Jing Jie

Jing Jie - Schizonepeta tenuifolia
		Professional Data

Pin Yin
Jing Jie

Latin
Herba Schizonepetae tenuifolia

Introduction

Fineleaf Schizonepeta Herb is the dried aerial part of Schizonepeta tenuifolia Briq. (Fam Labiatae). The drug is collected in summer and autumn when the tops of the flowering stems are in bloom but green in color, removed from foreign matter and dried in the sun.
Schizonepeta was listed in Shen Nung Pen Tsao Ching (Shen Nung's Herbal) as "chia su" Practitioners of oriental medicine regard it as effective in removing the toxins in sores and tumors, as well as in promoting perspiration and fever.

Western medical

Traditionally indicated in the treatment of the common cold with associated chills and fever. It has a diaphoretic effect. Encourages rashes to surface and alleviates itching. Its applications include various tumors, skin diseases, toxins in the womb common colds, headaches sores and swellings of the throat. Schizonepeta also has antipyretic, analgesic and hemostatic effects.

Eastern medical

Pattern: Releases exterior, expels wind. Exterior wind heat/cold patterns.
Properties: Acrid, aromatic, slightly warm.
Channels Entered: Lung and Liver.

Chemical constituents

The aerial part contains 1.8% of volatile oil, the fruit?spike 4.11%. The major components of the volatile oil are d?menthone and dlmenthone. The volatile oil also contains small amounts of dlimonene.

Pharmacological actions

Antipyretic Effect

Intragastric administration of the decoction or ethanol extract of S. multifida 2 g/kg to rabbits with fever induced by mixed typhoid vaccine produced only a very weak antipyretic effect.

Antimicrobial Effect

In vitro, the decoction showed a strong activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Corynebacterium diphtheriae and was active to some extent against Bacillus anthracis, beta streptococcus, Salmonella typhi, Shigella dysenteriae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Mycobacterium tuberculosis var. hominis. Treatment of chicken embryos with O.1 ml of the 50% decoction produced no inhibitory effect on influenza virus type A PR8 strain.

Hemostatic Effect

The hemostatic effects of the crude and charred (stir?fried over low heat) were compared by determining the bleeding time in mice by means of Akopov's method, and the coagulation time in rabbits by means of the capillary method. The drugs were reconstituted with normal saline and administered intragastrically at 2 g/kg to rabbits and at 5 g/kg to mice; control animals were given the vehicle. The results of the experiment showed that the crude herb did not significantly shorten the bleeding time, whereas the charred herb shortened it by 72.6%; the former shortened the coagulation time by 30%, the latter by 77.7%. Thus, only the stirfried herb has hemostatic action.

Miscellaneous Actions

In vitro, jing jie exhibited a weak inhibitory action on cancer cells.

Clinical Studies

Common Cold

"Jing Fang Baidu Powder" (Herba Schizonepetae, Radix Ledebouriellae, Rhizoma et Radix Notopterygii, Radix Angelicae Pubescentis, Radix Bupleuri, Radix Peucedani, Rhizoma Chuanxiong, Radix Platycodi, Fructus Aurantii, Herba Menthae, Radix Glycyrrhizae, Rhizoma Zingtheris Recens), "Yin Qiao San" (Lonicera-Forsythia Powder), the "Jing Fang Heji" (Schizonepeta-Ledebouriella Mixture), or the "Biaolishuangjie Tang" (Diaphoretic-Purgative Decoction) was used in the treatment of influenza. The symptoms abated in 1-2 days in most cases and a cure was achieved in 4-6 days.

Skin Diseases

The fine powder of the fruit-spike was applied evenly to skin lesions and rubbed until the skin became hot. Mild urticaria was cured after 1-2 applications and severe cases after 2-4 applications. Moreover, compound formulae such as "Jing Fang Baidu Decoction", and "Wuwei Xiaodu Yin" (Five-Herb Detoxicant Decoction), modified to suit the patients' needs, were also efficacious in the treatment of allergic dermatitis, pruritus, urticaria, exanthema desquamativum, eczema, and psoriasis.

References

Except those noted, all references come from Weng Weiliang, et al., Clinical Chinese materia medica, Henan Science & Technology Press, 1998