Semilla de árbol de sebo chino

乌桕子

(杀虫止痒)

Semilla de árbol de sebo chino

-Semilla de tallow chino

-乌桕子 Wū Jiù Zǐ
-Seed of Chinese Tallowtree

Pinyin Annotation

Wū Jiù Zǐ

Alternative Names

Wu Cha Zi, Jiu Zi, Qiong Zi, Gong Zi

English Name

Seed of Chinese Tallowtree

Classical Source

This medicinal material is recorded in Ben Cao Gang Mu Shi Yi (Supplement to the Compendium of Materia Medica).

Source

The medicinal material is derived from the seeds of Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb., a plant belonging to the Euphorbiaceae family.

The botanical name is Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb.

For harvesting and storage, the fruits are collected when ripe. The seeds are removed and used fresh or dried in the sun for later use.

Habitat and Distribution

It grows in both wild and cultivated environments.

It is distributed in East China, Central-South China, Southwest China, and Taiwan.

Botanical Description

The Chinese tallow tree is a deciduous tree that can reach up to 15 meters in height and contains milky latex. The bark is dark gray with longitudinal fissures. Leaves are alternate; the petioles are 2.5–6 cm long and bear two glands near the apex. Leaf blades are papery, rhomboid to broadly rhomboid-ovate, approximately 3–9 cm in both length and width, with slightly protruding to gradually acuminate apices and broadly cuneate bases. There are 5–10 pairs of lateral veins.

The inflorescence is a terminal spike, 6–12 cm long. Flowers are unisexual, with male and female flowers on the same inflorescence, and lack petals and a floral disc. Initially, all flowers are male; later, one to four female flowers appear at the base of the inflorescence. Male flowers are small, with 10–15 flowers clustered in the axil of a bract. The bracts are rhomboid-ovate with acuminate tips and one gland on each side near the base. The calyx is cup-shaped with three shallow lobes; stamens are usually two, rarely three, with divided filaments.

Female flowers are pedicellate, with pedicels 2–4 mm long, and each side of the attachment bears a nearly kidney-shaped gland. There are three rhomboid-ovate bracts; the calyx is deeply three-lobed. The ovary is smooth and three-loculed; the styles are united at the base, and the stigmas are reflexed outward. The fruit is an ellipsoid to globose capsule, 1–1.5 cm in diameter, turning brown when mature. It dehisces dorsally into three valves, each containing one seed. The seeds are nearly spherical, black, and coated with a white waxy layer. The flowering period is from April to July, and the fruiting period is from October to December.

Chemical Constituents

The seed coat contains fatty oil.

Mature seeds are rich in lipids.

Meridian Tropism

Kidney meridian; Lung meridian.

Nature and Flavor

Sweet in taste, cool in nature, and toxic.

Functions and Indications

It removes toxins and reduces swelling, kills parasites, and relieves itching.

It is mainly used for eczema, tinea and other fungal skin diseases, chapped skin, edema, and constipation.

Dosage and Administration

For external use, an appropriate amount is decocted in water for washing, or mashed and applied topically.

For internal use, it is taken as a decoction, 3–6 g.

Commentaries

Ben Cao Shi Yi states that tallow oil, when taken in a dose of one he, induces diarrhea and eliminates water retention in the lower body; roasted seeds may also be prepared as a decoction.

Ben Cao Gang Mu records that tallow oil can be applied externally to treat all kinds of toxic swellings, sores, and scabies.

Tian Bao Ben Cao notes that it promotes intestinal movement and relieves constipation, and is used for difficult defecation, edema, and conditions described as cold–heat binding in the chest.

Reference

Zhong Hua Ben Cao