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Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa): Medicinal Marvel or Menace? Assessing Potency, Risk, and Future Prospect of Herbal Medicine

Indonesian Journal of Chemical Science · Vol. 13 No. 1 (2024)

ISSN
2502-6844, 2252-6951
Published
2024-05-28
Publisher
Prodi Kimia
Language
eng

Abstract

Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) boasts a rich historical legacy as an herbal plant employed across generations for diverse therapeutic purposes, including pain relief, inflammation mitigation, anti-diarrheal effects, cough suppression, alleviation of fatigue, and anti-anxiety and antidepressant properties. Despite its acclaimed medicinal versatility, this plant harbors psychoactive attributes, thereby posing the risk of misuse and potential dependence, along with withdrawal effects. The alkaloid composition of kratom, featuring opioid receptor agonist properties, underscores its analgesic efficacy, thereby carrying a risk of dependence and withdrawal akin to other opioid agonists. Beyond its role as an opioid agonist, the analgesic mechanism of kratom extends to additional complementary pathways, presenting a potential superiority to morphine. Notably, kratom constituents inhibit key drug-metabolizing enzymes (CYP) and the multidrug transporter, p-glycoprotein, potentially leading to heightened levels of co-administered drugs that are substrates for these proteins, presenting a potential risk of adverse outcomes, including fatality. Given the perceived imbalance of risks versus benefits, there arises a rationale for the prohibition of kratom use as an herbal remedy. However, the exploration of purified drugs derived from kratom isolates remains a promising avenue for research, with the potential to surpass standard pharmaceutical interventions.

Keywords

Collaboration network of the authors

12 authors · 20 co-authorship links

Hover or tap a name to highlight its co-authors. Double-click to open the author's page.

  • State University of Semarang
  • Affiliation unknown
  • Different organisations
  • Same organisation
  • Affiliation unknown
  • Thicker line = more joint articles · bigger circle = more articles
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Co-authorOrganisationJoint articles
Muhammad Athfal NuransyahAffiliation unknown1
Dzulrifaad Ubaidillah Al AfzaAffiliation unknown1
Annisa Aulia SavitriAffiliation unknown1
Willy Tirza EdenAffiliation unknown1
Samuel Budi Wardhana KusumaAffiliation unknown1
Nanik WijayatiState University of Semarang1
SudarminState University of Semarang1
Sri Anggini WahyuningsihAffiliation unknown1
Endah WidhihastutiAffiliation unknown1
Sitarina WidyariniAffiliation unknown1
Nanang FakhrudinAffiliation unknown1

Affiliations come from OpenAlex; journal OAI-PMH metadata carries none. Authors without an OpenAlex ID are matched by name, which can merge or split people.

Metadata source: OAI-PMH (metadata jurnal) https://journal.unnes.ac.id/journals/ijcs/oai, first harvested 5 Nov 2026, last seen 5 Nov 2026.
Original metadata (oai_dc) 
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	<dc:title xml:lang="en">Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa): Medicinal Marvel or Menace? Assessing Potency, Risk, and Future Prospect of Herbal Medicine</dc:title>
	<dc:creator xml:lang="en">Ni'ma, Neli Syahida</dc:creator>
	<dc:subject xml:lang="en">Kratom</dc:subject>
	<dc:subject xml:lang="en">Mitragyna speciosa</dc:subject>
	<dc:subject xml:lang="en">Mitragynine</dc:subject>
	<dc:subject xml:lang="en">Opioid</dc:subject>
	<dc:subject xml:lang="en">Analgetic</dc:subject>
	<dc:description xml:lang="en">Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) boasts a rich historical legacy as an herbal plant employed across generations for diverse therapeutic purposes, including pain relief, inflammation mitigation, anti-diarrheal effects, cough suppression, alleviation of fatigue, and anti-anxiety and antidepressant properties. Despite its acclaimed medicinal versatility, this plant harbors psychoactive attributes, thereby posing the risk of misuse and potential dependence, along with withdrawal effects. The alkaloid composition of kratom, featuring opioid receptor agonist properties, underscores its analgesic efficacy, thereby carrying a risk of dependence and withdrawal akin to other opioid agonists. Beyond its role as an opioid agonist, the analgesic mechanism of kratom extends to additional complementary pathways, presenting a potential superiority to morphine. Notably, kratom constituents inhibit key drug-metabolizing enzymes (CYP) and the multidrug transporter, p-glycoprotein, potentially leading to heightened levels of co-administered drugs that are substrates for these proteins, presenting a potential risk of adverse outcomes, including fatality. Given the perceived imbalance of risks versus benefits, there arises a rationale for the prohibition of kratom use as an herbal remedy. However, the exploration of purified drugs derived from kratom isolates remains a promising avenue for research, with the potential to surpass standard pharmaceutical interventions.
 </dc:description>
	<dc:publisher xml:lang="en">Prodi Kimia</dc:publisher>
	<dc:date>2024-05-28</dc:date>
	<dc:type>info:eu-repo/semantics/article</dc:type>
	<dc:type>info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion</dc:type>
	<dc:type xml:lang="en">Peer-reviewed Article</dc:type>
	<dc:format>application/pdf</dc:format>
	<dc:identifier>https://journal.unnes.ac.id/journals/ijcs/article/view/2443</dc:identifier>
	<dc:source xml:lang="en">Indonesian Journal of Chemical Science; Vol. 13 No. 1 (2024)</dc:source>
	<dc:source>2502-6844</dc:source>
	<dc:source>2252-6951</dc:source>
	<dc:language>eng</dc:language>
	<dc:relation>https://journal.unnes.ac.id/journals/ijcs/article/view/2443/440</dc:relation>
	<dc:rights xml:lang="en">Copyright (c) 2024 Indonesian Journal of Chemical Science</dc:rights>
</oai_dc:dc>