Compound Monograph
Punarnavine
Punarnavine is an alkaloid from the root of Boerhavia diffusa (punarnava / erva tostão). Its notable signal is preclinical — it inhibits B16F-10 melanoma metastasis and stimulates immune responses in mice — but the evidence is rodent/in-vitro and largely from a single research group. Boerhavia's traditional diuretic/hepatoprotective reputation belongs to the whole plant, not this isolate.
Classification
Punarnavine is an alkaloid, part of the alkaloids class. Nitrogen-containing, often bitter and physiologically potent compounds — the group behind many of the strongest plant medicines and poisons.
Where Does It Come From? (1)
Punarnavine is a naturally occurring alkaloid, found in Erva Tostao. It is well tolerated orally (low toxicity).
Pharmacology & Research
Punarnavine is a root alkaloid of Boerhavia diffusa — the herb known as punarnava in Ayurveda and erva tostão in Brazil. Two framing points. First, it is only one of several actives in the plant (alongside punarnavoside, the boeravinone rotenoids, eupalitin and liriodendrin), so Boerhavia’s traditional diuretic/hepatoprotective/kidney-tonic reputation is a whole-plant property, not this isolate’s. Second, punarnavine’s own literature is narrow and preclinical — overwhelmingly rodent and in-vitro work from a single research group — with an antimetastatic/immunomodulatory signal as its distinctive hook.
- A preclinical antimetastatic signal: punarnavine inhibited B16F-10 melanoma lung metastasis and prolonged survival in mice, modulating MMPs, TIMP-1 and nm23, and it is anti-angiogenic via VEGF downregulation 1,2,3Reference 1Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa LinnView study →Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →Reference 3In vitroPunarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, exhibits anti-angiogenic activity via downregulation of VEGF in vitro and in vivoView study →.
- Immunostimulant activity: it raised WBC, antibody titre, bone-marrow cellularity and NK-cell activity in mice 2,4Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →Reference 4Immunomodulatory activities of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusaView study →.
- The honest headline: almost all of this is one research group, rodent/in-vitro only, with no independent replication, no human data and essentially no pharmacokinetics 1,4Reference 1Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa LinnView study →Reference 4Immunomodulatory activities of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusaView study →.
1. Antimetastatic / anticancer
Punarnavine’s most-cited signal. It inhibited B16F-10 melanoma lung metastasis and prolonged survival in mice, with modulation of MMP-2/9, TIMP-1, nm23 and pro-inflammatory cytokines 1,2Reference 1Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa LinnView study →Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →, and it separately downregulated VEGF (anti-angiogenic) in vitro and in vivo 3Reference 3In vitroPunarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, exhibits anti-angiogenic activity via downregulation of VEGF in vitro and in vivoView study →.
Gap: almost entirely one research group (Amala Cancer Research Centre); no independent replication, no tumour type beyond the B16F-10 melanoma model, and no human data 1,3Reference 1Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa LinnView study →Reference 3In vitroPunarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, exhibits anti-angiogenic activity via downregulation of VEGF in vitro and in vivoView study →.
2. Immunomodulatory
Punarnavine raised total WBC, antibody titre, bone-marrow cellularity, NK-cell activity and lymphocyte proliferation in mice, and enhanced cell-mediated immunity in tumour-bearing animals — the “enhances immune response” signal that underlies the antimetastatic work 2,4Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →Reference 4Immunomodulatory activities of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusaView study →.
Gap: same lab, mouse-only, with shallow (cytokine/cell-count) readouts and no human immunology 2,4Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →Reference 4Immunomodulatory activities of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusaView study →.
3. Anti-inflammatory
Reductions in TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 and GM-CSF were reported alongside the antimetastatic effects 1,2Reference 1Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa LinnView study →Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →.
Gap: there is no dedicated anti-inflammatory model for the isolate — this is an inference from tumour-model cytokine panels only 1,2Reference 1Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa LinnView study →Reference 2AnimalEffect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing miceView study →.
4. Antidepressant / CNS
An ethanol extract of B. diffusa and isolated punarnavine showed antidepressant-like activity via the monoaminergic system in mice (forced-swim/tail-suspension) 5Reference 5AnimalEvidence for involvement of the monoaminergic system in the antidepressant-like activity of an ethanol extract of Boerhaavia diffusa and its isolated constituent punarnavine in miceView study →.
Gap: a single study in which the isolate’s effect is partly inferred alongside whole-extract activity, with no repeat and no CNS-exposure confirmation 5Reference 5AnimalEvidence for involvement of the monoaminergic system in the antidepressant-like activity of an ethanol extract of Boerhaavia diffusa and its isolated constituent punarnavine in miceView study →.
Mechanisms
| Target / pathway | Effect | Relevant to |
|---|---|---|
| VEGF | downregulated (in vitro + in vivo) | anti-angiogenic / antimetastatic |
| MMP-2 / MMP-9 | inhibited | antimetastatic (reduced ECM invasion) |
| TIMP-1; nm23 (metastasis suppressor) | upregulated | antimetastatic |
| Pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, GM-CSF) | reduced | antimetastatic / anti-inflammatory |
| Cell-mediated immunity (NK activity, antibody titre, WBC) | enhanced | immunostimulant |
| Monoaminergic system | modulated (antidepressant-like) | CNS |
All targets come from rodent/in-vitro work by one-to-two groups; treat as preliminary.
Pharmacokinetics
There is minimal data. Punarnavine is a Boerhavia diffusa root alkaloid, and no verified ADME, bioavailability, half-life, protein-binding or metabolism study exists for the isolate. Dosing in the literature is intraperitoneal in mice, which sidesteps oral-absorption questions entirely; oral human PK is unknown.
Clinical trials
There are no human trials of isolated punarnavine. The human/traditional use associated with Boerhavia diffusa (diuretic, hepatoprotective) is whole-plant and cannot be attributed to this single alkaloid.
| Completed | Planned | Terminated | Preclinical |
|---|---|---|---|
| —(none, isolate) | — | — | Thin(single-group rodent) |
Last checked: July 2026.
Toxicity & Safety
Punarnavine carries a low flag, but this reflects limited data rather than demonstrated safety: no dedicated toxicology (LD50, sub-chronic, genotoxicity) exists for the isolate, and the rating carries over from the well-tolerated whole-plant profile as an inference, not a measured value for punarnavine.
Pregnancy & lactation
Avoid. Boerhavia diffusa (punarnava) carries a traditional emmenagogue/abortifacient caution, and punarnavine is an immunomodulatory, anti-angiogenic alkaloid (VEGF downregulation is theoretically adverse to placental/fetal angiogenesis). With no reproductive-safety data for the isolate, it is best avoided in pregnancy and lactation.
Dosage
There is no established human dose for isolated punarnavine, and murine intraperitoneal protocols cannot be translated into one. Whole-plant/root traditional dosing belongs on the erva tostão herb page, not here.
References
- Manu KA, Kuttan G (2009). Anti-metastatic potential of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa Linn. Immunobiology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19171408/
- Manu KA, Kuttan G (2007). Effect of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, on cell-mediated immune responses and TIMP-1 in B16F-10 metastatic melanoma-bearing mice. Immunopharmacology and Immunotoxicology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18075866/
- Saraswati S, et al. (2013). Punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa, exhibits anti-angiogenic activity via downregulation of VEGF in vitro and in vivo. Chemico-Biological Interactions. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24060680/
- Manu KA, Kuttan G (2009). Immunomodulatory activities of punarnavine, an alkaloid from Boerhaavia diffusa. Immunopharmacology and Immunotoxicology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19555203/
- Dhingra D, Valecha R (2014). Evidence for involvement of the monoaminergic system in the antidepressant-like activity of an ethanol extract of Boerhaavia diffusa and its isolated constituent punarnavine in mice. Pharmaceutical Biology. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24559436/