimpler H, Schneider G (Ed), Hagers

Handbuch der Pharmazeuuschen Praxis, 5. Aufl., Bde 4-6

(Drogen), Springer Verlag Berlin, Heidelberg, New York, 1992-

1994.

Slabas AR, Cottingham IR, Austin A, Hellyer A, Safford R,

Smith CG, Immunological detection of NADH-specific enoyl-

ACP reductase from rape seed (Brassica napus) - induction,

relationship of alpha and beta polypeptides, mRNA translation

and interaction with ACP. Biochim Biophys Acta, 1039:181-8,

1990 Jun 19.

Olea europaea

See Olive