Pharmaceutical Name:

Radix Gentianae Macrophyllae

Botanical Name:

Gentiana macrophylla pall.
Gentiana crassicaulis Duthie ex Burkill
Gentiana dahurica Fisch.
Gentiana straminea Maxim.

Common Name:

Large-leaf Gentian root

Source of Earliest Record:

Shennong Bencao Jing

Part Used & Method for Pharmaceutical Preparations:

The roots are dug in spring or autumn.  After the fibrous root bark has been removed, the roots are cleaned, dried in the sun and cut into slices .

Properties and Taste:

Bitter, pungent and slightly cold

Meridian:

Stomach, liver and gall bladder

Functions:

To dispel wind and dampness
To clear heat caused by yin deficiency

Indications and Combinations:

1.     Wind-damp obstruction syndrome:

a)       Pain with heat signs.
*Use with Tetrandra root (Fangji) and Honeysuckle stem (Rendongteng).

b)       Pain with cold signs.
*Use with Notopterygium root (Qianghuo), Pubescent angelica root (Duhuo), Cinnamon twigs (Guizhi) and Prepared aconite root (Fuzi).

2.      Afternoon fever caused by deficient yin.
*Use with Sweet wormwood (Qinghao), Turtle shell (Biejia), Anemarrhena rhizome (Zhimu) and Wolfberry bark (Digupi) in the formula Qinjiao Biejia Tang.

3.     Damp-heat jaundice.
*Use with Oriental wormwood (Yinchenhao) and Capejasmine (Zhizi).

Dosage:

5-10 g

Cautions:

This herb is contraindicated for a person with a weak constitution or in cases suffering from diarrhea.