Icariin

Appearance: Brown powder Functions:Icariin, a flavonol glycoside, is an interesting substance found in certain herbs, particularly horny goat weed. known as the botanical name epimedium. Icariin has been studied as a substance that dilates blood vessels and can potentially be helpful in the treatment of erectile dysfunction. Icariin has been found to have phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor activity.

Icariin is a flavonol glycoside, a type of flavonoid. It is the 8-prenyl derivative of kaempferol 3,7-O-diglucoside. The compound is derived from several species of plants belonging to the genus Epimedium, Berberidaceae, which are commonly known as Horny Goat Weed or Yin Yang Huo.

Extracts from these plants are reputed to produce aphrodisiac effects, and are commonly used in Chinese herbal medicine to enhance erectile function,as well as for several other indications.

It is thought that icariin is likely to be the primary active component of Epimedium extracts, as it has been shown to share several mechanisms of action with compounds used in Western medicine to treat impotence and improve sexual function.

In particular, icariin has been demonstrated to act as a PDE5 inhibitorand to enhance the production of bioactive nitric oxide, as well as mimicking the effects of testosterone.It also shows antioxidant, antidepressant and neuroprotective effects in animal studies, as well as stimulating osteoblast activity in bone tissue which has been linked to a possible therapeutic role in the treatment of osteoporosis.