This product is the leaf of the biennial herb Isatis indigotica (Isatis indigotica Fort.) from the Brassicaceae family. It is mainly produced in Jiangsu, Anhui, Hebei, Henan, Zhejiang, and other regions. It is cultivated in winter and harvested in summer and autumn. It can be used fresh or dried. The pharmacopoeia recognizes Dyers Woad as the authentic product, which is Isatis indigotica. Additionally, in different regions, other plants are also used as Dyers Woad, including the perennial shrub-like herb Baphicacanthus cusia (Baphicacanthus cusia (Nees) Bbremek) from the Acanthaceae family, the annual herb Polygonum tinctorium (Polygonum tinctorium Ait) from the Polygonaceae family, and the deciduous shrub Clerodendrum cyrtophyllum (Clerodendrum cyrtophyllum Turcz) from the Verbenaceae family.

bubble_chart Properties and Meridians

Bitter and salty, extremely cold. Act on heart, lung and stomach meridians.

bubble_chart Efficacy

Clearing heat and removing toxins, cooling blood to eliminate spots.

bubble_chart Indications

1. Used for heat entering the nutrient-blood, warm toxin disease. This product is bitter and cold, good at clearing real fire and heat toxin from the heart and stomach meridians, salty and cold entering the blood aspect, and also capable of cooling blood and eliminating macules, thus it can be used to treat heat entering the nutrient-blood, excessive toxin in the heart and stomach, blazing of both qi and blood, warm toxin disease, etc., often used together with Gardenia and others. This product can also be used to treat pattern of common cold due to wind and heat, early stage of warm disease, fever headache, thirst, sore throat, etc., often used together with Lonicera, Forsythia, Great Burdock Achene, and other herbs.
2. Used for pharyngitis aphtha, erysipelas, and abscesses. This product is bitter and cold, clearing real fire from the heart and stomach meridians, and good at resolving pestilence seasonal toxin, with the effect of removing toxin and benefiting the pharynx. Used to treat excessive fire in the heart and stomach, warm toxin attacking upwards, fever headache, mumps pharyngitis, sore throat, mouth and tongue sores, etc., often taken as fresh juice, or combined with Scrophularia Root, vietnamese sophora root, Coptis Rhizome, etc. in compound formulas. Used to treat erysipelas and abscesses, it can be applied externally as a fresh poultice, or taken internally with Dandelion, Tokyo Violet Herb, chinese manyleaf paris rhizome, etc.

bubble_chart Documentation

1. Bielu: "Treats seasonal epidemic headache, fire heat, aphtha."
2. Bencao Zheng: "Treats pestilence heat toxin causing spots, wind heat macula and papule, abscess swelling and pain, relieves thirst, stops epistaxis, hematemesis... For all conditions involving heat and toxin, it is suitable to use the juice of crushed blue leaves."
3. Bencao Gangmu: "Mainly treats heat toxin dysentery, jaundice, pharyngitis, erysipelas."

bubble_chart Usage and Dosage

Decoct and take 10-15g, or 30-60g of fresh product. Apply an appropriate amount for external use.

bubble_chart Cautions and Contraindications

Deficiency-cold of spleen and stomach should avoid use.

bubble_chart Modern Pharmacology

Isatis leaves contain tryptophan, isatin B, glucobrassicin, neoglucobrassicin, glucobrassicin-1-sulfonate, and indigo. Strobilanthes cusia leaves contain indican, which hydrolyzes to form hydroxyindole, and hydroxyindole is oxidized to form indigo. Polygonum tinctorium contains indican, yellow pigments, and tannins. Isatis indigotica contains indican and isatan B.

• Isatis indigotica has inhibitory effects on dysentery bacilli, meningococcus, and Leptospira;
• Polygonum tinctorium has inhibitory effects on Staphylococcus aureus, enhances the phagocytic ability of white blood cells, and has effects such as reducing skin capillary permeability, anti-arthritis, and antipyretic;
• Isatis and Strobilanthes cusia leaves have certain inhibitory effects on Staphylococcus aureus and hemolytic streptococcus;
• Dyers Woad leaves have inhibitory effects on hepatitis B surface antigen and influenza A virus.