Epimedium Extract Horny Goat Weed Extract Icariin 20 % 10% 98% 60% by HPLC  offered by MIGU– a 17 years experienced cGMP manufacturer with warehosues in NJ & CA, USA.

Latin Name: Epimedium sagittatum
Material Original: ShannXi, GanSu,SiChuan, China
Extracted Part: Branches and leaves
Supported Purity: Icariin 20 %, Icariin 10%, Icariin 60%, Icariin 98%

What is the Epimedium ? 

Epimedium also named as horny goat weed,barrenwort,fairy wings,yin yang huo in Chinese name,belongs
the family Berberidaceae.Mainly have various of spieces which grow in China,little in other area of Asia,and
Mediterranean region.In China,it mainly has several species of epimedium which growed wild like Epimedium
sagittatum,Epimedium brevicornum,Epimedium wushanense,Epimedium koreanum,and Epimedium pubescens.

The Epimedium have more than 2000 years in pharmaceutical application in Chinese history as the sex-enhancer
and PDE 5 inhibitor in vitro for its mainly contents icarrin which unkown in clinical area.

Icariin is a chemical compoud which belongs to the flavonol glycoside, it mainly get from the Epimedium extract
or yin yang huo. In traditional Chinese Medicine, the icariin mainly reputed to act the aphrodisiac effects to
enhance erectile function. Icariin mainly to be thought the more important active ingredients of epimeidum extract.
In western medicines, it mainly compound with other ingredients to treat impotence mechanisims, espeically to
enhances the PDE 5 inhibitor in vitro, the production of nitric oxide and etc.

How the icariin 20 % acts in pharmacological effects

For the epimedium extract, it is used to be the health supplement which in the type of raw herb, tablet, capsules
form and even the blend formulation with other supplements. In China, all of the epimedium which mainly used in
Traditional Chinese Medicine are almost wild grow with other plant in different area with several species. None of
can be survival in cultivated for medical using. The most important ingredients of epimeidum is icariin, widely
known for the enhance for PDE 5 inhibitory properies in vitro.

Icariin mainly to increase the levels of nitric oxide which can relax smooth muscle. Also show the icariin can relax
the rabbit penile tissue by nitric oxide and PDE 5 actibity. Others study also show the epimedium extract have
increasing in penile blood pressure after injections of epimeidum extract into the rats.

The icariin extract from epimedium have the same function like sidenafil (the mainly ingredient in Viagra)  to inhibit
the activity of PDE-5. From the research demonstrate that icariin is not stong in inhibit PDE 5 after using IC50 of
around 1 μM and the sildenafil is an IC50 of about 6.6 nM (.0066 μM) and vardenafil (Levitra) has an IC50 of about
0.7 nM (.0007 μM).After measuring differently, the EC50 of icariin is about 4.62 μM, while sildenafil’s is .42 μM. With
the weak potency of epimedium,and its unknown oral bioavailability, whether orally administered epidemium extract
has any effect is unclear from the literature.

On the published Italian study make modified icariin structurally and investigated a number of derivatives. Inhibitory
concentrations for PDE-5 close to sildenafil could be reached. Moreover, the most potent PDE-5 inhibitor of this
series was also found to be a less potent inhibitor of phosphodiesterase-6 (PDE-6) and cyclic adenosine
monophosphate-phosphodiesterase (cAMP-PDE),thus showing it to have more specificity for PDE-5 than sildenafil.

MIGU Nutrition Guarantee the Material of Epimedium Original

Cooperation with the Northwest Agriculture & Forestry University, MIGU found the highest purity of icariin
contents in epimedium is from Epimeidum Pubescens . After get testing in labs and factory already bulid the
cooperation with the local farmers to collect wild epimeidum which original from Sichuan to get the high purity
extract with lower cost in order to gurantee the quality and cost for all of our clients.

Flow chart for Epimedium extract Icariin 20 %processing from MIGU

From 2002, MIGU cooperation with Chinese Academy of Sciences to research for artificial planting of
epimedium to save the extract cost.Now all of  material is getting from the wild epimedium from SiChuan GanSu,
China where they are reputation for high contents of icarrin and we can get high extract ratio to save our
producing cost than other area. Below are our mainly extract processing:

PS: 1.  All of the wild/organic material must be cleaning before extracting in workshop
2. The water which is used for extracting is getting deep undergroud filtered water.
3. The solvent of water and acohol must be the Pharmaceutical Grade or food grade.

Advances in Study on Pharmacological Effects of Epimedium Extract   Icariin 20 %

Epimedium which has various of Epimdium species has long history in Chinese Pharmacological,
In ” Compendium of Materia Medica” –LiShiZhen had alredy said the epimedium can benefit effect in
enriching consumptive disease, benefiting pneuma, protect lung and tonifying kidney, support healthy
energy. And now pharmacological studies have shown that the Epimedium have the function of
Increasing the flow of heart head blood-vessel; Promote hematopoietic function; Immunologic function
and bone metabolism; Anti-aging, anti-tumor and etc. Now we mainly make a conclusion for Epeimedium
pharmacological effects in recently 10 years as below:

Benefit in cardiocerebral vascular system
1) Doctor WangMin study show that epimedium extract -icariin have the function of increasing the
cerebral blood flow is because of  the direct expansion of blood vessels instead the impact on systemic
hemodynamics. And the strength of icarrin is weaker  but longer than than  papaverine.
2) Another experimental result show Icariin also can work through the expansion of vascular smooth muscle
and increase cerebral blood flow experimental animals, reduce cerebral vascular resistance, protect cerebral
ischemia injury. GuanLiXin get that the effect of expand blood vessels mechanism associated with calcium
channel blocking effect from icariin. And LiuChongMing report that the flavonoids and icariin of epimedium
intravenous injection can  increase cerebral blood flow and lower cerebral vascular resistance observably.
3) XuLanZhi researches show that the flavonoids of epimedium can selective blocking in vitro and animal
myocardial receptors β1, but for tracheal β2 receptor and vascular smooth muscle α receptors without
blocking effect. The results for epimedium clinical treatment of coronary heart disease, angina, provides a
theoretical basis.

Benefit in hematological system
1) GaoQiMing research and study get that the mainly reason for epimedium inhibition of thrombosis are
related with reduce red blood cell aggregation and reduce the viscosity of whole blood.
2) LiShuTong research and study show that icariin can promote the activity of CSF samples of spleen
lymphocytes in mice. The CSF are one kind of glycoprotein which mainly promote the increment of human
or animal bone marrow cells, differentiation, maturation and survival. It can promote  hematopoiesis and
stimulate to the function of the mature cells, plays an important role in hematopoiesis function. ZhaoYong
study show that icariin can collaborative induce 1L-2,3,6. And the 1L-3 mainly effects on bone marrow
pluripotent stem cells to promote a variety of blood cells differentiated value-added, 1L-6 work with
1L-3 support the appreciation of pluripotent stem cells, which can promote hematopoietic function.

Effective in immune system
1) Effects on immune organs.The thymus and spleen as a central and important peripheral immune organs
of the body’s immune function regulation plays an important role. Pharmacological experiments found that
epimedium polysaccharide can make the thymus reduced. Other studies have shown that epimedium
polysaccharide injection after mice thymus cell necrosis and organization structure destruction signs.
So we can get that epimedium polysaccharide thymus immune pharmacological action characteristics mainly
promote thymus release adult cells.Thymus shrink effect is not the result of immunosuppression, but its
enhanced the mechanism of cellular immune function
2) Effect of immune cells. The study found that epimedium polysaccharide can improve the level of SRBC
immune mice circulation hemolysin antibody, and with the increase of epimedium polysaccharide measurement
antibody levels rise.

Effective in Bone Narrow System

LiQingNan make application to testicular method,using in castrated male rats to establish kidney disease. And
through the indicators, such as bone metabolism and bone tissue morphology.Proved that epimedium does
exist kidney function, shows that it is good for osteoporosis prevention role

Modern research has shown that long-term application of adrenal cortical hormone can cause bone loss, the
reason is mainly due to its inhibition of intestinal calcium absorption and its negative nitrogen balance.
Make protein decomposition speed, reduce bone matrix synthesis.Many studies make some researchings for
epimedium extract liquid and epimedium blend formula to the long-term application of adrenal cortical
hormone – of adverse reaction caused by acetic acid prednisone combat role. The result show: the big rice who
take the medicine 3 month later will happen very significant osteoporosis and adrenal cortical atrophy.While
giving epimedium extract treated rats not only its adrenal atrophy is restrained, and significantly improve the
effect of bone formation, Bone trabecular area and density are similar and the control group, there are even more
than the control group

Effective in genital system 

XiongYueBin make the study through in young mice and in vitro culture of rat leydig cells studied epimedium
glycoside effects on male reproductive endocrine, found that epimedium  icariin 20 % glycoside can make epididymis and
seminal vesicle gland weight gain in mice, and suggest that it may be associated with an aphrodisiac effect
of epimedium.In vitro experiments showed that epimedium glycoside can obviously promote the rat mesenchymal
cells secrete TS basis.Epimedium  icariin 20 % can improve male east uncle gonad damage, increase the content of testosterone,
estradiol levels increased, but the luteinizing hormone levels was not significant, prompt epimedium on function of
pituitary gonadal system has a promoting effect.

Effective on Anti-aging

Aging process is a comprehensive process, responsible for the mechanism are various, epimedium preparations
can affect aging mechanism from different aspects, such as impact cell batches, extend the growing season,
immune regulation and secretion system, improve the body’s metabolism and function of each organ.LiuJiangPo
study epimedium flavonoids can reply galactose senile model value reflect the function of T and B lymphocytes in
mice, significantly increase the SOD activity of mice spleen, reduce heart tissue formation of lipid peroxide,
reduce heart organizations like the fat brown pigment formation.ZengNan study that epimedium  polysaccharide
from WuShan area polyphase liposome can obviously increase the older animal serum and tissue in the SOP,
the activity of gsh-px, and can significantly reduce the older animals of LPO content in serum and liver tissue, reduce
fat brown mass content in myocardial aging mice.It says tthe WuShan epimedium have the function of anti-oxidant
and anti-aging. MengXianLi experimental study shows that epimedium hypothalamic neurotransmitter age-related
changes of natural aging animals have obvious delay action. In short, most indicators reflect epimedium have the
effect of anti-aging prolong life.

Effective on Anti-Tumor  Icariin 20 %

LiGuiXin team research showed that epimedium glycoside can induce a wide variety of tumor cell lines in vitro
value-added, young people can be induced by acute early grain of leukemia cells (HL – 60) along the grain
direction differentiation, with typical cells transferred to morphological and biochemical characteristics and with time
and dose dependent. Epimedium glycoside of inducing tumor cell apoptosis at the same time, can affect the
change of the cell cycle when the phase distribution, and decreased apoptosis related gene and protein
expression level, suggest that it may be epimedium glycoside mechanism of inducing tumor cell apoptosis.

CuiZhenYan team results showed that epimedium is likely to be a new biological response regulator. Otherwise the
result showed that epimedium icariin 20 % glycoside of ii  have good antitumor activity

HaoBingHua study team also found epimedium  icariin 20 % flavone on a tumor-burdened lower cellular immune function and
erythrocyte immune function in mice have certain recovery effect, can inhibit the growth of tumor cells to
some extent. Total flavonoids in epimedium as an aid in the treatment of patients with tumor drugs may have
certain application prospect.

Safety

It is interesting to note that although at least 15 fifteen active compounds have been identified in epimedium
extracts,(luteolin, icariin,quercetin,and various epimedins),many supplement companies currently use alcohol
extracts standardized only for high levels of icariin.The traditional use of epimedium,however,is as a hot-water
decoction(tea),which would result in a very different profile of active constituents when compared to the high
icariin  alcohol extracts that are more  commonly used in commercial products. Although at least one test test
tube study has shown icariin to protect liver cells from damage with by various toxic compounds,other feeding
studies ( in rodents ) have  suggested that high-dose  icariin 20 % may be  associated with  kidney and  liver toxicity
There have been no reports  of adverse  side effects  associated with the traditional preparation of epimedium
(water-extracted) at the suggested dosage (250 to 1,000mg per day).

Dosage for Icariin 20 %

Because all of the existing scientific  evidence for the anti-stress and cortisol-controlling effect of  epimedium
has been demonstrated for  water-extracted epimedium (that is, as a tea), and because this form of extraction
may result in a  safer form of epimedium ( compared to the high-icariin alcohol extract ), it may  be prudent to
select supplements that specifically use a more traditional formulation. There have been no reports of adverse
side effects associated with the traditional preparation of epimedium ( water-extract) at the suggested dosage
(250-1,000mg/day in 2-3 divided doses).