Chishi resin is a silicate mineral, a hydrated alumino-silicate of the montmorillonite family. After mining, impurities are removed. It is in the form of irregular blocks, with a pink, red to purple-red color, sometimes with red and white patterns. It is soft, brittle, and has a waxy luster on the fracture surface. It has strong water absorption, a clay-like odor, a mild taste, and no sandy texture when chewed.
The original form is monoclinic. It is rarely found in crystalline form and is mostly in the form of a gel. The white color is usually dyed with light red, light brown, light yellow, light blue, light green, etc. The fresh fracture surface has a waxy luster, while the porous ones have a soil-like luster. It has a flat shell-like fracture. Hardness: 1-2. Specific gravity: 2.0-2.2, varies with the water content. It is brittle and has strong plasticity. It has a clay-like odor, and the compact blocks can crack into pieces when dried.
Environmental habitat: Chishi resin mainly occurs in the weathering crust and clay layers of rocks.
Resource distribution: Chishi resin is mainly found in Liaoning, Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Sichuan, etc. It is also found in Yangbaicheng, Tibet.
Characteristics and identification: Chishi resin is in the form of irregular blocks, with partially flat surfaces and uneven overall surface. It has a light red, red to purple-red color, or a red and white pattern. It has a soil-like or waxy luster; it is opaque. It is relatively light, soft in texture, and can be scratched with fingernails; the fracture surface is flat with a waxy luster. It has strong water absorption and sticks to the tongue when licked. It has a slight clay-like odor, a mild taste, and no sandy texture when chewed. The best quality is characterized by red color, smooth and delicate texture, soft texture, easy breakage, and strong water absorption.
Microscopic identification: Under transmitted polarized light microscope, the thin section is colorless and transparent, with a slight yellowish-brown tint. The crystals are very fine, and the grain boundaries cannot be distinguished even when magnified several times under a polarized microscope; there are low negative or low positive relief, which is not very clear. The interference color is very low. It is almost like a homogeneous body. When observed under an electron microscope, montmorillonite appears as rod-shaped aggregates.
Chemical composition: The main component is hydrated alumino-silicate of aluminum silicate [Al4(Si4O10)(OH)8·4H2O], which also contains a considerable amount of iron oxide (Fe2O3) and other substances. The composition is as follows: silicon 42.93%, aluminum 36.58%, ferrous oxide (FeO) 4.85%, manganese 4.85%, magnesium and calcium 0.94%, water 14.75%. In addition, it also contains trace elements such as titanium, nickel, strontium, and barium.
Pharmacological effects: When taken internally, it can absorb toxic substances in the digestive tract and abnormal fermentation products of food. It has a local protective effect on inflamed gastrointestinal mucosa and has a hemostatic effect on gastrointestinal bleeding. When given at a dose of 20-40g/kg, it can shorten the coagulation time of mice (capillary method) and the plasma recalcification time of rats, and inhibit ADP-induced platelet aggregation in rabbits and rats, as well as platelet thrombus formation induced by ADP in mice.
Main uses of Chishi resin: Astringes the intestines; stops bleeding; dries dampness and heals sores; promotes tissue regeneration. It is used for chronic diarrhea, chronic dysentery, bloody stools, prolapse of the rectum, nocturnal emissions, irregular menstruation, leukorrhea, non-healing ulcers, eczema, and traumatic bleeding.
①"Ben Jing": "Used for jaundice, dysentery, bloody stools, erosion and bleeding in the lower body, evil qi, swollen abscesses, ulcerated hemorrhoids, head sores, scabies."
②"Bie Lu": "Nourishes the heart qi, improves vision, nourishes essence, treats abdominal pain, diarrhea, bloody stools, promotes urination, treats abscesses, ulcers, hemorrhoids, difficult childbirth, retained placenta in women."
③"Yao Xing Lun": "Tonifies the five viscera and deficiency."
④"Ri Hua Zi Ben Cao": "Treats diarrhea, dysentery, bleeding, hemoptysis, tonifies essence, calms the mind, relieves irritability, treats abscesses, boils, hemorrhoids, strengthens the spleen, nourishes the muscles and bones, replenishes deficiency."
⑤"Zhen Zhu Nang": "Stops prolapse."
⑥"Gang Mu": "Tonifies heart blood, promotes tissue regeneration, thickens the intestines and stomach, removes water dampness, and stops rectal prolapse."
⑦"Ben Cao Hui Yan": "Removes water dampness, eliminates dampness, heals wounds, stops rectal prolapse, treats diarrhea, dysentery, erosion and bleeding in the intestines, and treats irregular menstruation and leukorrhea."
