Scutellaria lateriflora
Scutellaria lateriflora, (commonly "blue skullcap", "mad dog skullcap", "American skullcap", "side-flowering skullcap", etc.) is a hardy perennial herb of the mint family, Lamiaceae, native to North America. It has an upright habit, growing in maximum height. It is a wetland-loving species and grows near marshes, meadows, and other wet habitat. The blue flowers are just under long. Most of the flowers do not appear at the top of the main stem, but are produced along the length of side branches that grow from the leaf axils. Traditional uses and research. "Scutellaria lateriflora" contains flavonoids. Other skullcaps  used for similar purposes include common skullcap ("S. galericulata"), western skullcap ("S. canescens"), and southern skullcap ("S. cordifolia"). Its extracts are used in herbal medicine intended as a mild sedative and sleep promoter. Cherokee women have used it as an emmenagogue. Skullcap products have been analyzed, with some adulterated by "Teucrium canadense" or "T. chamaedrys", also known as germander, which contains potentially hepatotoxic diterpenes. β-Elemene in the herb is under preliminary research "in vitro", but studies in humans have not confirmed any efficacy. Diterpenes isolated from "S. barbata" had cytotoxic activity against three human cancer cell lines "in vitro . Pharmacology. The principal phenolics in the leaves, stems, and roots of some Scutellaria" species are baicalin, baicalein, wogonin, and oroxylin A. Baicalin has anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects in a rat model of thermal hyperalgesia. Another study identifies 5,6,7-trihydroxy-2'- methoxyflavone and its 7-"O"-glucuronide. A number of the flavones found in "S. lateriflora" have been reported to selectively bind with high affinity to central benzodiazepine receptor sites, leading to the view that the flavones exert anxiolytic and other benzodiazepine effects in rats. The flavonoids are found throughout the plant but are more concentrated in the leaves, and the concentrations are  found to decrease slightly as the plant matures. The dried leaf is reported to contain about 50 milligrams of flavonoid per gram. The flavonoids are readily extracted using hot water. Scutellarin is transformed by hydrolysis into scutellarein. See also. Other plants with sedative GABAergic properties