Herbal Textual Research on Armeniacae Semen Amarum in Famous Classical Formulas / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

By consulting ancient Chinese herbal medicines and medical books， the textual research of Armeniacae Semen Amarum has been conducted to verify the name， origin， producing area， quality evaluation， harvesting and processing changes. Through textual research， Shennong Bencaojing began to contain Xinghe. After Xinxiu Bencao， Xingheren were gradually taken as the mainstream name， Xingren was first used as the correct name since Leigong Paozhilun， and gradually became the mainstream rectifying in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Before the Qing dynasty， there was no distinction between Armeniacae Semen Amarum and Armeniacae Semen Dulcis in the materia medica works， while the differences between them were clearly defined in some works of the Qing dynasty， but did not record them separately. In order to make them more accurate in clinical application， Armeniacae Semen Amarum was recorded as the correct name in the 1953 edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia， and Armeniacae Semen Dulcis was included in the provincial standards. The original plants of Armeniacae Semen Amarum from Prunus armeniaca （Armeniaca vulgaris in Flora of China） and its cultivated varieties with bitter seeds were taken as the mainstream， which are reflected in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Its yellow ripe fruit was generally harvested in May， the seed kernel was taken out for drying or baking， finally the seed coat was removed to use. It is recorded that the production area of Armeniacae Semen Amarum is Taihang Mountain area of Shanxi province in ancient times. At present， its producing area is mainly concentrated in Shanxi， Shandong， Hebei and other places in north China. Historical literature pointed out that Armeniacae Semen Amarum had small toxicity， and heat treatment could reduce toxicity and increase efficiency， its main processing method was blanching and stir-frying. In addition， it is generally believed that raw products with seed coat can enhance its sweating effect since the Ming and Qing dynasties. Until now， three processed products are stipulated in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia， namely raw products， boiled and fried products. Based on textual research， it is recommended that A. vulgaris should be used as the original plant of Armeniacae Semen Amarum in famous classical formulas， and the use of processed products should follow the processing requirements marked in the formulas.