Download PDF
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Homeopathy
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1802598
Original Research Article

Emergence of Novel Patterns in Dried Droplets of Combinations of Low Potencies of Plant Extracts and Salts Compared to Single Substances: A Pilot Study

Johannes Fahrentrapp 
1   Society for Cancer Research, Arlesheim, Switzerland
,
Stephan Baumgartner
1   Society for Cancer Research, Arlesheim, Switzerland
2   Institute for Integrative Medicine, University of Witten/Herdecke, Herdecke, Germany
,
Sandra Würtenberger
3   Scientific and Regulatory Affairs, Hevert-Arzneimittel GmbH & Co. KG, Nussbaum, Germany
,
Paul Doesburg
1   Society for Cancer Research, Arlesheim, Switzerland
,
Maria Olga Kokornaczyk
1   Society for Cancer Research, Arlesheim, Switzerland
› Author Affiliations
Funding This study was funded by Förderverein komplementärmedizinische Forschung (FkF), Switzerland, and by Hevert-Arzneimittel GmbH & Co. KG, Germany. S.W. was an employee of Hevert-Arzneimittel GmbH & Co. KG during the planning phase and the first part of the experimental implementation of the study.
› Further Information
Also available at
  Permissions and Reprints

Abstract

Background Patterns in dried droplets have previously facilitated the characterization of homeopathic preparations of different substances at low potency levels. The objective of the present study was to examine combinations of plant extracts and salts in 2x and 3x potency (nominal dilution of 10−2 and 10−3) and to determine which influence the plant and salt components have on the patterns of these mixtures.

Methods We used the droplet evaporation method (DEM) to test seven plant extracts, five salt solutions and their 1:1 combinations, either in 2x or 3x potency levels. Drops of each sample were evaporated and the resulting patterns were photographed with a dark-field microscope at 25-fold and 100-fold magnification. The images were analyzed mainly visually for their characteristics; a supporting quantitative analysis was performed by means of the computer program ImageJ for several textural features.

Results Patterns of 2x potencies showed more and richer structures than those of 3x potencies. At both tested potency levels, patterns of plant–salt potency combinations exhibited structures that were different from those of single potencies.

Conclusion Combining homeopathic potencies led to the emergence of novel patterns differing from those formed by the single components. There were noticeable differences in the extent to which specific salts appeared to retain their characteristic patterns in relation to the plant potency with which they were combined. This pilot study has identified promising potential for the further investigation of homeopathic preparations in low dilution ranges by means of DEM, with the aim to understand better the diverse pattern-forming processes that take place in combined compared with single potency droplets. Such endeavor would help to address the current lack of fundamental research on potency combinations.

Keywords

droplet evaporation method - pattern formation - combination remedies - basic research - low dilution range

Authors' Contributions

S.W., M.O.K. and S.B. designed the study. J.F. conducted the experiments and analysis. J.F., S.W., S.B., P.D. and M.O.K. wrote the manuscript, whose final version all authors reviewed and approved.


Supplementary Material



Publication History

Received: 14 October 2024

Accepted: 05 December 2024

Article published online:
17 April 2025

© 2025. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Oswald-Hesse-Straße 50, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany

 

  • References

  • 1 Beck-Dreschel A. Komplexmittel-Homöopathie, gemeinsamer Ursprung, ähnliche Konzepte, firmenspezifische Schwerpunkte. Dtsch Apoth Ztg 2015; 12: 1095
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 2 Kokornaczyk MO, Würtenberger S, Baumgartner S. Self-assembled patterns formed in evaporating droplets to analyze bi-component homeopathic preparations in the low dilution range. Homeopathy 2023; 112: 152-159
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 3 Bürgi E. Die wissenschaftlichen Grundlagen der Kombinationstherapie. Abhandlungen Homöopathische Fragen 1928; 4: 25-37
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 4 Pierrehumbert RT. Fluid mechanics: the quintessential complex system. J Fluid Mech 2022; 938: F1
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 5 Yamamoto T. Brownian dynamics simulation for spheroid particle suspensions in polymer solution. In: Chinesta F, Ausias G. eds. Rheology of Non-Spherical Particle Suspensions. Elsevier; 2015: 281-312
    Search in Google Scholar
  • 6 Sharma S, Marcucci G, Mahmud A. A complexity perspective on fluid mechanics. arXiv:2212.00153 [physics.flu-dyn]
    PubMed
  • 7 Balan C, Broboana D, Gheorghiu E, Vekas L. Rheological characterization of complex fluids in electro-magnetic fields. J Non-Newt Fluid Mech 2008; 154: 22-30
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 8 Wang Z, Orejon D, Takata Y, Sefiane K. Wetting and evaporation of multicomponent droplets. Phys Rep 2022; 960: 1-37
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 9 Kokornaczyk MO, Würtenberger S, Baumgartner S. Impact of succussion on pharmaceutical preparations analyzed by means of patterns from evaporated droplets. Sci Rep 2020; 10: 570
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 10 Kokornaczyk MO, Würtenberger S, Baumgartner S. Phenomenological characterization of low-potency homeopathic preparations by means of pattern formation in evaporating droplets. Homeopathy 2019; 108: 108-120
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 11 Kokornaczyk MO, Acuña C, Mier Y Terán A, Castelán M, Baumgartner S. Vortex-like vs. turbulent mixing of a Viscum album preparation affects crystalline structures formed in dried droplets. Sci Rep 2024; 14: 12965
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 12 Doesburg P, Andersen JO, Scherr C, Kokornaczyk MO, Baumgartner S. Multidimensional outcome parameters in a cress seedling–CuCl2 crystallization assay to corroborate specific effects of Stannum metallicum 30x compared to Lactose 30x. Homeopathy 2024; (e-pub ahead of print).
    Thieme ConnectPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 13 Kokornaczyk MO, Bodrova NB, Baumgartner S. Diagnostic tests based on pattern formation in drying body fluids - a mapping review. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2021; 208: 112092
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 14 Kokornaczyk MO, Scherr C, Bodrova NB, Baumgartner S. Phase-transition-induced pattern formation applied to basic research on homeopathy: a systematic review. Homeopathy 2018; 107: 181-188
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 15 Abràmoff MD, Magalhães PJ, Ram SJ. Image processing with ImageJ. Biophoton Int 2004; 11: 36-42
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 16 Schneider CA, Rasband WS, Eliceiri KW. NIH Image to ImageJ: 25 years of image analysis. Nat Methods 2012; 9: 671-675
    CrossrefPubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 17 R Foundation for Statistical Computing. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing; 2023. https://www.R-project.org/foundation/
    PubMed
  • 18 Busscher N, Doesburg P, Mergardt G, Sokol A, Kahl J, Ploeger A. Influence of dewetting on the crystallization behavior of CuCl2 in the presence of BSA during evaporation in a Petri dish. Heliyon 2019; 5: e01102
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 19 Dewangan JK, Basu N, Chowdhury M. Cationic surfactant-directed structural control of NaCl crystals from evaporating sessile droplets. Soft Matter 2021; 18: 62-79
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 20 Harrington GF, Campbell JM, Christenson HK. Crystal patterns created by rupture of a thin film. Cryst Growth Des 2013; 13: 5062-5067
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 21 Deegan RD, Bakajin O, Dupont TF, Huber G, Nagel SR, Witten TA. Capillary flow as the cause of ring stains from dried liquid drops. Nature 1997; 389: 827-829
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 22 Orkoula MG, Koutsoukos PG, Robin M, Vizika O, Cuiec L. Wettability of CaCO3 surfaces. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp 1999; 157: 333-340
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 23 Salas C, Genzer J, Lucia LA, Hubbe MA, Rojas OJ. Water-wettable polypropylene fibers by facile surface treatment based on soy proteins. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2013; 5: 6541-6548
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar
  • 24 Busscher N, Doesburg P, Mergardt G, Sokol A, Kahl J, Ploeger A. Crystallization patterns of an aqueous dihydrate cupric chloride solution in the presence of different amounts of bovine serum albumin. J Cryst Growth 2020; 529: 125272
    PubMedSearch in Google Scholar