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Submitted: May 10, 2014 A Review Article
Lepidium Sativum (Garden cress)
H.Falana1, W.Nofal1, H.Nakhleh1.
1.Pharm-D Program, College Of Nursing, Pharmacy And Health Professions .Birzeit University.
Lepidium sativum known as Garden cress belongs to Brassicaceae family, has been
known centuries ago in eastern regions then spread worldwide. It is very famous in folk
medicine. Garden cress is known for its pungent odor due to the several volatile oils and
used to treat various condition; respiratory disorders, muscle pain, inflammation, bone
fractures in the past. Leaves, seeds, Arial parts extracts found to have alkaloids,
flavonoids, glycosides, polyketides, vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats, carbohydrates
which give the plant it’s hepatoprotective, antihypertensive, diuretics, fracture healing,
respiratory disorder healing, antimicrobial, milk production, anti-inflammation,
antioxidant, laxative, chemoprotective and many other therapeutic applications.
1 | P a g e
Introduction
Lepidium sativum famous as garden cress
belongs to the family bassicaceae
(cruciferae). Some scientists say its origin
started from Ethiopia and then distributed
to various parts of the world. Others say
that it started from southwest Asia and
then spread to Western Europe (Xenophon
400 bc). Lepidium sativum was famous in
roman and Greek time in their banquets
.Also Muslims used it to kill stomach
warms, and Mediterranean used it to
protect crops from insects and pests.
Lepidium sativum has many names. It is
known as garden peppercress, peppergrass,
pepperwort, El rashad and town cress due
to its Townes or enclosure.
Some cultures used to call it passer age,
from passer, because it was known to have
an effect of driving away rages or madness
due to its reputed power of eradicating
people of hydrophobia.
Lepidium sativum's main character is that
it can grow in any type of climate and soil
condition and its ability to tolerate slight
acidity; it can be grown like white mustard.
It's an annual plant of a height of 50 cm
that can grow easily using less
irrigation, equipment’s facilities, and in
comparatively weak soil without
having special technical knowledge.
It's easy cultivation and it's tolerance to
different environmental conditions gave it
the ability to spread all around the world.
Another interesting property of this herb is
that insects, which gave it the ability to
escape from cultivation to the wild, don’t
affect its crop. Its growth increases rapidly
without extensive addition of fertilizers, so
weed cannot develop. [1], [2], [3]
Cultivation
Lepidium sativum can be grown indoor or
outdoor. When preparing soil, Lepidium
sativum seeds should be dug and mixed
2 | P a g e
with a well-balanced fertilizer, then the
seed should be sowed 5-6 cm deep and 45-
60 cm apart to have a continuous crop.
Leaves shouldn’t stay wet for long time
since the soil lodges there when water
splashes on them and then it’s impossible
to washout damaging the leaf.
As said before its requirements are simple
and broad that it tolerates changes, it can
grow in moist soil and semi shade or even
without shade at all. However, in summer
it’s preferred to be covered with some
shade to prevent heat from running straight
to seed. Also, irrigation is required since
they’re lightly rooted seeding which can
dry up in few days. It’s true that the crop
can be collected all over the year, but the
best crop is obtained in the winter season.
So, seeds are sown in the plains from
September to February on the hills. Seeds
are sown thick and covered until
generation begins. After 4-6 days of
sowing the seed begins to sprout. In 2-3
weeks after sowing plants are ready for
cutting. By that time its color is about
yellow. In order to get a continuous supply
of leaves farmers sow cress seeds in series
at intervals of 8 days. [3]
Daily use:
Garden cress leaves are consumed raw in
salads, also cooked with vegetable curries
and used as garnish. Cautions should be
taken with storing raw collected cress, with
any sign of slime, witting or discoloration
it should be avoided. Until they’re needed
for use, the leaves should be left on stem. .
[1]
Characters:
Lepidium sativum is an annual herb, stem
finely striate, branched and glabrous
(hairless, smooth).
Its leaves are long at the bottom of the
stem and small green feather-like leaves
arranged on opposite side of its stalk at the
top. They could differ a bit in shape but not
in taste. They’re irregularly pinnate,
alternate, up to 12cm*9cm. petiole up to 4
cm long. Leaflets are opposite, in outline
ovate or ovate-lanceolate, glabrous
(hairless, smooth), 1.5-8.0 to 1.5-3.0 cm or
larger and thin.
The flowers are bisexual, regular, 4-
merous, pedicel 1.5–4.5 mm long,
ascending; sepals are ovate, 1–2 mm long;
petals are spatulate with short claw, up to 3
mm long, white or pale pink; anthers are
usually purplish.
The fruits are globose, 1.2 cm across, and
purple black with hard ribbed endocarp.
Seeds are small, oval-shaped, pointed and
triangular at one end, smooth, about 2-3
mm long, 1-1.5 mm wide, reddish brown
to almost black, Seedling with epigeal
germination; cotyledons 3- foliolate,
leaflets spatulate, lateral ones smaller than
central one.
The powder of the seeds looked creemish
yellow in color. Microscopy of this powder
showed uniform thick walls, oily
endosperm, reddish brown fragments of
seed coats and reddish coloring matter. [1],
[2], [3]
CHEMICAL COMPOSTIONAND
UTILIZATION:
Garden cress is found to contain significant
amounts of iron, calcuium and folic acid in
addition to vitamin A and C. It contains
higher amount of protein 25% :glutamic
acid 19.3%, Leucine (8.21+- 0.01%),
Methionin (0.97+-0.02%). The major fatty
acid is linolenic acid 30.2% with low
amount of erucic acid 3.9% is also present
. The major secondary compounds of this
3 | P a g e
plant are glucosinolates. It yields on steam
distillation 0.115% of a colorless volatile
oil (cress oil) with a characteristic pungent
odor. Cress oil contains variable
properties of Benzylisoticocyante and
Benzyl cyanide, with a peculiar
disagreeable odor that is used in soap
making. Also it is found to contain
glucotropoeoline,4-methoxyglucobrassicin,
sinapine, sinapic acid, calmodulin,
sinapoyglucose, ester of caffeic,
pcoumaric, ferulic, quinic acids, protein,
minerals, vitamins, 5-4-dihydroxy-7,8,3,5-
tetramethoxyflavones, 5-3-dihydroxy-
7,8,4trimethoxyflavones, and 5-3-
dihydroxy-6,7,4trimethoxyflavones.
Garden cress leaves have the following
composition: Protein 5.8%, Fats 1.0%,
Carbohydrate 87% Mineral matter
2.2%,Calcium 0.36%, Phosphorous 0.11
%, Trace Elements Iron 20.6mg/ 100 gm,
Nickel 40ug/Kg, Cobalt 12ug/ Kg and
Iodine 1.6 ug/Kg. Vitamin A, thiamine,
riboflavin, niacin and ascorbic acid
have also estimated.
The plant seeds contains mainly Alkaloids.
For example: glucotropeaolin, N, N-
dibenzylthiourea, lepidine, N,N-dibenzzyl
urea, sinapic acid and its choline ester
(sinapin); also contain calcium iron,
carotene, riboflavin, uric acid, cellulose,
phosphorus, , thiamine and niacin. Seed oil
found to contain stearic, palmitic , linoleic
behenic, oleic, , arachidic, lignoceric acids,
benzyl isothiocyanate, benzyl cyanide,
sterol and sitosterol, which mainly can be
used in treating dysentery and diarrhea.
The aerial parts contains 27-diol-27-
benzoate, stigmast-5-en-3β as one of the
key chemical constituent.
ETHNOMEDICINAL USES OF
LEPIDIUM SATIVUM
[3]
Pharmacological activity
of Lepidium sativum:
Anti-inflammatory effect of Lepidium
sativum:
Leaves and seeds extracts were found to
have anti-inflammatory effect. The
presence of flavonoids, alkaloids,
cyanogenic glycosides (traces), tannins,
glucosinolates, sterols and triterpens
contribute to this effect. Bruised seeds
mixed with lime juice can be used locally
to reduce inflammation and rheumatic
pain.
S
.No
Plant
part
Uses
Method of
preparation
1.
Whole
herb
Asthma,
Cough,
Expectorant,
Bleeding
piles
The plant was
crushed and
made infusion with
the water and taken
twice a day. (For
Asthma), whole herbs
paste to be taken
every 4 hours for
cough and as
expectorant
2.
Leaves
Diuretic
The leaves are boiled
with
water and decoction
to be
taken three times a
day
3.
Root
Syphilis
Root powder is to be
taken
with luke cow’s milk.
4.
seeds
Abortion
Seeds boiled with
milk and
taken within 45 days
of
Conception.
4 | P a g e
Bone fracture healing effect of Lepidium
sativum::
One of the traditional uses of Lepidium
sativum is for increasing the speed of bone
fracture healing. The plant and its seeds
were used for this purpose mainly in Saudi
Arabia and other Arabic parts. According
to the authors of several articles on this
aspect, clinical observations were
supportive for this use. Among the studies,
which aimed to investigate the validity of
the plant for this use, one was carried on
rabbits (Newziland white rabbits). They
were divided in two groups, control group
of intact rabbits, and test group in which
rabbits have undergone induced fracture of
mid shaft of left femur. Lepidium sativum
seeds were incorporated in the diet of the
test group, and x-ray was used to measure
the progress of the fracture healing over 6-
12 weeks. Observations and statistics
showed that Lepidium sativum has a
significant rule in accelerating bone
fracture healing which supports the
rationality of its traditional use for this
purpose. Several other studies showed
similar results which supports the need of
more researches on this aspect.[3][2]
Hepato-protective effect of Lepidium
sativum:
Lepidium sativum seed extracts has proved
hepato-protictive effects against CCl4
induced liver damage. A study on Albnio
wistar rat has proved significant decrease
in hepatotoxicity and CCl4 induced
damage when mixing 200-400 mg/kg of
seed extract with daily diet. 20 rats were
divided into 3 groups (control group, CCl4
induced liver damage group and CCl4
induced liver damage treated with
lepidium sativum seed extract group).
After 10 days, serum level of ASP
(aspartate aminotransferase), ALT (alanine
amino transferees) levels and the
concentration of bilirubin were
significantly higher in CCl4 induced liver
damage. However, a significant decrease
in these parameters in the group treated
with Lepidium sativum seed extracts was
observed .
The reason behind this hepato-protictive
effect is due to the presence of flavonoids,
tannin, alkaloid, cuomarine and triterpenes
which induce antioxidant effect and a
decrease in free radical formation from
CCl4, which is the main trigger of
hepatotoxicity.[1][3]
Antihypertensive effect of Lepidium
sativum:
Rats with normotensive (WKY) and
spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) were
used to study the antihypertensive and
diuretic effects of aqueous extract of
lepidium sativum. A 20 mg /kg of the
aqueous extract were administration for 3
weeks showed a significantly decrease in
BP from the day 7 to the end of the
treatment in SHR rats and showed no
significant change in blood pressure of
WKY rats.
Administration of 100 mg/kg of aqueous
extract showed a significant enhancement
of urinary elimination of Na, K, Cl which
increase H2O exertion in SHR. Moreover,
in both SHR and WKY no significant
change in heart rate was observed.[3]
Antimicrobial activity of Lepidium
sativum:
The antimicrobial activity to Lepidium
sativum was tested by using The Agar well
diffusion method. The plant extract is
prepared using petroleum ether solvent.
Bacterial suspension of (Staphylococcus
aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella
pneumonae, Proteus vulgaris,
Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida
albicans) are prepared and cultured on agar
plate. Then the extract is added. After
5 | P a g e
incubating the plate under the appropriate
condition, Growth inhibition observed by
clear zones in the agar plate.
The presence of benzyl isothiocyanate,
flavonoids, tannins, triterpens, alkaloids,
sterols, glucosinolates provide the
antimicrobial effect. Tannins in particular
act by inhibition of protein synthesis by
forming irreversible complex with proline-
rich proteins. [4]
Anti-diabetic effect of Lepidium sativum:
An aqueous extract of Lepidium sativum
has proved a hypoglycemic effect
independent to insulin secretion. Oral
administration of 20mg/kg (15 seed/day),
significantly reduced glucose blood level
in chronic and acute treatment, with no
effect on insulin secretion. [2]
Chemoprotective effects of Lepidium
sativum:
lepidium sativum was also investigated for
its chemoprotective properties toward 2-
amino-3-methyl imidazo quinolin (IQ)-
genotoxic effects and in colonic
periplastic lesion reduction. The mediators
of these protective effects are certain
compounds of lepidium sativum juice
,glucotropeteolin(GT) and a break down
product of GI (benzylisothocyatel BITC).
Results were significantly affirmative
(p<0.05) .IQ –induced DNA damage in
colon and liver cells in F344 rats was
reduced in the range of 75%-92% .It is
suggested that this chemo protective effect
is mediated by glucurosyltransferrase
(UDPG ) which is a key enzyme in the
detoxification of IQ. The amount of
lepidium sativum juice needed to induce
these effects is quite small and similar to
the amount consumed in regular salad. [2][3]
Lepidium sativum use in treating
bronchial asthma:
A clinical experiment was done on either
sex patients, in range of 15-80 years old,
with mild to moderate asthma with no
previous medication. Aqueous-methanol
extract of seed powder was given in a dose
of 1 gram 3 times a day. The respiratory
functions (FVC, FEV1, FEF25-75% and
MVV) were tested 4 weeks before and
after treatment with the plant powder using
spirometer. A significant improvement in
various parameters of pulmonary function
in asthmatic attacks was observed. This
bronchodilatory effect is due to mediating
different bronchodilatory activity
including: Ca+2 channel blockers, PED
inhibitory pathway and anticholinergic
effect. Moreover, in patient treated with
Lepidium sativum, normal count of
Eosinophils (considered to be the major
inflammatory cells) was found. Lepidium
sativum seed powder extracts was able to
increase and decrease Eosinophils level to
normal. Those effects together explain
why this plant can be used in air pathway
disorder including cough and asthma. [5][6]
Lepidium sativum in osteoarthritis
intervention :
Back to Ayurvedic texts and also several
modern studies, Lepidium sativum is
reported to have anti-inflammatory
properties. To examine the validity of this
use a study of Lepidium sativum seeds in
the management of osteoarthritis was
conducted. Patients were divided in two
groups. The drug group patients were
given Lepidium sativum powder orally (6
gm) divided in two doses daily. The
control group was given starch (2 capsules
thrice daily). The treatment period lasted
for 30 days. Results were assessed by the
evaluation of cardinal symptoms (the
6 | P a g e
severity, duration, and frequency) of
osteoarthritis before and after treatment.
The majority of the drug group patients
showed relief in symptoms (30% complete
remission, 37.5% marked improvement,
25% moderate improvement, and only
7.5% didn’t improve). Few of the control
group patients showed improvement, and
that is mainly thought to be a result of
causative factors elimination which was
advised to each patient of both groups. At
the end the plant seeds showed a good
relive of pain in joints, stiffness, swelling,
tenderness and difficulty in movement
associated with osteoarthritis. Lepidium
sativum have all the characteristics of the
modern treatment regimen of osteoarthritis
(it has analgesic and anti-inflammatory
effects, and it also contains an appreciated
amount of Ca+2 ions all of which decrease
degeneration caused by this disease. [7]
Lepidium sativum effects on milk
production and composition.
In one of the studies that was carried to
evaluate Lepidium sativum effect on milk ,
the dried plant extract (DPE) of and
brassica juncae seeds were incorporated in
the drinking water of Awassi ewes. DPE
effects on chemical composition,
nutritional properties and yield of their
milk were analyzed. A solution of DPE
was prepared by dissolving 15 gram of
DPE in one liter of drinking water. Five
groups of Awassi ewes were tested each
given a different amount of that solution:
(0-DPE, 2.5-DPE, 5-DPE, 7.5-dPE, and
10-DPE) ml .These amounts were diluted
in (10 ± 0.5) liters of drinking water as a
daily dose. Results were observed over 10
weeks of time. Milk production was
increased significantly (15% increase than
control group) by 7.5-DPE, while further
decrease or increase of DPE dose did not
show significant changes. Also, a
significant decrease in milk cholesterol
was showed by 2.5, 7.5, and 10 DPE.
Indeed, the highest decease was obtained
with 7.5 DPE which showed a decrease by
23.1 % . Conjugated lenolinc acid (CLA)
concentration in milk was also improved
with DPE treatment. The highest increase
was also in the group treated with7.5-DPE
(with an increase of 34%). CLA has a
supported anti-cancer benefits. It is
beneficial for weight reduction in obese
people with no long term effects. It also
showed increased insulin response in rats,
but it is not yet proved to have such an
effect on humans. Also, all groups treated
with different DPE concentrations showed
an increase in B12 and B6 in milk (p<0.05)
than in untreated control group .That is
mainly attributed to increased nutrient
utilization and digestion due to the seed
content of saponins which stimulates
anaerobic fermentation of organic matters.
Again the highest increase was in the 7.5-
DPE group. Lysine, methionine and
cystine levels were increased in all treated
groups except in 2.5-DPE which was
similar to the control group concerning
cystine. As a result, Lepidium sativum and
brassica juncae improved the quality of
Awassi ewis milk through enhancing milk
composition. [8]
Laxative effect of Lepidium sativum :
Garden cress seed contains a mucilaginous
matter which consist of a mixture of
cellulose (18.3%) and uronic acid
containing polysaccharides which in the
presence of water in the GI tract swell.
This swelling is due to the polyuranide
chains that contain ionisable carboxyl
groups that with water present become
hydrated and swell, and the cellulose
micelles become dispersed. The size of the
cellulose micelles, chain length and the
proportion of hydrated polyuronides all
determine the extent of mucilaginous
matter dispersion. This property shows that
7 | P a g e
garden cress seeds can be used for
constipation as a laxative, which was
proved on mice using aqueous methanolic
extract of cress seeds at 30 and 100 mg/kg.
Also, another test on isolated gut
preparations of mouse and guinea pig
using a dose of 0.1 mg/ml showed
stimulatory effects both in jejunum and
ileum that depend on concentration. [1][9]
Side effects of Lepidium sativum:
In a study of Lepidium sativum seeds effect
in treating bronchial asthma, none of the
patients tested showed presence of adverse
effects or any other problem physically or
at hematological profile, which shows
good tolerability of the drug. [10]
In another study about effects of various
levels of dietary lepidium sativum seeds on
rats. Lepidium sativum seeds were fed to
albino rats, 2% (w/w) was non-toxic, 10%
(w/w) was toxic but not fatal and 50%
(w/w) of the diet for 6 weeks was lethal
and caused depression in growth rate and
entero-hepato-nephrotoxicity. These
observations show that in order for
Lepidium sativum to show toxic effects it
should be injected in very high amounts
that normal people won’t take in normal
circumstances. [11]
Also, in very high doses it can have
teratogenic effect and anti-ovulatory
properties (tested on rats). [1]
Conclusion:
Lepidium sativum, which is known as
garden cress in English, belongs to
brassicaceae family. It is a native plant in
south west Asia and spread to Europe
centurys ago. Lepidium sativum was very
well known in ancient India and Saudi
Arabia and was used for treating varies
condition such as bone fracture healing,
inflammation, arthritis and many others. It
contains different chemicals including fatty
acids, proteins, shikmic acids, vitamins,
carbohydrates, calcium, phosphorus, trace
elements, etc. Garden cress is used as food
and a medicine source, and it is effective
against varies diseases, such as
hypertension, arthritis, hepatotoxicity,
inflammation, diabetes, cancer, bronchitis,
etc. based on all these studies, Lepidium
sativum has proved its value and it worth
further studies on its nutritional and
medicinal uses.
REFRENCES:
1. Nourishing and healing prowess of
garden cress (Lepidium sativum Linn)A
Review. Sheel Sharma amd Nidhi
Agarwal.. Indian journal of natural
products and resources septemper
2011,pp,292-297. 2. Review Article Ethnopharmacology of Lepidium Sativum
Linn (Brassicaceae): A Review Divanji Manohar1, G.L.Viswanatha2*,
S.Nagesh1, Vishal Jain1,
H.N.Shivaprasad3. INTERNATIONAL
JOURNAL OF PHYTOTHEARPY
RESEARCH
3. A REVIEW ON
PHARMACOGNOSTICAL STUDY OF
LEPIDIUM SATIVUM
*S. Wadhwa1, M. S. Panwar1, A.
Agrawal1, N. Saini1 and L. N. Patidar2
Wadhwa et al., ARPB, 2012; Vol 2 (IV)
Accepted on 22/12/2012
4. In vitro Antimicrobial Assessment of
Lepidium sativum L. Seeds Extracts
1Shama I.Y. Adam, 1Shayma A.M. Salih
and 2Warda S. Abdelgadir. Asian Journal
of Medical Sciences 3(6): 261-266, 2011
Published: December 25, 2011
8 | P a g e
5. . Pharmacological Basis for the
Medicinal Use of Lepidium sativum in
Airways DisordersNajeeb-ur Rehman, 1, 2 ,
Arif-ullah Khan, 3 Khalid M. Alkharfy, 4
and Anwarul-Hassan Gilani 1, 4 , *
Author information , Article notes ,
Copyright and License information ,
Published online Jan 15, 2012.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/
PMC3265128/.
6. A Study on Clinical Efficacy of
Lepidium sativum Seeds in Treatment of
Bronchial Asthma
ARCHANA N. PARANJAPE, ANITA A.
MEHTA For author affiliations, see end of
text. Received November 20, 2005;
Revised June 29, 2006; Accepted July 5,
2006
7. Clinical trial of Lepidium sativum Linn
(Chandrashura) in the management of
Sandhivata (osteoarthritis) NITA
D.RAVAL T.N.PANDYE .Institute for
post graduate teaching and research in
ayurveda ,Gujarat Ayurveda university
,jamnagar.AYA-VO;.30,NO.2(april_june
)2009,pp 153-157
8. Supplemental Effect of Plant Extracts of
Lepidium sativum and Brassica juncae
Seeds on Milk Production and
Composition of Awassi Ewes
Alshawabkeh, K. 1; S.M., Herzallah;2 And
A.A., Al-Fatafta. Jordan Journal of
Agricultural Sciences, Volume 9, No.3
2013
9. Prokinetic and laxative activities of
Lepidium sativum seed extract with
species
and tissue selective gut stimulatory actions
Najeeb-ur-Rehmana,b, Malik Hassan
Mehmooda,b, Khalid M. Alkharfyc,
Anwarul-Hassan Gilania,c,∗ Journal of
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journal homepage:
www.elsevier.com/locate/jethpharm
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10. http://www.bioline.org.br/pdf?pt06009
11.http://www.worldscientific.com/doi/abs
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