Glycyrrhiza uralensis Glycyrrhiza uralensis Glycyrrhiza uralensis, also known as Chinese liquorice, is a flowering plant native to Asia. It is used as a sweetener and in traditional Chinese medicine. Liquorice root, or 'radix glycyrrhizae', is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine, where it has the name "gancao" ("kan-tsao"; , pinyin: gāncǎo). It is usually collected in spring and autumn, when it is removed from the rootlet and dried in the sun. Liquorice root is most commonly produced in the Shanxi, Gansu and Xinjiang regions of China. As well as traditional Chinese medicine, liquorice root is used in
Glycyrrhizin glycyrrhizin is first hydrolysed to 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (enoxolone) by intestinal bacteria. After complete absorption from the gut, 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid is metabolised to 3β-monoglucuronyl-18β-glycyrrhetinic acid in the liver. This metabolite then circulates in the bloodstream. Consequently, its oral bioavailability is poor. The main part is eliminated by bile and only a minor part (0.31–0.67%) by urine. After oral ingestion of 600 mg of glycyrrhizin the metabolite appeared in urine after 1.5 to 14 hours. Maximal concentrations (0.49 to 2.69 mg/l) were achieved after 1.5 to 39 hours and metabolite can be detected in the urine after 2 to 4 days. Glycyrrhizin