Herbal Textual Research on Polygonati Odorati Rhizoma in Famous Classical Formulas / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

This article has systematically reviewed the name， origin， scientific name， producing area， quality evaluation， harvesting and processing methods of Polygonati Odorati Rhizoma（POR） by consulting the materia medica， medical books， prescription books and modern literature， in order to provide a reference for the development of famous classical formulas containing POR. Yuzhu was first recorded in the Shennong Bencaojing under the name of Nyuwei. After that， Weirui was used as the rectification name in the subsequent dynasties， and in recent times， the name of Yuzhu is mostly used in materia medica and prescription books. In ancient times， there were different names for Yuzhu， such as Nyuwei， Weiwei and Weirui. The names of the three are similar and there was a mixed use of the same name and foreign matter in history. In the Tang dynasty， SU Jing listed Nyuwei with the effect of curing dysentery in the intermediate of herbal part of Xinxiu Bencao according to its different efficacy. However， based on Shennong Bencaojing， Mingyi Bielu and the different energy efficiency of medical prescriptions， SU Song of the Northern Song dynasty believed that the three were medicinal materials of different origins. In short， the names of the three have been unclear in history for a long time. According to the development of the time line， this paper examines the names and realities of the three， and concludes that the two（Weiwei and Weirui） are the same medicinal material， that is， Polygonatum odoratum of Liliaceae， and the Nyuwei is Clematis apiifolia of Ranunculaceae， and the source relationship of the three is clarified. The mainstream source of Yuzhu used in the past dynasties was the rhizome of P. odoratum， which was widely distributed in the wild and has a large amount of resources. The origins of Yuzhu recorded in ancient times were mainly Taishan in Shandong， Chuzhou and Shuzhou in Anhui， and Hanzhong in Shaanxi， in modern times， it was produced in northern Hebei and Shaoyang in Hunan with high quality， and in the modern times， Jiangbei Yuzhu from Haimen in Jiangsu， Anyuzhu from Nanling， Anqing and Tongling in Anhui， Guanyuzhu from Fengrun， Yutian， Zunhua， Huailai in Hebei and Suizhong， Jinxi， Jianchang， Lingyuan， Liaoyang， Haicheng， Gaiping in Liaoning， Xiangyuzhu from Shaoyang in Hunan are the authentic medicinal material. In ancient times， the quality of Yuzhu was good if it was fat and white， while in modern times， it is better with thick roots， bright yellow color， soft texture， no stiff skin and no oiliness. In ancient times， the origin processing of POR was mostly dried in the shade， but in modern times， it is mostly sun-dried or dried after steaming and rubbing. The ancient processing was mostly scraped off the skin and soaked in honey water and then steamed through， while the modern one is mostly washed and cut into thick slices for raw use. Based on the conclusion of the herbal textual research， it is suggested that the rhizome of P. odoratum of Liliaceae be used as the source for the development of famous classical formulas， and the corresponding specifications be selected according to the processing requirements of the prescription. In view of the Yiweitang in Wenbing Tiaobian， which uses the method of frying fragrance to achieve the effect of fragrant refreshing the spleen， it can be processed by referring to the stir-frying method in the current version of Chinese Pharmacopoeia.