ABSTRACT
By reviewing ancient materia medica， medical books， prescription books and modern literature， this paper conducted a systematic research on name， origin， medicinal parts， producing area， quality， harvesting and processing methods， functions and toxicity of Polygoni Multiflori Radix（PMR） and Polygoni Multiflori Caulis（PMC） in famous classical formulas. It was found that the name of Heshouwu was first found in the Biography of Heshouwu and originated from its discoverer， and then still in use today. Since the Song dynasty， Heshouwu has been included in the materia medica with Fallopia multiflora as the mainstream origin. Since the Ming dynasty， in addition to F. multiflora， Cynanchum bungei， C. wilfordii， C. auriculatum have been used as the origin of Heshouwu. Heshouwu is widely distributed， the production areas recorded in ancient times are mainly Luchuan， Guangxi and Ganzhou， Jiangxi， and in modern times， Deqing， Guangdong and other places are respected as the geo-authentic habitats. Its origin processing is mostly dug out， washed， sliced and dried in the sun. Modern literature concludes that the quality of PMR is better in terms of weight， solid quality and powder， while PMC is better in terms of uniformity and purplish-red skin. In the Qing dynasty and before that， it was recorded in the materia medica that PMR was harvested mainly in late spring， mid-summer and early autumn， in modern times， it was harvested mainly in spring and autumn， while PMC was harvested in autumn. In Song dynasty， the processing method of PMR was mainly soaked with rice-washed water， the Ming dynasty for black bean steaming method， the Qing dynasty for steaming followed by black bean juice maceration， while in modern times， it is mostly sliced and steamed with black bean juice and yellow rice wine until the juice is absorbed. PMC is prepared by removing impurities， washing or moistening， and cutting into sections to dry. During the five dynasties， PMR was used to treat infertility as well as gastrointestinal diseases and blood in the stool caused by wind chill， and during the Song dynasty， it was mostly used raw products for the treatment of scrofula and carbuncles， and in the Yuan and Ming dynasties， raw and processed products were used， and Polygoni Multiflori Radix Praeparata was used to treat hemorrhoids， waist and knee soreness. PMC is mainly used for treating insomnia， fatigue and sweating， wind sores and scabies， etc. In the Song dynasty， the ancients considered that PMR was non-toxic， but its toxicity was gradually discovered after the Ming dynasty， and the toxicity mechanism has not been clearly analyzed yet. Based on the results of the textual research， it is recommended that F. multiflora be used as the base for development of famous classical formulas containing PMR， and from the safety perspective， it is recommended to use raw products with caution， oral administration must be used processed products. PMC is recommended to use raw products.