IngredientsCampsis × tagliabuana (Madame Galen) is a mid-19th-century hybrid between Campsis radicans (American trumpet vine) and Campsis grandiflora (Chinese trumpet vine). It belongs to the kingdom Plantae, phylum Tracheophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Lamiales, and family Bignoniaceae. The formal name as accepted in modern taxonomy is Campsis × tagliabuana (Vis.) Rehder, first published in the Journal of the Arnold Arboretum in 1932. A widely recognized synonym is Tecoma × tagliabuana Vis.
The genus name Campsis is derived from the Greek word kampsis (κάμψις), meaning "bend" or "curve," in reference to the curved stamens of its flowers. The Latin specific epithet tagliabuana commemorates the 19th-century Italian nurserymen, Alberto Linneo and Carlo Ausonio Tagliabue.
This hybrid combines the cold hardiness of the American parent (C. radicans) with the larger, more vibrant flowers of the Chinese species (C. grandiflora), producing trumpet-shaped blooms that measure 7–9 cm long and display colors ranging from salmon-pink to orange-red. Originating in the mid-19th century, likely in Italian nurseries run by the Tagliabue brothers, the hybrid was formally named to honor them and first introduced commercially in France around 1889 by nurseryman Félix Sahut.
The cultivar 'Madame Galen' represents one of the earliest and most widely cultivated selections of C. × tagliabuana, featuring drooping clusters of cantaloupe-orange to salmon-red flowers that bloom from July to August, attracting hummingbirds. The hybrid has since given rise to several additional cultivars, including 'Kudian' (developed in the Netherlands) and the 'Takarazuka' series (developed in Japan).
Campsis × tagliabuana is a woody, clinging, perennial vine that attaches itself to structures and climbs vigorously with aerial roots like those of ivy. It rapidly grows 15–25 feet high and produces compound, odd-pinnate leaves (to 15 inches long) that are shiny green above and glabrous below. Each leaf has 7–11 ovate leaflets.
Flowers are followed by long, bean-like seed pods that split open when ripe, releasing numerous 2-winged seeds for dispersal by the wind.
Common names include "hybrid trumpet creeper," "orange-red trumpet creeper," and "trumpet vine" in English; "bignone orange" in French; "bignonia roja," "san Genaro," and "trompeta trepadora" in Spanish; and "Trompetenblume" in German.
The plant and its close parent species (C. radicans and C. grandiflora) enter commerce primarily as dried whole flowers, flower extracts (ethanol, methanol, and aqueous preparations), leaf extracts, and bark/root preparations. The dried flower of Campsis grandiflora (Bignoniaceae), known as ryoushouka in Japanese, is a traditional Chinese medicine used to treat stagnant blood, contusion, pruritus, and gynecopathy such as menstrual and menopausal disorders. Crude methanol extracts of leaves and bark, along with sub-fractions in petroleum ether, dichloromethane, and ethyl acetate, have been employed in laboratory research. As a dietary supplement ingredient in Western markets, extracts may also appear in capsule, powder, or liquid form, though there is no established standardized pharmaceutical preparation specifically for C. × tagliabuana the hybrid itself; most commercial and research use draws on C. grandiflora or C. radicans as source plants.
The flowers of Campsis grandiflora (Thunb.) K. Schum have long been used as herbal remedies in traditional Chinese medicine as an agent of activating blood circulation and removing blood stasis (in Chinese, "Xing Xue Qu Yu") for treatment of diseases caused by blood stagnation. This fast-growing deciduous climber, native to central and southern China, has had its dried flowers used as a carminative, blood tonic, and febrifuge in Chinese traditional medicine.
The plant is found in the eastern part of Asia and is traditionally used in China as medicine for the treatment of pruritus, menstrual problems, diuresis, and thrombosis. Its flowers, leaves, and roots have long been used as herbal remedies in traditional Chinese medicine to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis in diseases caused by blood stagnation.
Stagnant blood (oketsu in Japanese) is considered a severe and important pathological condition in traditional Chinese and Japanese medicine and is one of the leading causes of gynecopathy, poor circulation, and shoulder discomfort. The dried flower of C. grandiflora also has an important role in traditional East Asian medical practice under this indication.
Campsis radicans (L.) Bureau, commonly known as trumpet creeper, occupies a significant place in traditional healing practices across various cultures. Its traditional medicinal uses include healing of wounds, treatment of infections caused by Candida, Hemophillus, and other organisms, as well as anti-itching medication. In China, the plant is well known for its anticoagulant property, which is traditionally used for the treatment of abnormal menstruation and dysmenorrhea. In Bangladesh, the plant grows in parks and roadside areas as a decorative plant, and its use as a folk medicine for multiple human diseases has been documented.
Because Campsis × tagliabuana is a hybrid of C. radicans and C. grandiflora, its phytochemical profile is closely related to those of its two parent species. Published phytochemical investigations have been primarily conducted on the parent species rather than on the hybrid itself; the following information therefore describes the constituent chemistry relevant to the genus as a whole.
Among the phytochemical constituents, flavonoids such as quercetin 3-methyl ether, chrysoeriol, apigenin, and luteolin have been reported from C. radicans. The isolation of oleanolic acid, apigenin, and cinnamic acid from the flowers of C. grandiflora has also been reported. Apigenin is particularly well-studied and has been identified as a key bioactive flavone in both parent species.
Chemical investigation of the aerial parts of C. radicans led to the isolation of coumarins such as 8-methoxy furanocoumarin, pabulenone, pereflorin B, and 17-methylbothrioclinin. These furanocoumarins have subsequently been investigated for their free-radical-scavenging properties.
A non-glycosidic iridoid, campsinol (1), and two iridoid glucosides, 7-O-(Z)-p-coumaroylcachineside V (2) and 7-O-(E)-p-coumaroylcachineside I (3), were isolated from the fresh flowers of Campsis grandiflora, along with five known iridoid glycosides: ixoroside (4), campsiside (5), cachineside I (6), 5-hydroxycampenoside (7), and 5-hydroxycampsiside (8), and two known phenylpropanoid glycosides, acteoside (9) and leucosceptoside A (10). The structures of these compounds were determined based on NMR and mass spectroscopic data and other chemical evidence.
A total of five triterpene compounds — corosolic acid methyl ester (1), β-amyrin (2), arjunolic acid (3), maslinic acid (4), and 28-O-[β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-D-glucopyranosyl]-2α,3α,19α-trihydroxy-12-en-28-ursolic acid (5) — were isolated from the dichloromethane fractions of leaves of C. radicans and their structures were characterized by 1H NMR spectroscopy. Additional triterpenoids including ursolic acid have been isolated from C. grandiflora flowers. The isolation of iridoids, phenylpropanoid glycosides, and triterpenoids from the leaves and flowers of C. grandiflora has been previously reported.
Modern research has confirmed the presence of valuable compounds in Campsis grandiflora (Lingxiaohua) in the form of triterpenoids, flavonoids, phenolic acids, and volatile oils. Acteoside, a phenylpropanoid glycoside, has been identified as a significant bioactive component in both the flowers and leaves. Beta-sitosterol has also been isolated from the flowers. Several chemical constituents including flavonoids, iridoids, triterpenoids, and phenolic acid derivatives have been identified in the flower of C. grandiflora.
The following mechanisms have been proposed based on laboratory investigations of the parent species C. grandiflora and C. radicans. Mechanisms attributable specifically to C. × tagliabuana as a distinct entity have not been separately established in the published literature.
Exposure of human dermal fibroblasts to a 50% EtOH extract of Campsis grandiflora flower (ECG) at 10 and 100 μg/ml showed significant protective effect against hydrogen peroxide (300 μM). ECG not only protected cell survival from H2O2-induced toxicity but also inhibited the H2O2-induced leakage of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme release and DNA fragmentation significantly. It was also found that ECG showed scavenging activities of radicals and reactive oxygen species with IC50 values of 20 μg/ml against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical and 52 μg/ml against superoxide radicals in the xanthine/xanthine oxidase system, respectively.
In a study of C. radicans, the prominent membrane-stabilizing activity of the plant extract can be attributed to the presence of flavonoids, tannins, and other phenolic compounds. Free radical scavenging activity has also been demonstrated for coumarins isolated specifically from Tecoma radicans (a synonym of C. radicans).
Topically applied ECG (50% EtOH extract of C. grandiflora flower) dose-dependently inhibited arachidonic acid (AA)- and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA)-induced ear edema in mice. Chu et al. (2000) reported that the flower of this plant showed inhibitory effects on dimethyl benzene-induced acute inflammation models and the proliferation of granuloma induced by agar.
Five pentacyclic triterpenoids isolated from Campsis grandiflora were tested for insulin-mimetic and insulin-sensitizing activity. The compounds enhanced the activity of insulin on tyrosine phosphorylation of the IR (insulin receptor) β-subunit in CHO/IR (Chinese hamster ovary cells expressing human IR). Among the compounds tested, CG7 (ursolic acid) showed the greatest enhancement and CG11 (myrianthic acid) the least. CG7 acted as an effective insulin-mimetic agent at doses above 50 μg/ml and as an insulin-sensitizer at doses as low as 1 μg/ml.
CG7 not only potentiated insulin-mediated signaling (tyrosine phosphorylation of the IR β-subunit, phosphorylation of Akt and glycogen synthase kinase-3β), but also enhanced the effect of insulin on translocation of glucose transporter 4 in a classical insulin-sensitive cell line, 3T3-L1 adipocytes. The enhancement of insulin activity by CG7 may be useful for developing a new class of specific IR activators for treatment of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. These results are cell-based in vitro findings only; no human or clinical studies have been conducted.
In an in vivo assay, the stagnant blood flow (BF) improvement effect of the methanol extract (CG) of dried flowers of C. grandiflora was evaluated using an assay system to monitor a decrease in BF in the tail vein microcirculation of mice subjected to sensitization with hen-egg white lysozyme. Bioassay-guided fractionation of CG led to the isolation of apigenin (1), acteoside (2), cleroindicin B (3), rengyol (4), and isorengyol (5). Apigenin and acteoside were identified as active compounds, as they exhibited significant stagnant BF improvement effect in the peripheral circulation. This is an animal study; human clinical evidence is absent.
Through data mining and network pharmacology, apigenin (APi) was identified as the main active ingredient of Lingxiaohua (C. grandiflora), and key targets (TNF, AKT1, INS, TP53, CASP3, JUN, BCL2, MMP9, FOS, and HIF1A) for the treatment of Parkinson's disease were discovered. The primary routes implicated were identified as PI3K/AKT, Apoptosis, TNF, and NF-κB pathways. These are in silico and cell-model findings and do not constitute clinical evidence.
Of 38 common herbs examined, the ethanol extract of Campsis grandiflora flower had the strongest quorum sensing inhibitor (QSI) activity. The extract inhibited violacein production of Chromobacterium violaceum 026 in a dose-dependent manner and inhibited the swarming abilities of Escherichia coli K-12 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1. Furthermore, the extract inhibited biofilm formation and destroyed mature biofilms of E. coli K-12 and P. aeruginosa PAO1. The composition of the extract was determined by UPLC-MS/MS, and 21 compounds were identified.
Seven triterpenoids were isolated from the flowers of C. grandiflora and evaluated as human acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) inhibitors. This was a biochemical in vitro study, and no clinical translation has been established.
The available evidence for anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects is preliminary, based exclusively on in vitro cell assays and animal models. Studies on C. grandiflora flower extracts have demonstrated inhibition of AA- and TPA-induced ear edema in mice, as well as protective effects against oxidative injury in human dermal fibroblasts. This plant has an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidepressant, and antibacterial effect, with a beneficial role in stagnant blood and endometriosis conditions, as assessed in laboratory and animal-model contexts. No controlled human clinical trials have been conducted. Evidence strength: preclinical only (animal and in vitro).
The plant has been reported to exhibit bioactivities such as increasing blood flow from the heart, anti-inflammatory effect, and improvement of abnormal lipid metabolism. The stagnant blood flow study described above used an animal model (mice) and identified apigenin and acteoside as active constituents. Evidence strength: preclinical animal studies only; no human clinical data available.
The plant is used to treat gynecological and dermatological disorders in traditional East Asian medicine. Both C. grandiflora and C. radicans have long been used as herbal medicine for treating blood-stasis-related disorders and possess antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. These claims are ethnobotanical and have not been validated in prospective clinical trials. Evidence strength: traditional use only; no clinical evidence.
The insulin-mimetic and insulin-sensitizing findings from ursolic acid isolated from C. grandiflora are mechanistically interesting but remain at the cell and molecular level. Since traditional Chinese herbs and herbal formulae have been used to treat diabetes mellitus, investigators have explored whether such medicinal herbs contain IR activators with insulin-mimetic and/or insulin-sensitizing activity. For these reasons, C. grandiflora is classified as a traditional Chinese anti-diabetic medicine. However, there are no registered clinical trials or published human pharmacokinetic data for these specific constituents derived from Campsis spp. Evidence strength: in vitro cell assay only; no human or animal metabolic study data available.
The exploration of novel natural products for Parkinson's disease is a focus of current research. Campsis grandiflora (Lingxiaohua) is a traditional Chinese medicine, and the exact active constituents and putative mechanisms for treating Parkinson's disease are unknown. A 2024 study used network pharmacology and cell model validation to implicate the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway. This represents early-stage, hypothesis-generating research. Evidence strength: in silico network pharmacology and cell model only; no animal or human studies.
Traditional medicinal uses of the genus include healing of wounds and treatment of infections caused by Candida and Hemophillus. Laboratory screening studies have shown quorum-sensing inhibition and biofilm disruption against E. coli and P. aeruginosa. Evidence strength: in vitro antimicrobial/QSI studies only; no clinical data.
A 2024 review article provides an overview of the therapeutic applications of C. radicans in wound healing by drawing on historical ethnobotanical use, phytochemical analysis, and pharmacological investigations. The wound-healing application is supported by traditional use and limited animal-model observations. Evidence strength: traditional/ethnobotanical; limited preclinical data; no human clinical trials.
There is no established or standardized dosage for Campsis × tagliabuana or its parent species as a dietary supplement in any recognized pharmacopeia or regulatory guidance. The following dosages appear only in laboratory research contexts:
No human clinical pharmacokinetic or pharmacodynamic dosing data exist for Campsis × tagliabuana, C. grandiflora, or C. radicans as dietary supplements.
The plant causes low toxicity if eaten. Contact with the sap can cause minor skin irritation with redness and swelling, usually lasting for a few minutes. Trumpet vine is commonly known as "cow-itch vine" because some people experience skin redness and itching after coming in contact with the leaves.
A number of texts refer to dermatitis caused by handling the flowers or leaves of Campsis radicans, but there appear to be no properly documented case reports. The North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox lists the species under the contact dermatitis category.
The trumpet vine (Campsis radicans) is considered mildly toxic if ingested. Consumption of the leaves or flowers can result in minor symptoms like stomach pain and indigestion. The sap from the trumpet vine can also cause a localized skin irritation or rash for those who handle it while pruning.
Campsis × tagliabuana and its parent species are not listed in the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements fact sheets, WHO monographs, ESCOP, the German Commission E, or the European Pharmacopoeia as established dietary supplement ingredients with approved health claims. Extensive literature search indicates that there is no scientific report on the biological investigations of the plant to confirm its medicinal properties as a rigorously validated supplement, as noted in a 2019 clinical phytoscience study. This reflects the status of the field as of the time of that review.
No peer-reviewed clinical studies have examined drug–herb interactions for Campsis × tagliabuana or either parent species in humans. The established in vitro anticoagulant and insulin-sensitizing properties of related genus species (C. grandiflora used for blood stasis; ursolic acid showing insulin-receptor activation) suggest theoretical consideration when used alongside anticoagulant or hypoglycemic medications, but no documented interaction cases or trials exist in the peer-reviewed literature.
The cultivar Campsis × tagliabuana 'Chastity' has been described as a highly infertile triploid trumpet vine, resulting from specific breeding programs. This botanical characteristic has no established safety relevance to human use but may be relevant to the quality and consistency of plant material used in any extract preparation.
Health conditions that Campsis tagliabuana may help support.
Body systems that Campsis tagliabuana may help support.
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