Hippophae rhamnoides is a native plant throughout Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain and Asia to Japan and the Himalayas. It is grown as an agricultural plant in Germany, France, India and China. China is the largest agricultural producer. The origin of the plant is Nepal and it migrated to other parts of Eurasia after the last ice age.
Various pharmacological activities such as cytoprotective, anti-stress, immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, radioprotective, anti-atherogenic, anti-tumor, anti-microbial and tissue regeneration have been reported.
Six compounds, kaempferol-3-O-β-d-(6′′-O-coumaryl) glycoside, 1-feruloyl-β-d-glucopyranoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside, quercetin 3-O-β-d-glucopyranoside, quercetin 3-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-7-O-α-l-rhamnopyranoside, and isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside, were isolated from sea buckthorn leaf extracts.