Belamcanda chinensis, Iris domestica.  射 干  Shè gàn- "Arrow shaft"    Blackberry lily rhizome   Family: Iridaceae   
PART USED: Dry root- Harvested early Spring or late Autumn.
Nature: Cold     FLAVOR: Bitter   TOXICITY: Slightly toxic.[1]  CHANNEL: Lung
FUNCTIONS
GROUP: Clear Heat- Neutralize toxins
1. Clear Heat, relieve toxicity, and improves the condition of the throat.[1,4]
2. Clear Lung Heat- Clear Heat. Benefit throat.[3] Sedates Lung Fire.[3] Clears the Lung and stops coughing.[1]
3. Eliminate Sputum.[3] Transforms phlegm and clears the the Lungs.[4]
4. Relieves Blood congestion and inflammation.[1]
ACTIONS
INDICATIONS- Sometimes used alone in treating sore throat.[4]
1. Pain and swelling of the throat.[1,4] Pain and swelling of the throat due ot Fire excess, Fire toxin or Phlegm Heat obstruction.[4] Tonsillitis, early breast abscess.[1]
2. Exessive phlegm in cough due to external perverse Energy.[3]Cough with sputum. Coughing and wheezing, excessive mucus production.[1,4] Asthma. Chronic bronchial asthma.[3]
3. Mad dog bites, poisonous snake bites.[1]
CONTRAINDICATIONS: Pregnancy, and in cases of Spleen deficiency with diarrhea.[4]
COMBINATIONS
PREPARATIONS: Decoction. Roots 9-15 g.[1] Dry rhizome 3-9 g.[2] 6-9 g.[3] 1.5-9 g.[4]Combine with Warming herbs for treating Cold Phlegm.[4] Good quality is thick, solid, and hard with a yellow cross section.[4]
    
HABITAT: Found growing in damp rich soil of mountain wilds.
DESCRIPTION: A perennial herb. Rhizome; creeping, yellow, numerous fibrous roots. Leaves; alternate, in 2 rows, flat, in stack of sord arrangement, apexes acuminate, bases sheath-like, margins intact. Flowers; in summer, terminal racemose inflorescence appears with orange colored flowers, with red spots. Fruit; a capsule, obovate, 3-angled.
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

Antimutagenic and anti-oxidant activities of isoflavonoids from Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC.
Wozniak D, Janda B, Kapusta I, Oleszek W, Matkowski A.
Abstract
The isoflavonoid fractions obtained from a methanolic extract of Belamcanda chinensis (L.) DC (syn. Iris domestica Goldblatt & Mabb.) rhizomes inhibited the chemically induced mutations in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 in the Ames test. We have studied direct mutagenesis induced by N-nitroquinoline, and indirect mutation induction caused by metabolically activated 2-AF. The fractions enriched in isoflavonoids, obtained by sequential liquid-liquid extraction with diethyl ether and butanol, followed by ODS column separation, inhibited indirect mutagenesis in TA98 almost completely. In TA100 the maximum inhibition ranged between 80% and 100% depending on the test fraction. The inhibition of direct mutagenesis was lower, reaching about 50% in TA98 and in TA100, but it was dose-dependent only in the latter strain. Three in vitro anti-oxidant spectrophotometric assays-DPPH free-radical scavenging test, the phosphomolybdenum assay, and the linoleic acid peroxidation assay were also performed to support the process of bioactivity-guided fractionation and to provide more information about the potential mechanisms of action of the herb under study. The isoflavonoid fractions have the capability to scavenge free radicals, to reduce transition-metal ions and to protect polyunsaturated fatty acids from peroxidation. The analysis of the fractions obtained with high-performance liquid chromatography with photodiode-array and mass-spectrometric detection revealed several potentially bioactive isoflavones, either as glycosides or aglycones, depending on the polarity of the solvents used for fractionation. The main compounds were tectoridin and iridin in the glycoside fractions and the aglycones irigenin, tectorigenin, and 5,6,7,3'-tetrahydroxy-4'-methoxyisoflavone. The activities reported here can be regarded to be of additional value when using this plant as a phyto-estrogenic and chemopreventive agent.
PMID: 20096370 DOI: 10.1016/j.mrgentox.2010.01.004 Mutat Res. 2010 Feb;696(2):148-53. doi: 10.1016/j.mrgentox.2010.01.004. Epub 2010 Jan 21. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Hypoglycemic effect of Belamcanda chinensis leaf extract in normal and STZ-induced diabetic rats and its potential active faction.
Wu C, Li Y, Chen Y, Lao X, Sheng L, Dai R, Meng W, Deng Y.
Abstract
Belamcanda chinensis (Iridaceae) belongs to the family of iridaceae and its rhizoma has been widely used for the treatment of throat ailment. Here we report a new pharmacological activity of B. chinensis leaf extract (BCL), that is, the hypoglycemic effect in normal and STZ-induced diabetic rats. Animals either healthy or STZ-induced diabetic show significantly lowered fasting blood glucose levels after treatment with BCL. The serum insulin concentration in normal rats is also enhanced. Additionally, the increase in blood glucose levels after administration of various carbohydrates in normal rats is significantly decreased and the oral glucose tolerance (OGTT) of STZ-induced diabetic rats is largely improved by BCL treatment. However, co-administration of BCL with Nifedipine, a Ca(2+) ion channel blocker, or Nicorandil, an ATP-sensitive K(+) ion channel opener thoroughly abolishes the hypoglycemic effect of BCL. HPLC analysis and compound identification showed that several isoflavone glycosides with antidiabetic activities were contained in BCL while pharmacological experiment showed that the polysaccharide fraction of BCL had no significant hypoglycemic effect on normal rats. Therefore, the isoflavone glycosides but not polysaccharides might be the active fraction of BCL in diabetes treatment.
PMID: 20739161 DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2010.07.005
Phytomedicine. 2011 Feb 15;18(4):292-7. doi: 10.1016/j.phymed.2010.07.005. Epub 2010 Aug 23. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Isoflavonoids from the rhizomes of Belamcanda chinensis and their effects on aldose reductase and sorbitol accumulation in streptozotocin induced diabetic rat tissues.
Jung SH, Lee YS, Lee S, Lim SS, Kim YS, Shin KH.
Abstract
Aldose reductase, the key enzyme of the polyol pathway, is known to play important roles in the diabetic complication. The inhibitors of aldose reductase, therefore, would be potential agents for the prevention of diabetic complications. To evaluate active principles for the inhibition of aldose reductase from the rhizomes of Belamcanda chinensis, twelve phenolic compounds were isolated and tested for their effects on rat lens aldose reductase. As a result, isoflavones such as tectorigenin, irigenin and their glucosides were found to show a strong aldose reductase inhibition. Tectoridin and tectorigenin, exhibited the highest aldose reductase inhibitory potency, their IC50 values, being 1.08 x 10(-6) M and 1.12 x 10(-6) M, respectively, for DL-glyceraldehyde as a substrate. Both compounds, when administered orally at 100 mg/kg for 10 consecutive days to streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats, caused a significant inhibition of sorbitol accumulation in the tissues such as lens, sciatic nerves and red blood cells. Tectorigenin showed a stronger inhibitory activity than tectoridin. From these results, it is suggested that tectorigenin is attributed to be a promising compound for the prevention and/or treatment of diabetic complications.
PMID: 12135102 Arch Pharm Res. 2002 Jun;25(3):306-12. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Phytoestrogens from Belamcanda chinensis regulate the expression of steroid receptors and related cofactors in LNCaP prostate cancer cells.
Thelen P, Peter T, Hünermund A, Kaulfuss S, Seidlová-Wuttke D, Wuttke W, Ringert RH, Seseke F.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
To investigate the changes in expression underlying the marked reduction of tumour growth in vivo, by analysing the effect of Belamcanda chinensis extract (BCE) on LNCaP cells in vitro, as phytoestrogens are chemopreventive in prostate cancer, and in previous studies we examined the effects of the isoflavone tectorigenin isolated from B. chinensis on LNCaP prostate cancer cells, and a BCE consisting of 13 phytoestrogenic compounds on tumour-bearing nude mice.
MATERIALS AND METHODS:
LNCaP cells were treated with 100, 400 or 1400 microg/mL BCE; proliferation was assessed with an Alamar Blue assay. We used real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to quantify mRNA expression of the androgen receptor (AR), the AR coactivator prostate derived Ets transcription factor (PDEF), NKX3.1, prostate specific antigen (PSA) and oestrogen receptor-beta (ER-beta) compared with the expression of the housekeeping gene porphobilinogen deaminase (PBGD). PSA secretion from LNCaP cells was measured and protein expression of the AR investigated by Western blot analysis.
RESULTS:
Concomitant with a marked decrease of tumour cell proliferation BCE down-regulated the expression of the AR, PDEF, NKX3.1 and PSA. In the same experiments, the expression of PBGD was unaltered, whereas ER-beta expression increased. Furthermore, AR protein and PSA secretion were markedly diminished after treatments with the BCE.
CONCLUSION:
BCE, comprising 13 different phytoestrogens, decreases the expression of the AR and its co-activator PDEF concomitant with diminished cell proliferation and PSA secretion. NKX3.1 expression was also reduced by BCE. We hypothesise that the positive effects of BCE are initiated by up-regulation of the ER-beta, a putative tumour-suppressor gene.
PMID: 17488304 DOI: 10.1111/j.1464-410X.2007.06924.x
BJU Int. 2007 Jul;100(1):199-203. Epub 2007 May 4. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Anti-angiogenic and anti-tumor activities of isoflavonoids from the rhizomes of Belamcanda chinensis.
Jung SH, Lee YS, Lee S, Lim SS, Kim YS, Ohuchi K, Shin KH.
Abstract
The present study was carried out to clarify whether tectorigenin and tectoridin isolated from the rhizomes of Belamcanda chinensis (Iridaceae) inhibit angiogenesis by the experimental methods in vitro and in vivo. Tectorigenin and tectoridin decreased angiogenesis of both chick embryos in the chorioallantoic membrane assay and basic fibroblast growth factor-induced vessel formation in the mouse Matrigel plug assay. Both compounds also reduced the proliferation of calf pulmonary arterial endothelial (CPAE) cells and found to possess relatively weak gelatinase/collagenase inhibitory activity in vitro. Tectorigenin exhibited a much stronger anti-proliferative activity than its glycoside, tectoridin and was almost equipotent to that of genistein, a reference drug. Tectorigenin, when administered subcutaneously at the dose of 30 mg/kg for 20 days to mice implanted with murine Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC), caused a significant inhibition of tumor volume by 30.8 %. Tectorigenin and tectoridin, when treated i. p. at the same dosage for 10 days to ICR mice bearing sarcoma 180, caused a significant suppression in tumor weight by 44.2 and 24.8 %, respectively.
PMID: 12898416 DOI: 10.1055/s-2003-41125 Planta Med. 2003 Jul;69(7):617-22. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov