Chun Pi
StarAilanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle
Traditionally used for
- Bowel health
- Menstrual & women's health
Cautions & contraindications
- Toxic — professional use only
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and dries Dampness; Astringes to Stop Vaginal Discharge; Astringes the Intestines and Stops Diarrhea; Stops Bleeding; Expels Parasites
Traditional Chinese Uses
Chun Pi (ailanthus bark, tree of heaven bark) is a cold, astringent herb used primarily to clear Damp-Heat from the Intestines and Lower Burner. It is effective for bloody diarrhea or dysentery with mucus from Intestinal Damp-Heat, and it stops excessive vaginal discharge caused by Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner. Its astringent quality also makes it useful for stopping abnormal bleeding, including uterine hemorrhage and blood in the stool.
Western Herbalism Properties
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Ailanthus altissima, the tree-of-heaven, is a fast-growing deciduous tree in the family Simaroubaceae, native to northern and central China and Taiwan and widely introduced (and invasive) across North America, Europe, and Australasia. Mature trees reach 15–25 m with smooth grey bark and stout pithy twigs bearing large alternate odd-pinnate leaves 30–90 cm long with 11–25 ovate-lanceolate leaflets, each with one or two glandular basal teeth that emit a strong unpleasant odor when crushed. The species is dioecious; flowers are small, yellow-green, in large terminal panicles, and the fruit is a twisted reddish samara about 4 cm long with the seed in the center. Chun Pi is the dried bark of the root or trunk, scraped of outer corky layer, sliced, and sun-dried. In TCM it is bitter, astringent, and cold, clearing damp-heat and astringing the intestines and lower jiao to stop chronic dysentery, vaginal discharge, and uterine bleeding.
Active Constituents
Ailanthone
C20 quassinoid (degraded triterpenoid)The most characteristic and most active constituent of the bark. Quassinoids of this type are potent inhibitors of protein synthesis, which explains both the antiproliferative and antiparasitic activity reported for the bark and the fact that the crude drug becomes toxic above conventional doses. It is also the principal phytotoxin the tree uses against competing plants.
1-Methoxycanthin-6-one
Canthin-6-one alkaloid (beta-carboline derived)One of the main alkaloids of the bark and, with ailanthone, one of the two potent phytotoxins of the species. Canthinones of this series carry the antimicrobial and antiproliferative activity attributed to the drug.
9-Hydroxycanthin-6-one
Canthin-6-one alkaloid (beta-carboline derived)Isolated from the stem bark and the most cytotoxic of thirteen compounds screened from the ethyl acetate fraction against ovarian cancer lines. It triggers caspase-3, -8 and -9 dependent apoptosis through reactive oxygen species, and suppresses M2 polarisation of tumour-associated macrophages.
Canthin-6-one and its glycosides
Canthin-6-one alkaloids and their glucosidesCanthin-6-one itself and glycosylated derivatives such as canthin-6-one-1-O-beta-D-apiofuranosyl-(1 to 2)-beta-D-glucopyranoside occur in the stem bark. The class has documented antifungal, antiproliferative and gastroprotective activity in vitro.
Shinjulactones and related quassinoids (including ailanthinone)
QuassinoidsA large family of further degraded triterpenoids in the root and stem bark. They contribute to the intense bitterness of the drug, which is the main organoleptic check that genuine Ailanthus bark has been supplied, and they are collectively responsible for the dose-related toxicity of the crude drug.
Terpenylated (prenylated) coumarins
Prenylated coumarinsA structurally distinctive group repeatedly isolated from both stem and root bark of this species alongside tetracyclic triterpenoids. They are useful chemotaxonomic markers separating true Ailanthi Cortex from the Meliaceae barks sold under the same Chinese name.
Phenylpropanoids and lignans
Phenylpropanoids and lignansSeven phenylpropanoids and a lignan have been characterised from the stem bark and screened for inhibition of LPS-induced nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 macrophages, which supports the traditional use of the bark for damp-heat intestinal inflammation.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Toona sinensis bark (Xiang Chun Pi) supplied or substituted as Chun Pi
Two unrelated trees share the Chinese name element chun: the fragrant chun, Toona sinensis (Meliaceae), and the stinking chun or chu, Ailanthus altissima (Simaroubaceae). Both have historically been sold as Chun Pi or Chun Bai Pi, and commercial markets still mix them. The 2020 Chinese Pharmacopoeia defines Ailanthi Cortex as Ailanthus altissima bark only. The Toona bark contains none of the quassinoids or canthinone alkaloids on which the actions of this monograph depend, so a substituted batch is pharmacologically inert with respect to the intended prescription while a genuine batch carries the quassinoid dose-toxicity.
Clinical note: Check the material: Ailanthus bark is greyish-yellow to yellow-brown with a rancid oily smell on breaking and an intensely bitter taste, and its cross-section is granular outside and fibrous inside. Toona bark is reddish-brown, faintly fragrant, bland, and peels in fibrous layers. A batch of Chun Pi that is not bitter is not Ailanthus.
Other quassinoid-containing herbs, notably Brucea javanica (Ya Dan Zi) and Picrasma quassioides (Ku Mu)
All three are Simaroubaceae and their toxicity converges on the same class of protein-synthesis-inhibiting quassinoids. The comprehensive review of the bark states plainly that although it is safe at conventional doses it becomes toxic at higher doses because of the quassinoids, and that its toxicology remains under-studied. Stacking two Simaroubaceae drugs in one formula silently raises the total quassinoid dose without raising the dose of either single herb.
Clinical note: Do not combine Chun Pi with Ya Dan Zi or Ku Mu, keep to Pharmacopoeia doses, and avoid prolonged courses. Stop the herb if nausea or abdominal pain appears.
Emetogenic and gastric-irritant drugs (NSAIDs, oral corticosteroids, cytotoxic chemotherapy)
Quassinoid toxicity at higher doses of this bark presents first as gastrointestinal upset, which is the same presentation these drugs produce. The overlap is a problem of recognition as much as of pharmacology: the early warning of a too-large Chun Pi dose is lost in the drug's own side-effect profile.
Clinical note: In a patient already on a gastric irritant, start at the low end of the range and instruct the patient to report any new or worsening nausea rather than assuming it is the drug.
Topical and occupational contact with fresh Ailanthus sap in sensitised patients
A tree surgeon exposed to Ailanthus sap on both forearms for several hours developed multiple blackening, non-blanching skin lesions, and two earlier contact dermatitis cases are recorded in the literature. The relevant exposure for practice is dispensary handling of fresh or poorly dried bark, not the decoction.
Clinical note: Handle raw bark with gloves. This is a cutaneous hazard for staff rather than a hazard of the finished decoction.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 6–9 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】6～9g。 【性味与归经】苦、涩，寒。归大肠、胃、肝经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
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
1
1 verified · 0 unverified
In vitro / animal
4
2 verified · 2 unverified
Show 4 studies
- Investigation of the mechanism of Bark of Ailanthus altissima in the treatment of ulcerative colitis based on network pharmacology and experimental verification
- Virtual screening–molecular docking–activity evaluation of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) swingle bark in the treatment of ulcerative colitis
- 9-Hydroxycanthin-6-one isolated from stem bark of Ailanthus altissima induces ovarian cancer cell apoptosis and inhibits the activation of tumor-associated macrophages
- Constituents of the stem barks of Ailanthus altissima and their potential to inhibit LPS-induced nitric oxide production
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
Investigation of the mechanism of Bark of Ailanthus altissima in the treatment of ulcerative colitis based on network pharmacology and experimental verification
UPLC-MS/MS plus SwissADME identified 223 active compounds in the bark and network pharmacology pointed at PI3K/AKT. In DSS-induced colitis in mice the bark extract reduced colonic injury and disease activity index scores, restored weight, lowered TNF-alpha, IL-1beta and IL-6, and inhibited PI3K/AKT signalling on Western blot. This is the closest modern support for the classical indication of clearing heat and drying damp in the intestines, but it is a mouse model, not a clinical trial.
Virtual screening–molecular docking–activity evaluation of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) swingle bark in the treatment of ulcerative colitis
A computational screen of bark constituents against ulcerative colitis targets, followed by activity evaluation of the hits. It is hypothesis-generating work from the same group that later ran the mouse experiment, and should be read as target prioritisation rather than as evidence of clinical effect.
9-Hydroxycanthin-6-one isolated from stem bark of Ailanthus altissima induces ovarian cancer cell apoptosis and inhibits the activation of tumor-associated macrophages
Of thirteen compounds isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction of A. altissima stem bark, the beta-carboline alkaloid 9-hydroxycanthin-6-one was cytotoxic to all three ovarian cancer cell lines tested, inducing caspase-3, -8 and -9 dependent apoptosis via reactive oxygen species (abolished by N-acetylcysteine) and suppressing M2 markers, MMP-2, MMP-9 and VEGF in tumour-educated macrophages.
Constituents of the stem barks of Ailanthus altissima and their potential to inhibit LPS-induced nitric oxide production
Three new canthinone-type alkaloid glycosides were isolated from the stem bark along with four quassinoids, seven phenylpropanoids and a lignan, and all fifteen isolates were screened against LPS-induced nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 macrophages. The paper is the reference point for what is actually present in the stem bark as opposed to the root bark.
Surgery for a tree surgeon? Acute presentation of contact dermatitis due to Ailanthus altissima
A tree surgeon whose forearms were in contact with Ailanthus altissima sap for several hours presented with multiple blackening, non-blanching areas of skin and was referred for a surgical opinion. The authors note two previous contact dermatitis cases in the literature, neither with acute photographic documentation.
Historical Texts
Xin Xiu Ben Cao (Tang Ben Cao)
Tang dynasty (659)Chinese Pharmacopoeia, 2020 edition
Modern (People's Republic of China)References
- Li X, Li Y, Ma S, Zhao Q, Wu J, Duan L, Xie Y, Wang S. Traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle bark: A comprehensive review . Journal of Ethnopharmacology (2021) [DOI]
- Kim HM, Lee JS, Sezirahiga J, Kwon J, Jeong M, Lee D, Choi JH, Jang DS. A New Canthinone-Type Alkaloid Isolated from Ailanthus altissima Swingle . Molecules (2016) [DOI]
- Hong ZL, Xiong J, Wu SB, Zhu JJ, Hong JL, Zhao Y, Xia G, Hu JF. Tetracyclic triterpenoids and terpenylated coumarins from the bark of Ailanthus altissima (“Tree of Heaven”) . Phytochemistry (2013) [DOI]
- Yan ZY, Lv TM, Wang YX, Shi SC, Chen JJ, Lin B, Liu QB, Huang XX, Song SJ. Terpenylated coumarins from the root bark of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle . Phytochemistry (2020) [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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