Effects of medicinal herb salvia miltiorrhiza on bone cell activities

Abstract

Medicinal herbs have always been considered a healthy source of life, and their therapeutic properties are used to treat various diseases with the advantage that the medicinal herbs are being 100% natural. Active ingredients from some commonly used medicinal herbs have been found to be osteoinductive which can induce bone formation[1,2]. Bone is a highly vascularised tissue. In order for it to maintain homeostasis and regeneration, the development of microvasculature and microcirculation is crucial[3], therefore, osteogenesis and angiogenesis are closely linked. Salvia Miltiorrhiza (SM), also known as red sage, Chinese sage, tan shen, or danshen, is a perennial plant in the genus Salvia, highly valued for its roots as a medicinal herb[4]. SM has been widely used in China and, to a lesser extent, in Japan, the United States, and other European countries for the treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases by improving perfusion of ischemic myocardium and enhancing blood circulation due to its function to enhance angiogenesis[5,6].