Huai Jiao
StarSophora japonica L. (syn. Styphnolobium japonicum (L.) Schott)
Traditionally used for
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Eye health
- Bowel health
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and Drains Fire; Cools the Blood and Stops Bleeding; Clears Liver Heat; Moistens the Intestines and Unblocks the Bowels
Traditional Chinese Uses
Huai Jiao (sophora fruit, pagoda tree fruit) is a cold, bitter herb with a primary affinity for the Large Intestine channel, where it cools Blood Heat and stops bleeding. It is used for hemorrhoidal bleeding, rectal bleeding from Damp-Heat, and other Large Intestine bleeding conditions from blood Heat. It also clears Liver Fire for red, painful eyes, headache, and dizziness. As the fruit of the same tree that yields Huai Hua Mi (sophora flower bud), it shares similar channel affinities but has a stronger, more astringent action.
Western Herbalism Properties
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Styphnolobium japonicum (syn. Sophora japonica), the Japanese pagoda tree or Huai, is a deciduous tree in the Fabaceae family, native to China and Korea and widely planted as a street and ornamental tree across temperate regions. It reaches 10-25 m with a broad rounded crown and dark gray, fissured bark. Pinnately compound leaves bear 7-17 ovate-lanceolate leaflets 2-6 cm long, with a pale glaucous undersurface. Creamy yellow-white pea-shaped flowers are borne in large terminal panicles 15-30 cm long in mid to late summer. Huai Jiao is the dried mature legume pod, indehiscent, constricted between seeds like beads.
Active Constituents
Sophoricoside
Isoflavone glycoside (genistein 4'-O-beta-D-glucoside)Concentration: a principal isoflavone of the ripe fruit; no reliable percentage of the crude drug is established in the sources consulted
The characteristic isoflavone of the fruit rather than of the flower. It was isolated from fresh fruits by activity-guided fractionation as the most potent interleukin-5 inhibitor of the drug, with an IC50 of 1.5 micromolar in the mIL-5-dependent Y16 proliferation assay, about twenty times more potent than the oxyphenbutazone control. It is the glucoside of genistein and is deglycosylated to that aglycone before most of its systemic activity is expressed.
Sophorabioside
Isoflavone glycoside (genistein 4'-O-rutinoside)Described as abundant in the fruits and small branches, where it is more plentiful than sophoricoside itself. Removal of its terminal rhamnose by an alpha-L-rhamnosidase converts it to sophoricoside, which is the more bioavailable and more active form; this is the basis of enzymatic upgrading processes for fruit extracts.
Genistein
Isoflavone aglyconeThe aglycone released from sophoricoside and sophorabioside, and a well-characterised phytoestrogen. Together with sophoricoside it is absent from genuine Ginkgo biloba leaf, which is why the pair serve as the analytical markers for detecting sophora fruit in adulterated ginkgo extracts.
Genistin
Isoflavone glycoside (genistein 7-O-glucoside)Isolated from the seed. In MCF-7 cells it produced a significant estrogenic proliferative effect at sub-cytotoxic concentrations, with minimal membrane damage on LDH leakage assay, which is the main reason to treat this drug as hormonally active.
Sophoraflavonoloside
Flavonol glycoside (kaempferol 3-O-sophoroside)One of seven metabolites isolated from Sophora japonica seed alongside genistin, sophoricoside, sophorabioside and rutin. It is a flavonol rather than an isoflavone and contributes to the total flavonol glycoside content of the drug.
Rutin
Flavonol glycoside (quercetin 3-O-rutinoside)Present in the fruit, although the flower bud is the commercially exploited source of this compound. The fruit's flavone and flavonol glycoside content is precisely what makes it attractive as a cheap adulterant of standardised Ginkgo biloba extracts, which are specified on flavonol glycoside content.
Quercetin
FlavonolReported among the major active constituents of the species. It is an antioxidant and a weak phytoestrogen, and is one of the flavonoids for which potential drug interactions have been flagged in regulatory safety reviews of this plant.
Kaempferol
FlavonolReported among the major active constituents of the species, largely present as glycosides in the fruit. Contributes to the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory profile attributed to the drug.
Isorhamnetin
Flavonol (3'-O-methylquercetin)Listed among the major active constituents of Sophora japonica. It is a methylated quercetin derivative and part of the flavonol fraction of the fruit.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Ginkgo biloba leaf extract (adulteration of the ginkgo product with this herb)
Ginkgo biloba leaf extract is one of the most heavily traded herbal extracts and there have been repeated reports of adulteration of the leaf material or the extract with Styphnolobium japonicum fruit, which is rich in flavone glycosides and therefore cheaply satisfies the flavonol glycoside content specification. Bampali and colleagues analysed 33 authenticated ginkgo leaf samples from controlled plantations in China, the USA and France and confirmed that genuine ginkgo leaf contains neither genistein nor sophoricoside; both are therefore valid markers, and HPLC-UV/HRMS reliably detected adulteration at 2 percent or more of sophora fruit in the investigated ginkgo extract. This is the direction of substitution that matters commercially: sophora fruit goes into ginkgo, not the reverse.
Clinical note: If a patient reports taking ginkgo alongside or instead of this herb, the two may not be chemically distinct in the bottle. Prefer ginkgo products whose certificate of analysis reports genistein and sophoricoside as absent, and treat an unexplained isoflavone exposure as possible when a patient on ginkgo shows hormone-sensitive effects.
Tamoxifen, aromatase inhibitors and other endocrine therapy for hormone-sensitive cancer
The fruit and seed carry a substantial isoflavone load, and genistin, sophoricoside and genistein 7,4'-di-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside all produced significant estrogenic proliferative effects in MCF-7 breast cancer cells at sub-cytotoxic concentrations. Sophoricoside also showed anti-osteoporotic activity in ovariectomised rats after oral dosing at 15 and 30 mg/kg, which is consistent with systemic estrogen-receptor-mediated activity after oral administration. No human pharmacodynamic or clinical interaction study exists, so the direction and magnitude in a patient on endocrine therapy are unknown.
Clinical note: Avoid prescribing this drug long term to patients on tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor, and to patients with an estrogen-receptor-positive tumour, until human data exist. Short courses for acute bleeding are a different risk proposition from months of daily use.
Broad-spectrum antibiotics (effect on the herb, not on the antibiotic)
The dominant fruit constituents sophorabioside and sophoricoside are glycosides, and the aglycone genistein is the more bioavailable and more pharmacologically potent form. Deglycosylation is the activating step, and for isoflavone glycosides generally that step is carried out by intestinal microbial glycosidases. Antibiotic suppression of the gut flora would therefore be expected to reduce conversion. This has not been measured for Fructus Sophorae specifically and no clinical consequence has been reported.
Clinical note: No action is needed for safety. If the herb appears ineffective in a patient who has recently completed a course of broad-spectrum antibiotics, incomplete activation of the isoflavone glycosides is a plausible explanation rather than a wrong pattern diagnosis.
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，寒。归肝、大肠经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
Dui Yao — Herb Pairs
The classical two-herb combinations this herb appears in, each with an action neither herb has alone.
Together they clear Large Intestine heat and cool the blood to stop bleeding from the lower bowel.
Hemorrhoidal bleeding and bloody stools from intestinal wind and damp-heat.
Core pair of a classical formula — Huai Jiao Wan, Tai Ping Hui Min He Ji Ju Fang
Evidence Tier
Moderate evidence · 4 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
4
1 verified · 3 unverified
Show 4 studies
- Sophoricoside Analogs as the IL-5 Inhibitors from Sophora japonica
- Isolation of Antiosteoporotic Compounds from Seeds of Sophora japonica
- Sophoricoside, a genistein glycoside from Fructus Sophorae, promotes hair growth via activation of M4 muscarinic AChR in dermal papilla cells
- HPLC-UV/HRMS methods for the unambiguous detection of adulterations of Ginkgo biloba leaves with Sophora japonica fruits on an extract level
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
Sophoricoside Analogs as the IL-5 Inhibitors from Sophora japonica
Activity-guided fractionation of fresh fruits of Sophora japonica yielded sophoricoside, genistein, orobol and genistin as inhibitors of interleukin-5 in the mIL-5-dependent Y16 proliferation bioassay. Sophoricoside was the most potent, with 89 percent inhibition at 12.5 micromolar and an IC50 of 1.5 micromolar, against 31.7 micromolar for the oxyphenbutazone positive control. This is fruit material specifically, not the flower or bud.
Isolation of Antiosteoporotic Compounds from Seeds of Sophora japonica
Seven metabolites were isolated from Sophora japonica seeds: genistin, sophoricoside, sophorabioside, sophoraflavonoloside, genistein 7,4'-di-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, a kaempferol triglycoside and rutin. Genistin, sophoricoside and the genistein diglucoside showed significant estrogenic proliferative effects in MCF-7 cells at sub-cytotoxic concentrations with minimal LDH leakage. Sophoricoside was then tested orally at 15 and 30 mg/kg in ovariectomised rats and showed anti-osteoporotic activity. The estrogenic cell data are the most clinically relevant finding here.
Sophoricoside, a genistein glycoside from Fructus Sophorae, promotes hair growth via activation of M4 muscarinic AChR in dermal papilla cells
Fructus Sophorae extract and its marker isoflavone sophoricoside promoted hair growth signalling in cultured dermal papilla cells, an effect the authors attribute to allosteric activation of the M4 muscarinic acetylcholine receptor supported by molecular docking. The work is cell-based and preclinical and supports no clinical claim, but it is one of the few pharmacological studies performed on the fruit rather than on the flower or bud.
HPLC-UV/HRMS methods for the unambiguous detection of adulterations of Ginkgo biloba leaves with Sophora japonica fruits on an extract level
Thirty-three authenticated Ginkgo biloba leaf samples from controlled plantations in China, the USA and France were analysed by two HPLC-UV/HRMS methods. Genuine ginkgo leaf contained neither genistein nor sophoricoside, establishing both as valid markers for sophora fruit adulteration. The methods reliably detected adulteration at 2 percent or more of sophora fruits in the investigated ginkgo extract.
Historical Texts
Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing
Han dynastyBen Cao Gang Mu
Ming dynastyReferences
- He X, Bai Y, Zhao Z, Wang X, Fang J, Huang L, Zeng M, Zhang Q, Zhang Y, Zheng X. Local and traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of Sophora japonica L.: A review . Journal of Ethnopharmacology (2016) [DOI]
- Guo N, Chen Z, Cao SQ, Shang FD. Sophora japonica L. bioactives: Chemistry, sources, and processing techniques . Food Frontiers (2024) [DOI]
- Madden E, McLachlan C, Oketch-Rabah H, Calderón AI. United States Pharmacopeia comprehensive safety review of Styphnolobium japonicum flower and flower bud . Phytotherapy Research (2022) [DOI]
- Kang SH, Kim YS, Lee H, Shin KC. Biotransformation of Sophorabioside in the Fruits and Small Branches of Sophora japonica into Sophoricoside Using α-L-Rhamnosidase from Chloroflexus aurantiacus . Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology (2025) [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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