【Basic Information】
Common Name: Pteris dissitifolia
Scientific Name: Pteris dissitifolia Bak.
Family: Pteridaceae
Genus: Pteris
【Distribution】
Native to southern Yunnan (Hekou, Xishuangbanna), Guangdong, Hainan (Baoting).
【Morphological Characteristics】
Plant height 1-1.5 meters. Rhizomes ascending or erect, thick 1-1.5 cm, covered with lanceolate scales at the apex and base of the petiole, about 2 mm long, gradually pointed at the apex, nearly entire, centrally dark brown, margin light brown to gray, not glossy. Leaves clustered; petiole 40-80 cm long, basal portion thickened 4-5 mm, chestnut brown, reddish chestnut upwards, sometimes near brown, glossy, glabrous, with broad longitudinal groove on the upper surface; leaf blade ovate-lanceolate, 35-50 cm long, 25-30 cm wide, bipinnate or bipinnate-pinnatifid; lateral pinnae 5-8 pairs, opposite or nearly opposite, lower ones 6-8 cm apart, upper ones short-stalked, obliquely ascending, lanceolate-widely lanceolate, 15-25 cm long, 4-6 cm wide, gradually pointed at the apex, inclined at the base, usually both sides deeply pinnatifid in the lower pairs of pinnae, sometimes the lower side of the base again pinnatifid, the middle pinnae usually only the lower side deeply pinnatifid, the upper side entire or only the upper part deeply pinnatifid, the upper pinnae only the lower side deeply pinnatifid, and the upper side entire: lobes lanceolate, gradually pointed at the apex, 4-12 cm long, 1-1.3 cm wide, longer on the lower side than on the upper side, gradually shorter upwards, with broad wings extending downward at the base, shallow serrations on the infertile margin; apical part of the leaf blade deeply pinnatifid, triangular-ovate, about 15 cm long, 10-12 cm wide, gradually pointed at the apex, broadly cuneate at the base, slightly downwardly extended, deeply pinnatifid, with 8-10 pairs of opposite or nearly opposite lobes, spaced about 1 cm wide, obliquely ascending, sickle-shaped lanceolate, 6-8 cm long, 6-8 mm wide, gradually shortened upwards, short-pointed at the apex, distinctly downwardly extended at the lower side, forming discontinuous broad wings on both sides of the leaf axis. Leaf axis chestnut brown, raised below the rachis, straw-colored at the top, chestnut brown downwards, with shallow longitudinal grooves on the upper surface, and shallow gray narrow wings on both sides of the grooves. Lateral veins conspicuous on both sides, sparse, oblique, usually forked once or rarely twice. The leaf becomes tough and herbaceous when dry, dark green, and glabrous.
【Medicinal Parts】 The whole plant of Pteris dissitifolia with rhizome.
【Properties and Channels】 "Pungent and cool" according to the "Lu Chuan Materia Medica". Enters the Heart and Spleen channels.
【Functions and Indications】 Clears heat, detoxifies, dispels stasis, and reduces swelling. Used for treating hematemesis, external bleeding, back pain, carbuncles, injuries, redness and swelling of the eyes.
【Dosage and Administration】 Internal use: decoction, 9-15 grams. External use: crushed and applied, powdered and sprinkled; or decoction for washing.
【Chemical Constituents】 Contains 1,3-dihydroxy-2,5,7-trimethyl-6-hydroxyethylindane-1-O-β-D-glucoside (Ⅰ), 3-hydroxy-6-hydroxymethyl-2,5,7-trimethylindan-1-one (Ⅱ). The whole plant was found to contain flavonoid glycosides and alkaloids.
【Related Prescriptions】
① Hematemesis: Take fresh Pteris dissitifolia, crush it and extract the juice with rice soup to drink.
② Wound healing: Apply crushed fresh Pteris dissitifolia or sprinkle the powdered herb on the wound.
③ Treatment of mouth carbuncles: Take two parts of fresh Pteris dissitifolia leaves and one part of brown sugar, crush them and apply them to the affected area.
④ Treatment of stroke: Take three qian of Pteris dissitifolia, Acorus tatarinowii, Equisetum hyemale, and Cassia tora, decoct and drink the liquid.
【Native Habit】
Pteris dissitifolia is a perennial herb, 30-100 cm tall. Rhizomes are short and creeping, covered with lanceolate, dark brown scales. Leaves are scattered; petioles are stout and erect, 20-50 cm long, dark brown or black near the base, shiny, bare and clean with the rachis; leaves are leathery, glabrous on both sides, ovate-lanceolate, 15-50 cm long, 10-25 cm wide; pinnate or bipinnate-pinnatifid with one pinnate segment, upper part deeply pinnatifid to the rachis, lobes linear or elliptic, straight or sickle-shaped, entire, downwardly extended at the base; lower part with 4-8 pairs of nearly opposite half-pinnate pinnae, sparsely hairy, apex long pointed, entire on the upper margin, deeply pinnatifid to the midrib on the lower margin, lobes linear or sickle-shaped, downwardly extended at the base; veins of the leaf are prominent, arising singly or branching. Sporangia are linear, arranged continuously along the leaf margin, and the indusia are linear and membranous. It grows in shaded and humid places such as under the forest, by the stream, or on the wall.
