Scutellaria baicalensis  黄 芩  Huáng qín    Baical scullcap root  
PART USED: Dry root- harvested in Spring or Autumn.
Nature: Cold   FLAVOR: Bitter   CHANNEL: Lung, Gall bladder, Large intestine, Stomach, Small intestine, Heart
FUNCTIONS
GROUP: Clearing Internal Heat- Drying Dampness- Mostly used to cool Lung Fire
1. Clear Heat and drain Fire- especially from the upper Burner[7] Sedate Fire, counteract toxic effects. Purges "solid" Fire.[1]
2. Clears Heat and Dries Dampness.[1,7] Stopping bleeding.
3. Preventing miscarriage.[1] Clears Heat and calms the fetus.[7]
ACTIONS
INDICATIONS
1. Various Damp Heat syndromes-
- Damp Heat syndrome with fever:[7] feeling of fullness in the chest, and greasy tongue coating, thirst, but with inability to drink.[7]
- Major herb for Damp Heat in the Stomach or Intestines: Diarrhea or dysenteric disorder.[7] Hepatitis, dysentery. Gonorrhea.[1] Damp Heat diarrhea.[1] Trachoma.[1] Red and swollen eyes.[1] Used as an axillary herb for Damp Heat jaundice.[7]
- For the treatment of Damp Heat in the Lower Burner: marked by dysuria.[7] Dysentery due to Damp Heat.[4]
- Suppurative infections on the skin, it is often used with Trichosanthes root, Dahurian Angelica and others. Ulcers and boils.[1]
2. Lung Heat with cough[1] and yellow sputum. Sedate Lung Fire.[4] Pneumonia. Heat patterns with high fever, irritability, thirst, cough, and expectoration of thick, yellow sputum, or hot sores and swellings.[7]
3. Acute febrile disease: with high fever, restlessness,[1] yellow tongue coating, and rapid pulse.
- In cases of alternate attacks of fever and chills, it is usually combined with Bupleurum root.
4. Bleeding due to the invasion of Blood by excessive Heat, such as Hematemesis,[1,7] epistaxis,[1,7] hematuria[7] or hemafecia,[7] metrorrhagia and metrostaxis, Carbonised Scutellaria root can be used along or together with dried Rehmannia root and Cogongrass rhizome.
5. Heat syndrome during pregnancy and threatened abortion. Restless fetus.[1]Calm fetus due to Heat in pregnancy.[4,7]
6. Atherosclerosis and high blood pressure due to Liver Yang rising:[4] Headache, red face, distress in Heart.[4] Sedates ascendant Liver Yang: headache, irritability, red eyes, flushed face, and bitter taste in the mouth.[7]
PATENT COMBINATIONS
COMBINATIONS
CONTRAINDICATIONS: This herb is bitter and it calms the "Fresh Qi". Therefore, this herb cannot be used in diseases which cause weak empty Cold Stomach or Spleen.[3,4] It also cannot be used when there is Cold during pregnancy.  If children have a weakness in the Stomach and Spleen, Huang qin may prove too strong, so it should be combined with Dang shen to decrease its effect on the Stomach.[4] Lung deficiency, Cold diarrhea or any other condition with Cold in the middle Burner, and restless fetus due to Cold in the Blood.[7] According to some tradtional sources, this herb counteracts Paeonia suffruticosa- Mu dan pi and Veratrum nigrum- Li lu.
PREPARATIONS: Decoction.  Dry root 3-10 g.[1,2,3] Or prepared into the form of bolus or powder. 6-15 g.[4,7] Children 1-4 g.[4]
Liquid extract 60% alcohol.[5] 1:1 Fluid extract 60%.[6] In treating external skin problems it can be injested or applied locally.[7]
- Dry fry to reduce its cooling propertes and help it enter the Blood; this form is used for Heat in the lower Burner or a restless fetus.[7]
- Wine-fry to enhance its ascending properties; this form is more effective in treating Damp Heat in the upper Burner.[7]
- Char to enhance its hemostatic properites. Good quality is long, thick, solid, yellow, and without a cortex.[7]
-For clearing away Heat, it should be used unprepared. For preventing abortion, usually stir baked. For hemostasis, stir baked to charcoal.[3]

References
Inner Path can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Constituents.
Research.
Baicalin has antiinflammatory and antiallergic properties,[1] it inhibits calicum ionophore induced leukotriene synthesis in human lyphocytes,[2] the formation of lipoxygenases products and to a lesser extent cyclooxygenase produce in leukocytes.[3]
S. baicalensis also inhibits lipid peroxidation in rat liver,[4] and has been clinically tested in China and patients with chronic hepatitis, where it improved symptoms in over 70% of patients, increasing appetite, relieving abdominal distension and improving the results of liver function tests.[5]
References
[1] Kubo, M. et. al. (1984) Chem. Pharm. Bull. 32 (7), 2724
[2] Kimura, Y. et. al. (1987) Phytother. Res. 1 (1), 48
[3] Kimura, Y. et al. (1985) Planta Med. 51, 132
[4] Kimura, Y. et al. (1984). Planta Med. 50, 290
[5] Advances in Chinese Medicinal Material Research, Ed H.M. Chang et al. Pub. World Scientific Pub. Co (1985) Singapore

The effect of Scutellaria baicalensis on the signaling network in hepatocellular carcinoma cells.
Ye F, Che Y, McMillen E, Gorski J, Brodman D, Saw D, Jiang B, Zhang DY.
Abstract
Scutellaria baicalensis is an anti-inflammatory and antineoplastic Chinese herbal therapy. We have previously shown that S. baicalensis can inhibit hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell growth in vitro. In this study, we sought to determine the effect of S. baicalensis on the cell signaling network using our newly developed Pathway Array technology, which screens cell signaling pathways involved in cell cycle regulation. The HCC cell line (HepG2) was treated with S. baicalensis extract in vitro. The effect on the cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry, and the expression of various signaling proteins was assayed with Pathway Array. Our results indicate that S. baicalensis exerts a strong growth inhibition of the HepG2 cells via G(2)/M phase arrest. The Pathway Array analysis of 56 proteins revealed a total of 14 differentially expressed proteins or phosphorylations after treatment. Of these, 9 showed a dose-dependent decrease (p53, ETS1, Cdc25B, p63, EGFR, ERK1/2, XIAP, HIF-2alpha, and Cdc25C) whereas one demonstrated a dose-dependent increase (Cyclin E) after treatment with 200 microg/ml of S. baicalensis. Using computer simulation software, we identified additional hubs in the signaling network activated by S. baicalensis. These results indicate that S. baicalensis exerts a broad effect on cell signaling networks leading to a collective inhibition of cell proliferation.
PMID: 19838925 DOI: 10.1080/01635580902803719  Nutr Cancer. 2009;61(4):530-7. doi: 10.1080/01635580902803719. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Flavones from root of Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi: drugs of the future in neurodegeneration
Gasiorowski K, Lamer-Zarawska E, Leszek J, Parvathaneni K, Yendluri BB, Błach-Olszewska Z, Aliev G.
Abstract
Flavonoids are natural, plant-derived compounds which exert diverse biological activities, also valuable neuroprotective actions within the brain and currently are intensively studied as agents able to modulate neuronal function and to prevent age-related neurodegeneration. Among them, flavones isolated from Scutellaria baicalensis root exhibit strong neuroprotective effects on the brain and are not toxic in the broad range of tested doses. Their neuroprotective potential has been shown in both oxidative stress-induced and amyloid-beta and alpha-synuclein-induced neuronal death models. Baicalein, the main flavone present in Scutellaria baicalensis root, strongly inhibited aggregation of neuronal amyloidogenic proteins in vitro and induces dissolution of amyloid deposits. It exerts strong antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities and also exhibits anti-convulsive, anxiolytic, and mild sedative actions. Importantly, baicalein, and also another flavone: oroxylin A, markedly enhanced cognitive and mnestic functions in animal models of aging brains and neurodegeneration. In the preliminary study, wogonin, another flavone from Scutellaria baicalensis root, has been shown to stimulate brain tissue regeneration, inducing differentiation of neuronal precursor cells. This concise review provides the main examples of neuroprotective activities of the flavones and reveals their potential in prevention and therapyof neurodegenerative diseases.
PMID: 21222632  CNS Neurol Disord Drug Targets. 2011 Mar;10(2):184-91. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Anticancer activity of Scutellaria baicalensis and its potential mechanism.
Ye F, Xui L, Yi J, Zhang W, Zhang DY.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
Scutellaria baicalensis is a widely used Chinese herbal medicine that historically is used in anti-inflammatory and anticancer therapy. The aim of the study is to determine its ability to inhibit human cancer cells in vitro and to determine whether its anticancer activity is because of the inhibition of prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) production that is derived from arachidonic acid through cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) pathway.
METHODS:
Cell lines from the most common human cancers, including squamous cell carcinoma (SCC-25, KB), breast cancer (MCF-7), hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2), prostate carcinoma (PC-3 and LNCaP), and colon cancer (KM-12 and HCT-15) were tested. The cells were treated with various concentrations of Scutellaria baicalensis (0.1-100 mg/mL) for 72 hours. Percentage of viable cells after treatment was assessed using a trypan blue dye exclusion assay and the level of PGE(2) production was determined by enzyme immunoassay (EIA).
RESULTS:
Scutellaria baicalensis demonstrated a strong dose-dependent growth inhibition in all cell lines. Inhibition concentration at 50% (IC(50)) for HepG2, MCF-7, PC-3, LNCaP, KM-12, HCT-15, KB and SCC-25 cells was 1.1, 0.9, 0.52, 0.82, 1.1, 1.5, 1.0, and 1.2 mg/mL, respectively. Three cell lines (KB, SCC-25, and HepG2) were assessed for the production of PGE(2) and a high level of extracellular (KB and SCC-25) and intracellular PGE(2) (HepG2) was noted. In the presence of Scutellaria baicalensis extract, there was a significant decrease of PGE(2) in a dose-dependent fashion.
CONCLUSIONS:
Scutellaria baicalensis strongly inhibits cell growth in all cancer cell lines tested. However, prostate and breast cancer cells (PC-3, LNCaP, and MCF-7) are slightly more sensitive than other type of cancer cells. It also inhibits PGE(2) production, indicating that suppression of tumor cell growth may be due to its ability to inhibit COX-2 activity. This study supports the notion of using Scutellaria baicalensis as a novel anticancer agent to treat various cancers.
PMID: 12470437 DOI: 10.1089/107555302320825075  J Altern Complement Med. 2002 Oct;8(5):567-72. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov