"Medicinal Part-Habitat-Nature， Taste， and Effect" Correlations of Pteridophyte-derived Chinese Medicinal Materials

Abstract:

Objective To explore the correlations between botanical characteristics， biological characteristics， growth environment， and medicinal properties of common pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal materials， thus providing evidence for the theory of quality evaluation through morphological identification and giving insights into the extensive and reasonable application of pteridophytes in traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）.Method The medicine parts， habitats， natures， tastes， and effects of the commonly used pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal materials were summarized. The commonly used pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal materials were retrieved from the Pharmacopoeia of China， Dictionary of Chinese Materia Medica， and related literature. Excel 2016， ChiPlot， Cytoscape 3.7.1， SPSS 21.0， and weiciyun software were used for statistical analysis.Result The frequency of the habitats followed the trend of streamside wetland>tree trunk and rock crevices>sunslope>water surface. The frequency of medicinal parts presented the trend of whole plant>rhizome>leaf>dried aboveground part>spore. The frequency of natures was in the order of cool>cold>plain>warm>hot， and that of tastes was in an order of bitter>pungent>sweet>bland>salty. The frequency of meridian tropism followed the trend of liver meridian>stomach meridian>lung meridian>kidney meridian>bladder meridian>heart meridian>large intestine meridian>spleen meridian>small intestine meridian. The effects of the pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal materials followed a frequency trend of clearing heat and detoxifying>promoting urination and relieving stranguria>cooling blood and stopping bleeding>activating blood and resolving stasis>dispelling wind and eliminating dampness.Conclusion The pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal materials mainly have a cool nature， a bitter taste， and tropism to the liver meridian. Whole plants and roots are mainly used for medicinal purposes， and most of these plants grow in the wetlands near rivers， under trees， and in tree trunk and rock crevices. The main effects of these medicinal materials are clearing heat and detoxifying， dispelling wind and removing dampness， cooling blood and stopping bleeding， activating blood and resolving stasis， and soothing meridians and dredging collaterals. There are certain correlations between the structures， habitats， medicinal parts， and effects of pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal materials， which provide reference for the development and utilization of pteridophyte-derived Chinese medicinal material resources.