Effect of berberine on irritable bowel syndrome: A symptom-based review

Abstract

Phytotherapeutic applications have gained a place in the symptomatic treatment of irritable bowel syndrome, one of the most common diseases globally among functional bowel diseases. This study aimed to compile evidence regarding the efficacy of berberine in relieving the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. In this review, the electronic databases of PubMed, Google Scholar, MEDLINE, and Web of Science were used, and current publications were searched without any language restrictions. The screening was performed by first performing a general search using the keyword "berberine and irritable bowel syndrome", followed by individual searches for each symptom. Although there are many preclinical studies investigating the effect of berberine on the gastrointestinal tract, human studies are still limited. Studies show that berberine may positively affect abdominal pain, diarrhea, inflammation, microbiota, and visceral hypersensitivity, although the mechanisms of action are not yet clear. However, available data suggest that the therapeutic use of berberine in irritable bowel syndrome may be limited to the predominant type of diarrhea and selected patients whose symptoms are evaluated individually. Evidence presented in this paper needs to be further supported by human clinical studies.