Effects and Mechanisms of Medicinal Plants on Oxytocin: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Oxytocin (OT) plays different roles in the body and contributes mainly to humans' love behaviors, sexual function and childbirth. Given the various and determinative roles of OT, this review article is to report the effects of medicinal plants on OT and their action mechanisms. Articles indexed in the databases Institute for Scientific Information and PubMed were retrieved by the relevant search terms using the EndNote software. Then, the articles regarding the effects of medicinal plants and the related products in intensifying, modulating and neutralizing the adverse effects of OT, published between 2007 and 2017, were included in final analysis. Certain plants and their derivatives such as Psidium guajava Linn., Ficus capensis, Ficus deltoidea, Dracaena arborea, Artemisia monosperma, Scutellariae Radix, Citrus aurantium, genistein, daidzein, moxibustion, Danggui-Shaoyao-San, Shao-Fu-Zhu-Yu decoction, and Xiang-fusi-wu decoction are effective to decrease dysmenorrhea and early miscarriage and to increase lactation. Herbs can induce their tocolytic effects by inhibiting OT-induced uterine contractions via influencing its levels in the body including the neuraxis, and therefore relieve dysmenhorea and increase lactation. Therefore, they can be used as alternatives to produce effective drugs on OT-dependent disorders. However as with chemical drugs, certain cautions should be taken into account in consuming such medications during pregnancy to minimize fetal and maternal side effects.