Herbal textual research on Polygalae Radix / 中草药

ABSTRACT

Quality control is the premise for traditional Chinese medicine efficacy and safety, but there are some problems in quality control of Polygalae Radix. The records of the modern pharmacopoeias for its medicinal species are not consistent with them in the ancient herbal books. Habitats of Polygala tenuifolia are endlessly changed in the ancient herbal books, which leads to an unclear genuine producing area. According to the traditional medicine theories, the reason why people feel dysphoria after taking P. tenuifolia is xylem and P. tenuifolia is bad for the throat without processing. However, the chemical composition that causes these side effects is not very clear. This paper reviewed the medicinal species, genuine producing area and the reasons for side effects of P. tenuifolia by consulting ancient herbal books, monographs, and literature. In the past, there are many other polygala plants used widely in all over the country. Shanxi province has become the genuine habitat for P. tenuifolia. The reason why people feel dysphoria after taking P. tenuifolia is saponins. All saponins, methylbenzene, and alkaloids cause these side effects for throat, but processing can reduce it. This review on processing aspect can provide evidence for reducing toxicity of P. tenuifolia.