1. Alias
August Zha, August Fried, August Melon, Yan Fuzi, August Zha, Pressure Jingzi, Lala Fruit.
2. Plant morphology
Deciduous woody vine with hairless stems and branches. Palm shaped compound leaves, usually clustered at the ends of branches with 3-5 leaves, or alternate, with 5 small leaves, inverted or long inverted, blunt rounded, slightly concave or pointed at the top, wide wedge-shaped or circular at the base, entire margin. Racemes axillary; Flower unisexual; Male flowers grow in the upper part, with 6 stamens; The female flower is purple red in color, with 6 degenerated stamens and separated carpels, ranging from 3 to 12. The fruit is fleshy, long oval shaped, and cracks along the abdominal sutures after maturity; The seeds are mostly oval in shape and black in color. The flowering period is from April to May, and the fruit maturity period is in August.
3. Origin distribution
Wild in sparse forests on mountain slopes or valleys. Distributed in Hunan, Guangdong, Sichuan and other places.
4. Harvesting and processing
When the fruits turn yellow in summer and autumn, they should be picked, either whole or split in half, and dried in the sun.
5. Characteristics of medicinal herbs
Oval shaped, slightly curved, 3-8 cm long, 2.5-3.5 cm in diameter. Blunt at the top, with fruit stalk marks at the base. The surface is light yellow brown or earth brown, with wrinkles. Mature individuals have thicker and sparser wrinkles, while immature individuals have finer wrinkles. The skin is thick, rough, and granular. Peel open and there are many seeds inside, densely packed in the flocculent fruit pulp. The seeds are round, long, or oval, slightly flattened, reddish brown or black brown, shiny, and have fine wrinkles. The air is slightly fragrant, with a light and astringent taste.
6. Sexual Taste Returning to the Classics
Cold in nature and bitter in taste. Return to the liver meridian, gallbladder meridian, stomach meridian, and bladder meridian.
7. Effect and Function
Soothing the liver and regulating qi, promoting blood circulation and relieving pain, relieving irritability and diuresis. Blood activating pain relievers under the subcategory of blood activating and stasis removing drugs
8. Clinical application
Dosage: 5-30 grams, decoct and take; High doses can be used with 30-60 grams; Or soak in wine. Used to treat liver and stomach qi pain, stomach heat without appetite, back pain, rib pain, hernia, dysmenorrhea, uterine prolapse, irritability, and ureteral stones. The clinical use of urinary beads has a good therapeutic effect on the treatment of ureteral stones.
9. Pharmacological research
The decoction has different inhibitory effects on Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Shigella flexneri, and Escherichia coli; It has anti-cancer effect and can be used to treat breast cancer and digestive system cancer clinically.
10. Chemical composition
Contains carbohydrates, oleanolic acid, and saponins such as STC from Eucommia ulmoides.
11. Usage taboos
Do not use for those with spleen deficiency causing diarrhea, and pregnant women should take it with caution.
12. Compatibility prescription
① Treatment of abdominal pain and hernia caused by coldness: 30g of precognitive seeds and 12g of fennel, decoct in water and take. (Sichuan Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1979)
② Treatment of ureteral stones: Mix 60 grams of pre known seeds with Coix seed, decoct and take orally. (Chinese Medicine Journal)
③ Treatment for lymphatic tuberculosis: 120 grams each of precognitive seeds, golden cherry seeds, and sea golden sand roots, and 240 grams of sunflower seeds. Boil the soup and take it for 3 days. (Handbook of Chinese Herbal Medicine, Suzhou Medical College)
④ Treatment for liver cancer: 30g of precognitive seeds, swiftlets, and horsewhip grass each. Boil it in water. (Handbook of Commonly Used Anti Cancer Drugs)
⊙ The content of the article is for clinical reference only. Non TCM professionals are not allowed to test drugs.