Salvia miltiorrhiza, also known as Chinese sage or red sage, is a perennial plant native to China. The dried root has been widely used as a traditional medicine in Korea, Japan, and China to treat various diseases, including hypertension, stroke, and hyperlipidemia, due to its beneficial effects of promoting blood flow and resolution of blood stasis. Many studies have been performed to reveal the pharmaceutical activities and constituents of S. miltiorrhiza for several decades.

Several active constituents of S. miltiorrhiza include salvianolic, lithospheric, rosmarinic acid, and tanshinones. Studies on tanshiones showed many pharmaceutical properties, including anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-tumor, anti-platelet aggregation, hepatoprotective, neuroprotective, immunomodulatory, and anti-oxidant activities. More recently, it was reported that the constituents of S. miltiorrhiza have anti-proliferative activity through MAPK and AMPK pathways in 3T3-L1 adipocytes.