Pterocephalus, Spang rtsi do bo སྤངརྩི་དོ་བོ་

Spang rtsi do bo (Tibet)
Yi Shao Cao 翼首草 (TCM)
Picture Pterocephalus hookeri
Curtis’s Botanical Magazine, 1918

Botanical name:


Pterocephalus hookeri (syn. Scabiosa hookeri)

According to Tibetan literature, there are several types:
  1. Pterocephlaus hookeri (Spang rtsi ‘byar bag can) (primary medicine)
  2. Saussurea supberba (Lug rtsi do bo)
  3. Primula capitata
Other species of Saussurea listed by various sources include S. alata, S. amara, S. nepalensis, and S. parviflora.

Parts used:


Herb in flower; Root

Temperature & Taste:


Cool, dry. Bitter. Slightly toxic

Uses:


1. Clears Wind-Heat, Resists Poison: (Tibet)
-Common Cold; Acute Fever; especially severe contagious Common Cold with Fever (Influenza?)
-Measles
-Diphtheria (root)
-Fever due to Poisoning

2. Clears Heat and Toxin: (Tibet)
-Lung heat Cough with pus, Lung Abscess
-Infectious Fever, Chronic Fever
-Enteritis, Diarrhea, Dysentery (herb, root)
-Gout, Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis (with heat and swelling)
-regarded as an Antidote to various types of Poison and Venom

3. Clears Heart Fire, Cools the Blood: (TCM)
-Heart diseases from Heart Fire
–Hemorrhage, vomiting blood, blood in the urine, blood in the stool.
-Blood disorders from excess Heat; Acne, Eczema


Dose:


Decoction: 3–9 grams
Powder: 500mg–2 grams

Substitute:


Dandelion has been listed as a suitable substitute.

Main Combinations:


1. Influenza, Dysentery, Pterocephalus with Hypecoum, Aconitum naviculare, Tabasheer, Safflower, Sandalwood, Beznoin, Shilajit, Bezoar (as in Pterocephalus 12)
2. Liver Heat, Pterocephalus with Gentian and Chrysanthemum spp. (Tibet)
3. Liver Wind-Heat with red eyes, Liver distention, Hypertension, upper back pain etc., Pterocephalus with Picrorrhiza, Safflower, Emblic Myrobalan, Swertia
4. Dysentery, Pterocephalus with Barberry flower (Tibet)
5. Abdominal distention, epigastric pain, vomiting and diarrhea, Pterocephalus with Chebula, Calcite, Shilajit, Inula root, Pomegranate seed, Clove, Niutmeg

Major Formulas:


Eliminator of All Lung Imbalances (Khrugs glo bcu gsum) (Tibetan)
Emblic 25 (Skyu ru nyer lnga) (Tibetan Medicine)
Pterocepahlus 12

Cautions:


Avoid overdose.

Main Preparations used:



1. The anti-arthritic activity of total glycosides from Pterocephalus hookeri, a traditional Tibetan herbal medicine.
2. In Vitro and In Vivo Antitumor Effects of n-Butanol Extracts of Pterocephalus hookeri on Hep3B Cancer Cell.
3, Anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects of ethanol and aqueous extracts of Pterocephalus hookeri (C.B. Clarke) Höeck.