Mitraphylline is an oxindole alkaloid, made mostly of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen. It’s found in kratom at trace amounts (less than 1% of the total alkaloid makeup of kratom leaf). Cat’s Claw contains much more of the alkaloid: 1 gram of dried cat’s claw bark might contain 0.5 to 3 milligrams of mitraphylline.
Research (mostly lab and animal studies) suggests that mitraphylline could help reduce inflammation and calm an overactive immune system, have antioxidant effects (protecting cells from damage), and relax blood vessels, helping lower blood pressure slightly. shows anti-cancer or immune-modulating properties in cell studies.
Since the alkaloid occurs in such trace amounts, kratom is not an effective delivery system for mitraphylline, and those consuming kratom should not expect any effects, benefits, or detriments from mitraphylline specifically. In other words, just because a trace alkaloid in kratom shows preliminary promise as an anti-cancer agent in animal studies, that does not mean kratom cures, treats, or reduces the risk of cancer.
However, since mitraphylline shows so much beneficial promise, yet occurs in such trace amounts in plants and would be cost prohibitive to extract, scientists are studying the compound to learn about how it could possibly be synthesized in a lab.
Scientists from the University of British Columbia Okanagan have discovered how plants produce mitraphylline.
Mitraphylline belongs to a small and complex group of molecules known as spirooxindole alkaloids, recognizable by their unique twisted ring structure. Until now, researchers did not know how plants created this distinctive shape. The team identified two key enzymes responsible for building mitraphylline. The first enzyme assembles the molecule’s basic framework, preparing it for a structural twist, while the second enzyme performs the final rearrangement that gives the compound its spiro, or spiral-like, 3D form. This discovery reveals, for the first time, the precise biochemical steps that plants use to synthesize mitraphylline, providing a foundation for scientists to reproduce it more efficiently in the lab through bioengineering rather than relying on scarce natural sources.
Now that the enzymes and process are known, scientists have a road-map to sustainably produce mitraphylline (and perhaps similar compounds) via bioengineering or synthetic biology rather than needing to harvest large amounts of plant material.
From a medicinal standpoint, this is promising because mitraphylline and other spirooxindole alkaloids have shown anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory potential in preliminary studies. Should further research prove mitraphylline an effective medicine on humans, knowing how it’s made opens doors to drug development, optimization, and possibly scaling manufacturing.
Many of today’s most common drugs, such as aspirin, morphine, and quinine, were originally derived from plants. Plants create complex chemical molecules—called secondary metabolites or alkaloids—that often have powerful effects on the human body. Modern researchers study these compounds to understand how they work and to see if they can be used, modified, or synthesized to treat diseases more effectively. Advances in genetics and bioengineering now allow scientists to map the enzymes and pathways plants use to make these molecules, making it possible to reproduce valuable compounds sustainably without overharvesting wild species.