Dan Zhu Ye
StarLophatherum gracile Brongn.
Traditionally used for
- Urinary & fluids
- Mood & calm
- Skin
Cautions & contraindications
- Pregnancy
- Bleeding disorders
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and Drains Fire; Eliminates Irritability and Relieves Thirst; Promotes Urination and Relieves Stranguria
Traditional Chinese Uses
Dan Zhu Ye (lophatherum herb, bamboo leaves of lophatherum) is a cold herb that clears Heat from the Heart channel through urination. It addresses the combination of Heart Heat with Small Intestine Heat — presenting as irritability, restlessness, mouth sores, thirst, and dark, painful urination. Lighter in action than other Heat-clearing diuretics, it is appropriate for mild to moderate conditions and can be used as a daily tea for heat-type discomfort in sensitive patients.
Western Herbalism Properties
Pharmacological Effects
- Antipyretic: Oral aqueous extract reduced yeast-induced fever in rats; in E. coli-induced fever in cats and rabbits 2 g/kg of the leaf had 83% of the activity of 3 mg/kg phenacetin; active principle water-soluble.
- Other effects: Decoction of 10 g had a weak diuretic effect in normal humans with increased urinary chloride; inhibited Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus hemolyticus in vitro (MIC 1:10).
Source: Zhu YP. Chinese Materia Medica: Chemistry, Pharmacology and Applications. Harwood Academic, 1998, p. 122.
Used In Formulas (14)
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Lophatherum gracile is a slender, tufted perennial grass in the Poaceae, native to East and Southeast Asia where it grows in the understorey of broadleaf forests, shaded slopes and roadside thickets from southern China and Japan to the Indian subcontinent. The plant forms loose clumps from a short rhizome that bears tuberous, fusiform root swellings, the latter forming part of the related medicinal Dan Zhu Ye Gen. Erect, slender, hollow culms reach 40 to 100 cm in height, bearing alternate, lanceolate to broadly lanceolate leaf blades 5 to 20 cm long and 1.5 to 3 cm wide, with prominent parallel veins, finely tapered apices and short petiole-like constrictions at the base, all glabrous and bright green. The inflorescence is a slender, open panicle 10 to 30 cm long bearing few, distantly spaced spikelets along the branches. Each spikelet is narrowly lanceolate, with conspicuous awn-tipped sterile lemmas. The dried leafy aerial parts gathered before flowering constitute Dan Zhu Ye.
Active Constituents
Isoorientin
Flavone C-glycosideOne of the three flavone C-glycosides identified as the key functional constituents of the herb, alongside orientin and isovitexin. Flavone C-glycosides are the dominant bioactive class of Lophatherum and carry much of its anti-inflammatory and antiviral activity.
C-glycosides resist acid and enzymatic hydrolysis, so they reach the circulation largely intact rather than being cleaved to the aglycone in the gut.
Orientin
Flavone C-glycosideA luteolin 8-C-glucoside and one of the three markers linked to the herb's effect on glucose and lipid handling in a type 2 diabetes model.
Vitexin
Flavone C-glycosideAn apigenin 8-C-glucoside reported among the flavonoids of the leaves; part of the flavone C-glycoside fraction responsible for the anti-inflammatory profile.
Isovitexin
Flavone C-glycosideAn apigenin 6-C-glucoside, one of the three key functional candidates identified across six batches of the herb by chemical profiling.
Swertiajaponin
Flavone C-glycoside (methylated)A methylated flavone C-glycoside listed among the flavonoids of Lophatheri Herba; more than forty flavonoids have been catalogued from the drug, predominantly flavone glycosides.
Luteolin
Flavone (aglycone)Identified as one of the flavonoid monomers most effective in the herb's pharmacology, together with isoorientin, luteolin-7-O-beta-D-glucoside and apigenin. It contributes to the NF-kB and MAPK inhibition seen with the total flavonoid extract.
Tricin
Methylated flavoneA dimethoxylated flavone characteristic of grasses and reported among the flavone constituents of Lophatherum.
Arundoin
Triterpenoid methyl ether (fernane type)One of four triterpenoids reported from the herb along with cylindrin, taraxerol and friedelin. These are lipophilic and largely absent from an aqueous decoction, so they contribute little to the classical preparation.
Cylindrin
TriterpenoidA triterpenoid of the aerial parts, co-occurring with arundoin; both are also found in related grasses.
Friedelin
Pentacyclic triterpene ketoneA triterpene ketone reported from the leaves.
Taraxerol
Triterpene alcoholReported among the four triterpenoids of the herb; taraxasterol has also been listed from the leaves.
Hydroxybenzoic acids
Phenolic acidSixteen phenolic acids have been characterised from Lophatheri Herba, hydroxybenzoic acids predominating. With the flavonoids they are held responsible for the diuretic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic actions of the drug.
beta-Sitosterol, stigmasterol and campesterol
PhytosterolSterols reported from the leaves; minor constituents with no established role in the drug's traditional actions.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Loop and thiazide diuretics (furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide)
Promoting urination is Dan Zhu Ye's principal classical action and a diuretic effect is one of the pharmacological actions consistently reported for leaf extracts, attributed to the flavonoid and phenolic acid fraction. Adding it to a pharmacological diuretic is expected to be additive.
Quantitative human data on the size of that effect are not available, so the interaction is graded on mechanism and the traditional use rather than on a measured interaction study.
Clinical note: Watch for dizziness, postural symptoms and hypokalaemia in older patients or those on a loop diuretic, particularly in hot weather. Avoid prolonged high-dose use alongside diuretic therapy.
Anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs
Antiplatelet activity of the Lophatherum gracile extract has been characterised in a dedicated study, so the herb is not pharmacologically inert with respect to haemostasis. The magnitude relative to a therapeutic antiplatelet drug is unknown and no human data exist.
Clinical note: No routine restriction at ordinary doses of 6-10 g, but mention the theoretical additive effect to patients on dual antiplatelet therapy.
Oral hypoglycaemics and insulin
In a type 2 diabetes model, Lophatherum gracile extract improved glucose and lipid metabolic dysfunction, acting through a gut microbiota to short-chain fatty acid to inflammatory response axis with TLR4/NF-kB inhibition; isoorientin, orientin and isovitexin were the candidate actives. Older pharmacological reports also describe hyperglycaemic and hypoglycaemic effects of leaf extracts, so the direction is not entirely settled.
The evidence is animal-level only.
Clinical note: Ask diabetic patients to monitor capillary glucose for the first fortnight of an extended course; no change needed for short courses.
Zhu Ye and other true-bamboo drugs (Phyllostachys leaf, Zhu Ru, Tian Zhu Huang)
Dan Zhu Ye is Lophatherum gracile, a small perennial grass of the Poaceae. It is not a bamboo, and it is not the source of Zhu Ye (bamboo leaf, Phyllostachys), Zhu Ru (the culm shavings) or Tian Zhu Huang (bamboo tabasheer), which are separate drugs with separate indications.
The conflation is entrenched enough that Lophatherum gracile is treated as a medicinal bamboo in some of the review literature, and bamboo leaf extract studies are occasionally read across to it. They should not be.
Clinical note: Confirm the binomial when sourcing, and do not accept bamboo-leaf research or bamboo-leaf material as evidence for or substitute for Dan Zhu Ye.
Use in pregnancy
Standard Chinese materia medica practice contraindicates Dan Zhu Ye in pregnancy, and cautions its use in spleen and stomach deficiency-cold, where its cold, draining nature is held to damage spleen yang. There is no modern reproductive toxicology on this herb either supporting or refuting the traditional prohibition.
Clinical note: Avoid in pregnancy in line with conventional practice. Use cautiously and briefly in patients with cold-pattern digestive weakness or profuse clear urination.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 6–10 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】6～10g。 【性味与归经】甘、淡，寒。归心、胃、小肠经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
Evidence Tier
Limited evidence · 2 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
2
1 verified · 1 unverified
Show 2 studies
- Exploring the anti-inflammatory effects of total flavonoids from L. gracile on LPS-induced inflammation: An integrated approach combining network pharmacology, molecular docking, and experimental validation
- Bioactive Component Screening and Mechanistic Study of the Anti-Diabetic Activity of Lophatherum gracile Brongn Extract
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
Exploring the anti-inflammatory effects of total flavonoids from L. gracile on LPS-induced inflammation: An integrated approach combining network pharmacology, molecular docking, and experimental validation
Around 36 compounds were identified in a total flavonoid extract of Lophatherum gracile by mass spectrometry, and network pharmacology found 103 shared targets with inflammation. Quercetin, kaempferol and luteolin docked well with TNF, IL-6 and IL-1beta. In LPS-stimulated cells and in mice the extract suppressed the rise in inflammatory cytokines while limiting the fall in IL-10, and Western blotting showed reduced p65, phospho-p65, phospho-IkB-alpha, p38 and phospho-p38, indicating inhibition of the NF-kB and MAPK pathways.
This supports the classical clearing-heat action mechanistically, but it is a preclinical study; there are no controlled human trials of this herb.
Bioactive Component Screening and Mechanistic Study of the Anti-Diabetic Activity of Lophatherum gracile Brongn Extract
Thirty-nine characteristic components were identified across six batches of the herb, with isoorientin, orientin and isovitexin selected as the key functional candidates. In type 2 diabetes models the extract improved glucose and lipid metabolic dysfunction. Untargeted metabolomics showed altered lipid and carbon metabolism, and microbiota analysis showed a lowered Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio, increased Lactobacillales and Bacteroides, and raised short-chain fatty acids, particularly acetic and butyric acid, with TLR4/NF-kB inhibition downstream.
⚠ Safety & Contraindications
- Pregnancy
- Bleeding disorders
Contraindications
It is not suitable for patients with deficiency-cold of the spleen and stomach since it is cold in nature.
Source: Xi S, Gong Y. Essentials of Chinese Materia Medica and Medical Formulas. Academic Press/Elsevier, 2017, pp. 37–43.
Historical Texts
Ben Cao Gang Mu (Li Shizhen)
Ming dynasty, 1596References
- Zhi Li, Zheng-Fang Wu, Qian-Lan Wu, Xin Guo, Ya-Fang Shang, Shao-Hua Yang, Xiang-Li Niu, Kiran Thakur, Yi-Long Ma, Zhao-Jun Wei. Lophatherum gracile Brongn.: A review on phytochemistry, bioactivity and food applications . Food Chemistry Advances (2024) [DOI]
- Bin Yao, Meng Zhang, Shaolei Zhao, Hongjian Yu, Jingze Zhang, Dailin Liu. Research and utilization status of Lophatherum gracile: A medicinal and food homologous plant . Chinese Herbal Medicines (2025) [DOI]
- Zheng-Yue Yuan, Dong-Mei Yang, Xiao-Yu Hu, Yi-Long Ma, Qian Jiang, Yang Deng, Feng-Wu Qiu. Antiplatelet activity and underlying mechanisms of the lophatherum gracile brongn. Extract . Food Bioscience (2025) [DOI]
- Jing Zhang, Ying Wang, Xiao-Qi Zhang, Qing-Wen Zhang, Wen-Cai Ye. Chemical Constituents from the Leaves of Lophatherum gracile . Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines (2010) [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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