I�m going to begin by summarizing work that�s being done related to herbal medicines.  I mentioned our study with NIMH of St. John�s Wort.  Let me give you some background and some idea of what we�re trying to achieve here.  This is a medicinal herb that�s incredibly popular with $6 billion of sales in a single year in Europe by this survey in 1998.  It�s used primarily for treatment of depression, other mood disorders -- anxiety disorders, many other conditions.

Like all plants, it�s a complex mixture of many chemical constituents.  We know that at least one of those constituents, hyperforin, contributes to its antidepressant action, and we have learned, as I�ll show you through work done right here in the NIH clinical center as well as smaller studies elsewhere, that St. John�s Wort, while it may be active in depression and other clinical conditions, also interacts with drugs:  birth control pills, AIDS drugs, and drugs important for preserving the survival of transplanted organs.

  Now, it�s the background suggesting that St. John�s Wort was effective for depression that led my colleagues in 1998 to begin to design a study that has been conducted and, as I said, completed.  Let me give you a sense of the background data and how it evolves in this somewhat contentious field.

圣.约翰草

草药

野生用：

  欧洲市场销售额为60亿美元（1998年）

  美国的销售量为1.4亿美元（1998）

含有24种以上化合物的复合混合体

抗抑郁成分相当于hyperforin

发生相互反应的药物有：

    口服避孕药

    茚地那韦

     环孢霉素