Properties: Pungent, neutral, toxic
Meridans Entered:
Primary: Liver
Traditional Actions/Indications:
- Extinguishes Wind and stops tremors and convulsions
Liver Wind and Wind-Phlegm-Heat with spasms, acute or chronic childhood convulsions, tetany, opisthotonos, tics, muscular tetany, and seizures
- Tracks down Wind, unblocks the collaterals and stops pain
Stubborn headaches and Bipain
- Attacks and relieves Fire toxins and dissipates nodules and rashes
Topically for toxic sores, swellings scrofula (Chuang Yung) and cancer
Suggested Daily Dosage: 2-5g in decoction.
Cautions: It is toxic, so large dose of it should not be used. It is contraindicated for pregnant women.
Animal products are prohibited from use in the UK under the Medicines Act 1968 ch. 67 which restricts herbalists to the use of plant products only. It is generally substituted with Gou Teng and Tian Zhu Huang.
Notable Constituents:
- Long-chain scorpion toxins
Composed of 58-76 amino acid residues, these mainly act on voltage-gated sodium channels, suppressing neuroexcitability in nociception and epileptic seizure.
- Short-chain scorpion toxins
Contain 28-40 amino acid residues and generally target K+ or Cl- channels
See
Wang et al, 2019 for details.
Notes:
Other scorpion venoms have been investigated for a number of medical purposes including binding with cancer cells and fighting bone disease (Anderson & Tang, 2021).
Appears in 8 formulae listed on this site: (click to display)
Research Links & References: (click to display)
Research Links:
Reference Notes:
Individual herb information has sourced mainly from TCM Wiki and American Dragon for basic data and then updated manually with my own notes. Zhou, Xie and Yan (2011): Encyclopedia of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Vol. 5, and A+ Medical Encyclopaedia have been used for entries not available from those sources with additional material searched for and filled in where available. Western herbs not appearing in the Chinese literature have used Ross (2010): Combining Western Herbs and Chinese Medicine: A Clinical Materia Medica, White Rabbit Institute of Healing and therapeutika.ch. Choices of which source to use or combine have been my own.
These pages are intended to assist clinicians and are not intended for self-diagnosis or treatment for which a qualified professional should be consulted. Actions and indications are taken from traditional uses and do not necessarily reflect the evidence base which should be researched independently. Dosages are for guidance only and will vary dependening on the potency of the batch and the tolerance of the individual so should be evaluated by a professional based on individual needs.
