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Since early ages, wild lettuce has enjoyed a special status as a beneficial therapeutic plant and was treasured as a tranquilizer and pain killer. The sesquiterpene lactones are undesired constituents of the garden lettuce due to their bitter taste.” (A. They were identified as alfa and beta-amyrin, lupeol, taraxasterol and stigmasterol. Of the germacranolides, germacrolide- and melampolide like derivatives were characterized.Īlong with sesquiterpene lactones, other secondary metabolites were isolated from the transformed roots. Of the guaianolides, lactucin-like and zaluzanin C-like compounds were identified. From the roots, 15 guaiane- and germacrane-type sesquiterpene lactones were isolated. The presence of mydriatic substance of unknown structure was also reported.Ī detailed phytochemical study of the 1-year-old roots of Lactuca virosa, which were proved to be active in the pharmacological tests mentioned above, has been completed very recently (Kisiel and Barszcz 1997). Oil from the seeds yielded fatty acids (oleic, linolic, palmitic and stearic), alfa-tocopherol and squalene. According to the literature (Hegnauer 1964, 1989, List and Horhammer 1973) it contains sesquiterpene lactones (lactucin and lactucocpicrin, triterpenes (taraxasterol and its acetate, beta-amyrin, germanicol, isolupeol, organic acids, carbohydrates and proteins. Earlier studies were focused on the consituents of lactucarium. virosa has not been phytochemically studied in detail. The raw material (in raw material) is: essential oils, mannitol, alkaloids, b-amyrin, organic acids. guaianolide (11Beta,13-dihydrolactucerine, 8-deoxylactucine, glycoside, jaquineline and zaluzanine-derivates.įlavonoids based on Quercetin, coumarin, lactucin, cinchonine, aesculin, N-methyl, b-Phenylethylamine. Wild lettuce has been found to contain lactucic acid, lactucopicrin, 50 to 60 per cent lactucerin (lactucone) and lactucin. ( They are the sedative acting sesquiterpene lactones). The plant prefers acidic, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.Īll parts of the plant, but most of all the sap, contain 0,5-0,9% bitter sesquiterpene lactones: lactucin (C15H16O5) and its ester, lactucopicrin (5-9% respectively in dried plant material). It requires well-drained moist medium soils, a light sandy loam and a sunny position. and on banks near the sea, usually on calcareous soils. Habitat: It grows singly or in clusters, on rocky soil and as a ruderal plant on plains and uplands up to 1000m above sea level (Hallier 1887, Hegi 1929, Bremer 1994). The roots, leaves and stems produce white latex which darkens in an open air. Leaves are bluish-green, with prickles on the bottom side along the veins, basal - egg-shaped or oblongly oval (15-20cm long), upper – small – sagittate. Its flowers are yellow, ligulate, collected in detached, elongated pyramidal panicles. The flowering period falls in June-August but this can be a bit variable and climate dependent. In the first year of vegetation it produces a rosette of basal leaves and in the second year an erect stem (60-180cm) branched in the upper part.

Lactuca virosa is a biennial herb with a fusiform, thick, branched root. The liquid from the stem is the most potent part of the plant. It is collected commercially by cutting the heads of the plants and scraping the juice into china vessels several times a day until the plant is exhausted. This species is probably the richest supply of lactucarium.Ĭoncentrations of lactucarium are low in young plants and most concentrated when the plant comes into flower. The sap contains "lactucarium", which is used in medicine for its anodyne, antispasmodic, digestive, diuretic, hypnotic, narcotic and sedative properties. How long it will live depends on your growing season. It is harvested in the summer when it is in flower (that's when the plant puts its energy into mating). The sap changes its colour to yellow at first and then brownish, hardens and dries when in contact with the air. The whole plant is rich in a milky bitter sap that flows freely from any wounds. Other names: Bitter Lettuce, Opium Lettuce, Poisonous Lettuce, Laitue vireuse, Sałata jadowita, Rakutu-Karyumu-So. Asia, also distributed in other regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including America. Range: Europe, including Britain, Central Russia and W. Indigenous to south west Europe, North Africa and West Asia. Origin: Europe, comes from the Mediterranean uplands. Wild Lettuce is a plant in the Lactuca genus in the family Asteraceae (or Compositae), also known as Lactuca silvestris or Wiestia virosa