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Mistletoe lectins as immunostimulants (chemistry, pharmacology and clinic)

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Immunomodulatory Agents from Plants

Part of the book series: Progress in Inflammation Research ((PIR))

Abstract

The European mistletoe Viscum album L. has attracted special interest in folklore and ethnomedicine throughout the centuries. The Celtic druids used it already in their ceremonies more than 2000 years ago. Later on it was thought to be potent against epilepsy “since the mistletoe did not fall down – neither would the patient” and this belief was carried on through the middle ages. In the 16th century mistletoe was commonly used against the falling sickness as well as against illnesses of the blood circulation, heart failure, dropsy, asthma and nervous diseases [1, 2].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Pharmaceutical Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Karlstr. 29, D-80333, Munich, Germany

    Rainer Samtleben & Hildebert Wagner

  2. Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital Zürich, P.O.Box 77, CH-4132, Muttenz, Switzerland

    Tibor Hajto & Katarina Hostanska

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  1. Rainer Samtleben
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  2. Tibor Hajto
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  3. Katarina Hostanska
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  4. Hildebert Wagner
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  1. Institut für pharmazeutische Biologie, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Karlstrasse 29, D-80333, München, Germany

    H. Wagner

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Samtleben, R., Hajto, T., Hostanska, K., Wagner, H. (1999). Mistletoe lectins as immunostimulants (chemistry, pharmacology and clinic). In: Wagner, H. (eds) Immunomodulatory Agents from Plants. Progress in Inflammation Research. Birkhäuser, Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8763-2_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8763-2_9

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