Production RegionsPrimarily produced in the Chinese provinces of Jiangsu, Hebei, Liaoning, Shandong.
Macroscopic FeaturesFlat round lumps or flat slices. Externally brown or reddish-brown. Round lumps are hard and not easily broken; fractured surface is brown and horn-like with slight luster. Flat slices are brittle and easily broken; fractured surface is reddish-brown and translucent. Slightly fishy odor; taste initially sweet then produces an enduring numbing spicy sensation. Smelling the powder induces sneezing.
Quality RequirementsSuperior medicinal material is reddish-brown, with a horn-like fractured surface, and is translucent and lustrous.
PropertiesAcrid; warm; toxic.
FunctionsResolves toxin, relieves pain, opens orifices, arouse the spirit. Apply to ulcer, furuncle and sore, throat swelling pain, heatstroke and dizziness, abdominal pain and vomiting and diarrhea.
Processed FormChan su fen: Pound chan su into pieces, soak with Chinese wine, mix well to thick paste and dry, then smash into powders. Every 10kg of chan su need 20kg Chinese wine. After processed, rectify the stink odor, lower the toxin, convenient to use.
OriginThe dried secretions of Bufo bufo gargarizans Cantor or Bufo melanostictus Schneider (Bufonidae). Harvest mostly in summer and autumn, clean and squeeze out the white fluid of the glands behind the ears and on the skin, then process and dry.
