Table 3.

Clinical research based on ethnopharmacological applications targeting alcohol abuse.

Species	Common name	Plant extract or compound	Model	Results	Reference
Hypericum perforatum L.	St John's Wort (SJW)	Hypericum herbal infusion	Human	Hypericum herbal infusion was used in combination with rational psychotherapy of depressive manifestations in 57 outpatients with alcoholism and concomitant diseases of digestive organs. Duration of treatment was 2 months (1 glass 4–5 times daily). This treatment in combination with rational psychotherapy proved effective.	(Krylov and Ibatov, 1993)
Jiejiu Jiedu	Jiejiu Jiedu	Jiejiu Jiedu decoction Coptis chinensis Franch., Phellodendron chinense C.K. Schneid., Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels, Aconitum carmichaeli Debeaux, Actaea heracleifolia (Kom.) J.Compton, Bupleurum chinense DC., Aucklandia costus Falc., Pinellia ternata (Thunb.) Makino, Ophiopogon japonicus (Thunb.) Ker Gawl., Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill., and Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. ex DC.,	Human	Antidipsotropic action of Jiejiu Jiedu decoction was as good as furazolidone.	(Cao et al., 2007)
Lophophora williamsii (Lem.) J.M.Coult.	Peyote	Peyote button	Human	Ritualistic use of Peyote to a properly structured psychotherapeutic session has been demonstrated to be an effective technique for treating alcoholics.	(Albaugh and Anderson, 1974)
NPI-031	Alkontrol-herbal™	Standardized Kudzu extract (NPI-031)	Human	Significantly reduced the number of drinks consumed each week by 34–57%, reduced the number of heavy drinking days, and significantly increased the percent of abstinent days and the number of consecutive days of abstinence.	(Lukas et al., 2013)
			Human	Currently underdevelopment	ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03099590
	Kudzu	Extract	Male and female “heavy” alcohol drinkers	Significant reduction in the number of beers consumed that was paralleled by an increase in the number of sips and the time to consume each beer and a decrease in the volume of each sip.	(Lukas et al., 2005)
Panax ginseng C.A.Mey.	Ginseng	Water extract	Human	Ingestion of ginseng along with alcohol accelerates blood alcohol clearance and may render clinical applications in the treatment of alcoholic patients and help alleviate many detrimental effects caused by acute ethanol intoxication.	(Lee et al., 1987)
Pediculus melo	Musk melon base	P. melo wine	Human	Significant decline in alcohol intake after taking P. melo wine.	(Dou et al., 2003)
		Guadi capsule, containing 0.2 g P. melo	Human	Confirmed the study of Wang and highlighted the usage of P. melo with fewer side effects than apomorphine.	(Shang et al., 2005)
Psilocybe mexicana (Fungi)	Philosopher's stones	Psilocybin	Volunteers with DSM-IV alcohol	Abstinence did not increase significantly in the first 4 weeks of treatment (when participants had not yet received psilocybin), but increased significantly following psilocybin administration (p < 0.05). Gains were largely maintained at follow-up to 36 weeks. The intensity of effects in the first psilocybin session (at week 4) strongly predicted change in drinking during weeks 5–8 (r = 0.76 to r = 0.89) and also predicted decreases in craving and increases in abstinence self-efficacy during week 5.	(Bogenschutz et al., 2015)
Pueraria montana var. lobata (Willd.) Maesen & S.M.Almeida ex Sanjappa & Predeep (syn. Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi)	Kudzu	Kudzu root extract	Human	Appeared to be no better than placebo in reducing the craving for alcohol or promoting sobriety.	(Shebek and Rindone, 2000)
		Kudzu extract	Human	Reduces alcohol consumption in a binge drinking paradigm.	(Penetar et al., 2015)
	Kudzu (Puerariae Flos)	Dried flower extracts	Human	Probably promotes the elimination of blood acetaldehyde in humans and clinically. There might be a modest stimulatory effect of P. thomsonii on the elimination of blood acetaldehyde, may passively mitigate acetaldehyde toxicity symptoms, such as flushing, palpitation, headache, etc., associated with excessive alcohol intake.	(Yamazaki et al., 2002)
Wendan decoction	Wendan decoction (WDD)	WDD is typically composed of Pinellia ternata (Thunb.) Makino, Phyllostachys nigra var. henonis (Mitford) Rendle, Citrus × aurantium L., Wolfiporia extensa, Zingiber officinale Roscoe, Ziziphus jujuba Mill. and Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. ex DC.	Human	Wendan decoction (500 ml, bid) was effective in treating alcohol dependence patients (overall effective rate: 83.3%).	(Qu and Wang, 2008)