Textual Research of Persicae Semen / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

Textual research on Chinese herbs is the preliminary work for the preparation of famous classical prescriptions. Through literature review，it was found that the researches of Persicae Semen focused on chemical compositions，pharmacological mechanism and medical record analysis in the recent years，and few researches based on the ancient literature were about the origin，concocting methods，flavor，meridian tropism，effects and indications. Textual research shows that the most commonly used names are Taoren and Taoheren，with a wide range of producing areas. The plant origin of Persicae Semen has not changed much since ancient times. Before the Qing dynasty，the plant origin of Persicae Semen was from the seeds of a kind of fruit named Shantao or Maotao，and in modern times，the seeds of Amygdalus persica or A. davidiana have become the major source. While different books have different views on Latin names for the origin of the Persicae Semen. We suggest that the Latin names of A. persica and A. davidiana should be more reasonable for Tao and Shantao respectively .In the concocting methods of Persicae Semen for activating vital energy and blood circulation，raw Persicae Semen should be used with peel and tip，while for moisturizing dryness，it should be fried into yellow without peel. Therefore，in the concocting methods of Persicae Semen for Taohe Chengqitang and Taohong Siwutang，the raw materials should be fried into yellow without peel or tip，while for Shentong Zhuyutang，raw Persicae Semen materials should be used with peel and tip. The indications of Persicae Semen include amenorrhea，lump，parasite，obstruction of chest，cough and asthma，constipation，etc.，and the people with blood deficiency，blood dryness and the pregnant women should use it with caution or should not use it. The modern clinical application of Persicae Semen is only a partial inheritance of ancient literature，which means that the Persicae Semen still has many effects to be verified and studied，and it is worthwhile for further exploration in order to expand its clinical application. The records of ancient literature on flavor，meridian tropism，and quality evaluation of Persicae Semen were consistent with those in Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Because of the similar appearance，it is especially difficult to distinguish Persicae Semen and Armeniacae Semenis Amarum after crushing ，requiring much time and money for identification. It is recommended that medical institutions should purchase Persicae Semen without crushing as far as possible，then decide the best concocting methods according to the clinical requirement.