Chinese Goldthread Rhizome

Primarily produced in the Chinese provinces of Chongqing, Hubei, Shaanxi, Gansu.

Wei lian: Gather in a cluster, often curved, like a chicken claw, 3~6cm long, 0.3~0.8cm diameter. Externally rough, with irregular nodular projections, with rootlets and remnants of rootlets. Internode has smooth stem-like surface. Upper portion often remains brown scales; apex often has remnants of stem or leaf stem. Externally grayish-yellow or yellowish-brown. Hard texture, fractured surface is not smooth, cortex is orange-red or dark brown, xylem is fresh yellow or orange-yellow, radial arranged, sometimes pith is hollow. faint odor, very bitter taste. Ya lian: singular, slightly cylindrical, ‘silkworm-like’ shaped, slightly curved, 4~8cm long, 0.5~1cm diameter. ‘Cross the bridge’ feature is relatively long. Apex has a few remnants of stem. Superior medicinal material is dry, thick and strong, without rootlets and silkworm-like. Yun lian: curled to hook-like, ‘scorpion tail-like,’ often singular, relatively thin and small. Superior medicinal material is dry, thin, numerous nodes, few rootlets, yellow color.

Superior medicinal material has thick and strong pieces, firm texture, no remnants of stem and rootlets.

Bitter; cold.

Clears heat, dries dampness, drains fire, resolves toxin. Damp-heat distention and fullness, vomiting and acid regurgitation, diarrhea, jaundice, dizziness with high fever, excess of heart fire, insomnia due to vexation, haematemesis and epistaxis due to blood heat, red eye, toothache, diabetes, abscess, sore and boil swelling, externally used to eczema, ear pus.

Wine huang lian: Cleaned huang lian stir with yellow rice wine and covered to moisten, fry with slow fire in pot, take out and cool. Every 100kg huang lian need 12.5kg yellow rice wine. Upbears medicinal material, slow the cold nature. Advanced in clearing upper-jiao heat. Apply to red eye, mouth sore. Jiang huang lian: cleaned huang lian stir with ginger juicy, fry with slow fire in pot, take out, cool. Every 100kg huang lian need 12.5kg sheng jiang. Slows the bitter and cold nature, promotes vomiting effect. Advanced in clearing and harmonizing stomach and vomiting. Apply to cold an heat stasis, damp-heat retention in the middle, distention and fullness, vomiting. Wu yu lian: boil wu zhu yu with appropriate water and stir with cleaned huang lian, absorb totally, fry to dry, take out and cool. Every 100kg huang lian need 10kg wu zhu yu. Affect the cold nature but not stasis, clears damp-heat of qi system. Advanced in soothing liver and harmonizing stoch, stopping vomiting. Apply to disharmonized liver and stomach, vomiting and acid regurgitation.

'Chicken claw huang lian’: huang lian has numerous branches that gather together, giving an appearance similar to chicken’s feet. It is also called by the shorter name ’ji hua lian’. ‘Cross the bridge’: this refers to a thin long portion of the huang lian rhizome that is found between the nodes, like a bridge crossing the two sides. It is also called ‘guo jiang zhi’ or ‘ma feng yao’.