Sanguisorba officinalis L. polysaccharides: A review of structural characteristics, pharmacological activities,...

Sanguisorba officinalis L. (S. officinalis) is a traditional Chinese medicine used to cool blood and stop bleeding, and its polysaccharides are among the important active components responsible for its efficacy. The anti-inflammatory, wound-healing, hemostatic, and immune-regulatory activities of S. officinalis polysaccharides align precisely with its traditional efficacy in cooling blood, promoting hemostasis, detoxifying, and astringing sores, providing modern scientific support for its medicinal value.

This paper comprehensively reviews the extraction, structural characteristics, pharmacological activities, structure-activity relationships, future application potential, and challenges of S. officinalis polysaccharides.

Key terms including "Sanguisorba officinalis L.", "S. officinalis" and "Sanguisorba officinalis L. polysaccharide" were systematically searched in databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar (2000-2026) to ensure the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the retrieved literature.

S. officinalis polysaccharides are mainly composed of glucose, galacturonic acid, arabinose, and galactose. The glycosidic bond types include →4)-α-Glcp, →4)-GalAp, and highly branched arabinogalactan. Some polysaccharide components have a triple helix conformation, which provides a basis for their pharmacological activities.

This paper systematically reviews the research progress of S. officinalis polysaccharides, summarizing the qualitative correlations between structural characteristics and pharmacological activities. Existing studies are predominantly in vitro, and the structure-activity relationships lack quantitative analysis, while in vivo efficacy and safety data remain insufficient. On this basis, future research should focus on quantitative structure-activity relationships studies, as well as pharmacokinetic and safety evaluations, to facilitate the development and utilization of S. officinalis polysaccharides.