Antitussive composition comprising a root-bark extract of Morus australis Poir and method for making the same

摘要

An antitussive composition useful in the treatment, relief and/or prevention of cough comprises a Morus australis Poir extract and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier. The preparation of the Morus australis Poir extract includes the steps of (i) extracting dry root-barks of the Morus australis Poir with water, ethanol, ethyl acetate, or a combination thereof; (ii) filtering the crude extracts with a 350 mesh sieve , and optionally with a 5µm pore membrane (ultrafiltration); (iii) optionally concentrating the filtrates; (iv) optionally purifying the concentrate using a reverse phase column, packed with a polystyrene resin or an ion exchange resin, and eluted with an ethanol solution; and (v) optionally drying the ethanol eluates or concentrate, preferably by freeze-drying. The Morus australis Poir species of mulberry may be an alternative to the Morus alba L. species traditionally used in Chinese medicine for the treatment of cough.