Shan Yang Jiao
StarCapra hircus Linnaeus
Synonyms: Naemorhedus goral (Hardwicke), Capra ibex Linnaeus, Ovis ammon Linnaeus
Also known as: Shan Yang Chiao · Wade–Giles
Traditionally used for
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Eye health
- Colds & fever
- Nerves & recovery
Cautions & contraindications
- Young children
- Seizure disorders
☯ TCM Properties
Calms the Liver, relieves convulsions, dissipates stasis and alleviates pain
Traditional Chinese Uses
Shan Yang Jiao is goat horn (from the domestic goat, Capra hircus), a salty, cold substance used among the Wind-extinguishing medicinals and acting mainly on the Liver. It calms the Liver and extinguishes Wind to relieve convulsions, and pacifies ascendant Liver Yang and Liver Fire: it is used for infantile convulsions and spasms, for high fever with tremor, and for headache, dizziness, and red, painful eyes from Liver Fire or Liver Yang rising. Its salty-cold nature also disperses stasis and alleviates pain.
It is the officially recommended, lower-cost, conservation-friendly substitute for antelope (saiga) horn, Ling Yang Jiao, and is generally used at a considerably higher dose because its potency is weaker. Because saiga is endangered and CITES-listed, goat horn is the appropriate everyday choice. It is decocted (often long) or powdered, within formulas, under professional guidance.
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Botanical Description
Shan Yang Jiao (山羊角), goat horn, is an animal drug, not a plant: the horn of the domestic goat Capra hircus Linnaeus (Bovidae). In classical materia medica the name also covers the horn of the wild goral Naemorhedus goral (Hardwicke) and related mountain bovids. Both sexes of the goat bear paired, backward-curving, ridged horns built on a bony core and sheathed in keratin, greyish to blackish and conical; the sheaths are removed, cleaned, softened and sliced or ground. Salty and cold, entering the Liver, the horn calms the Liver, extinguishes wind and relieves convulsions, dissipates stasis and eases pain. Since the 1970s farmed goat horn has served as a low-cost, conservation-friendly substitute for antelope horn (Ling Yang Jiao).
Domestic goat reared throughout China and Asia; goral source: forested rocky mountain slopes of the Himalaya and East Asia.
Active Constituents
Keratins (alpha-keratins and keratin-associated proteins)
Structural fibrous proteinConcentration: the dominant organic fraction of the horn sheath; in simulated gastrointestinal digestion over 58% of all identified peptides were released from keratins
Goat horn is a keratinous sheath, chemically the same class of material as sheep, cattle, water buffalo and saiga horn, and there is no small-molecule active characterised in it. Liu et al. (2019) showed that the peptides liberated from goat-horn keratin under simulated gastric and intestinal digestion, and their release profile, closely resemble those from Saiga antelope horn, and that over 75% of the keratin-derived peptides are hydrophilic. This peptide-release similarity is the main published argument for goat horn as a substitute for the endangered Saiga horn.
Transglutaminase, desmocollin and elongation factors
Horn proteome trait proteinsConcentration: not quantified in absolute terms; used as discriminating proteins in iTRAQ quantitative proteomics of 591 identified/321 quantified horn proteins
Liu et al. (2018) selected these proteins as trait components separating the horn proteomes of endangered species (rhinoceros, Saiga antelope, Tibetan antelope) from common species (yak, water buffalo, goat). They are of interest for authentication and substitution research rather than as pharmacologically active principles.
Calcium phosphate and other inorganic salts
Inorganic mineralConcentration: not reliably quantified in the peer-reviewed literature retrieved
The mineral fraction of the horn. No pharmacological activity has been attributed to it specifically, and any calcium delivered by a 3-9 g decoction dose of shavings is trivial.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Saiga antelope horn (Ling Yang Jiao, Saigae Tataricae Cornu) - substitution and adulteration
Goat horn (Caprae Hircus Cornu) is openly used in Chinese clinical practice and industry as a substitute for Saiga antelope horn, which comes from a CITES Appendix II species. Chen et al. (2015), using DNA barcoding on material traded as Lingyangjiao, report that domestic goat and domestic sheep DNA has been detected in bottles of Lingyangjiao powder, and that a range of gazelle and antelope species are traded under the single trade name. Liu et al. (2016, 2018, 2019) supply the scientific case for the substitution on proteomic and peptidomic grounds. The two drugs are therefore routinely interchanged, but they are not the same species and the classical literature does not treat them as interchangeable.
Clinical note: Treat Shan Yang Jiao and Ling Yang Jiao as separate entries and require species-level authentication (DNA barcoding or proteomic markers) for any material sold as Saiga horn. If a formula calls for Ling Yang Jiao, decide and record explicitly whether goat horn is being used in its place. Do not assume equivalent potency.
Warfarin, direct oral anticoagulants and antiplatelet agents
Luo et al. (2011) measured plasma recalcification time, thrombin time and in vitro thrombus dissolution across medicinal animal horns and shells, and reported that Cornu Caprae Hircus prolonged clotting times and dissolved thrombus in vitro, concluding it is a rational substitute for Cornu Saigae Tataricae. Liu et al. (2016), evaluating seven animal horns for antipyretic, sedative and procoagulant activity, reported procoagulant effects across all seven horns tested. These are in vitro and animal-level findings pointing in opposite directions, with no human pharmacokinetic or coagulation data, so neither direction can be relied upon.
Clinical note: There is no human evidence either way. Do not use goat horn as a haemostatic or as an antithrombotic. In a patient on warfarin or an antiplatelet agent, treat the coagulation effect as unknown rather than absent, and monitor INR if it is added to or removed from a long-standing formula.
Antipyretics and antiepileptic drugs
Goat horn is prescribed for the same indications as Saiga horn - hyperpyretic convulsion, childhood fever with fright - but the comparative bioactivity data are modest. Liu et al. (2016) found antipyretic and sedative effects across all seven horns tested, but the substitution case for goat horn rests mainly on proteomic and peptidomic similarity to Saiga horn rather than on demonstrated equivalent efficacy. No controlled human trial of goat horn exists.
Clinical note: Do not let goat horn displace or delay conventional antipyretic and anticonvulsant management in a febrile convulsing child. It has no established independent efficacy in humans.
Dosage Calculator
⚖ Dosage Calculator
A weight-based mathematical estimate for Shan Yang Jiao. Not a prescription.
Evidence Tier
Moderate evidence · 5 studiesRecorded studies by study design, strongest design at the top. This is a study-design tier only, not a GRADE rating: it does not weigh risk of bias, consistency or precision.
Systematic review / meta-analysis
0
Randomized controlled trial
0
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
5
4 verified · 1 unverified
Show 5 studies
- Comparison of the peptidome released from keratins in Saiga antelope horn and goat horn under simulated gastrointestinal digestion
- Available sustainable alternatives replace endangered animal horn based on their proteomic analysis and bio-effect evaluation
- Further evidence for sustainable alternatives to replace threatened animal horn based on quantitative proteomic analysis
- Substitutes for endangered medicinal animal horns and shells exposed by antithrombotic and anticoagulation effects
- Identification of ungulates used in a traditional Chinese medicine with DNA barcoding technology
Other / unclassified
0
Verified: design read from PubMed for a DOI that resolves to the cited paper Unverified: taken from the study's recorded description
Clinical Studies
Comparison of the peptidome released from keratins in Saiga antelope horn and goat horn under simulated gastrointestinal digestion
Peptides released from Saiga antelope horn and goat horn under simulated gastric and intestinal digestion were identified by mass spectrometry. Over 58% of identified peptides came from keratins, and over 75% of keratin-derived peptides were hydrophilic. The peptide features and release profiles from keratins in the two horns were similar, which the authors present as evidence for the feasibility of using goat horn in place of the threatened Saiga horn. This is a digestion-simulation study, not a demonstration of clinical equivalence.
Available sustainable alternatives replace endangered animal horn based on their proteomic analysis and bio-effect evaluation
Seven types of animal horn were assessed for antipyretic, sedative and procoagulant activity, alongside shotgun proteomics of soluble and insoluble fractions with over 200 proteins identified per sample. All seven horns showed antipyretic, sedative and procoagulant effects. Principal component analysis of the protein profiles placed yak horn and water buffalo horn close to rhinoceros horn, and goat horn close to Saiga antelope horn, which is the basis of the authors' recommendation of goat horn as the sustainable alternative for Saiga horn.
Further evidence for sustainable alternatives to replace threatened animal horn based on quantitative proteomic analysis
iTRAQ quantitative proteomics compared horns of endangered species (rhinoceros, Saiga antelope, Tibetan antelope) with those of common species (yak, water buffalo, goat). 591 proteins were identified and 321 quantified. Clustering resolved three major groups, with transglutaminase, desmocollin and elongation factors selected as trait components distinguishing species. The work supports proteomic profiling as an authentication and substitution tool; it does not test therapeutic effect.
Substitutes for endangered medicinal animal horns and shells exposed by antithrombotic and anticoagulation effects
Plasma recalcification time, thrombin time, thrombin consumption, in vitro thrombus dissolution and whole blood-gore assays were used to compare medicinal animal horns and shells. Most materials tested, including Cornu Caprae Hircus, prolonged recalcification and thrombin times and dissolved thrombus in vitro; argali horn, Cornu Saigae Tataricae and cattle horn did not. On this basis the authors propose goat horn as a substitute for Saiga antelope horn, water buffalo horn for yak horn and Trionycis Carapax for pangolin scale. Note that the anticoagulant direction reported here conflicts with the procoagulant activity reported by Liu et al. (2016).
Identification of ungulates used in a traditional Chinese medicine with DNA barcoding technology
DNA barcoding was applied to horn material traded under the single Chinese trade name Lingyangjiao, covering Saiga antelope, Tibetan antelope, Tibetan gazelle, Mongolian gazelle, Przewalski's gazelle, goitered gazelle, domestic goat and domestic sheep. The authors note that domestic sheep and domestic goat DNA has been detected in bottles of commercial Lingyangjiao powder, establishing that goat horn reaches the market as an undeclared component of antelope-horn products, and that molecular authentication is needed to tell these drugs apart.
Historical Texts
Ben Cao Gang Mu
Ming dynasty (1596)References
- Jiao-yang Luo, Dan Yan, Jing-yuan Song, Da Zhang, Xiao-yan Xing, Yu-mei Han, Mei-hua Yang, Xiao-ping Dong, Cheng Peng, Shi-lin Chen, Xiao-he Xiao. A strategy for trade monitoring and substitution of the organs of threatened animals . Scientific Reports (2013) [DOI]
- Rui Liu, Fei Wang, Qiong Huang, Jin-ao Duan, Pei Liu, Erxin Shang, Dong Zhu, Hongmei Wen, Dawei Qian. Available sustainable alternatives replace endangered animal horn based on their proteomic analysis and bio-effect evaluation . Scientific Reports (2016) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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