Qian Li Guang
StarSenecio scandens Buch.-Ham.
Traditionally used for
- Eye health
- Nose & throat
- Skin
- Liver & jaundice
Cautions & contraindications
- Pregnancy
- Young children
- Liver conditions
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and Resolves Toxicity; Clears Liver Heat and Brightens the Eyes; Drains Dampness; Kills Parasites and Stops Itching
Traditional Chinese Uses
Qian Li Guang (groundsel vine, senecio scandens) is a bitter, cold herb used in Chinese medicine to clear Heat toxin, cool the Blood, and resolve Damp-Heat. It is applied for eye conditions with inflammation, sore throat and tonsillitis from Heat toxin, jaundice from Damp-Heat, and inflammatory skin conditions. It also has applications for eczema and dermatitis when used topically. Its cooling, detoxifying properties make it useful where Heat toxin accumulation is the dominant pattern.
Western Herbalism Properties
Relationships
Full-screen graph →Click a node for details · double-click to expand it · Ctrl/⌘ + scroll or two fingers to zoom and pan.
Botanical Description
Senecio scandens is a climbing or scrambling semi-woody perennial in the Asteraceae, widely distributed in forest margins, thickets, and disturbed slopes across China, the Himalayas, Indochina, and Japan. The slender, ridged, sparsely pubescent stems are much-branched and can clamber over surrounding shrubs to 3-5 m. Alternate leaves are triangular-ovate to lance-ovate, 3-10 cm long, with shallowly toothed to sinuate margins and a tapering acute tip, often hastate at the base, glabrous to thinly pubescent. Numerous small yellow flower heads about 1 cm across, each with 8-10 ray florets and many disc florets, are borne in large loose terminal corymb-like compound inflorescences in autumn and winter. Fruits are small pubescent cylindrical achenes with white pappus bristles. The dried flowering aerial plant is Qian Li Guang.
Active Constituents
Adonifoline
Retronecine-type 1,2-unsaturated pyrrolizidine alkaloidConcentration: the marker and limit compound for Senecionis Scandentis Herba in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, whose content must be less than 0.004% of the herb; measured content varies by an order of magnitude between collection sites and between flowers, leaves, thick stems, slim stems and roots
The hepatotoxic alkaloid that defines the safety of this drug and the only one for which the Chinese Pharmacopoeia sets a numerical limit. It is not toxic as swallowed: hepatic cytochrome P450, chiefly CYP3A4, oxidises it to a reactive dehydropyrrolizidine that alkylates proteins and DNA in sinusoidal endothelial cells and hepatocytes. Those pyrrole-protein adducts accumulate with every exposure, which is why injury from this herb is cumulative and why hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome can declare itself weeks or months after the herb was stopped. Adonifoline is also the chemical fingerprint of the correct species: among Senecio plants investigated it was found only in Senecio scandens.
Seneciphylline
Retronecine-type 1,2-unsaturated pyrrolizidine alkaloidOne of four pyrrolizidine alkaloids prioritised as hepatotoxic in this species by network toxicology and LC-MS/MS fingerprinting of twelve samples. In spectrum-toxicity modelling of acute liver injury in vivo it showed the strongest association with hepatotoxicity of the alkaloids detected, and exposure disturbed lipid and bile acid metabolism, glutathione metabolism and the pentose phosphate pathway, with enrichment of cytochrome P450 xenobiotic metabolism and DNA-adduct carcinogenesis pathways. The authors caution that ranking potency properly needs equimolar pure-compound work.
Senecionine
Retronecine-type 1,2-unsaturated pyrrolizidine alkaloidConcentration: present at low level in genuine Senecio scandens but at high level in several congeners, notably Senecio vulgaris
The alkaloid that betrays an adulterated sample. Senecionine was detected in all eight Senecio species examined in one survey, whereas adonifoline occurred only in Senecio scandens, so a high senecionine to adonifoline ratio indicates that another, more alkaloid-laden Senecio has been supplied. Senecionine is the classical experimental cause of pyrrolizidine-induced hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome, acting through the same dehydropyrrolizidine bioactivation.
Senkirkine
Otonecine-type pyrrolizidine alkaloidAn otonecine-type alkaloid identified both in the raw herb and in the finished Qianbai Biyan tablet. Otonecine-type alkaloids are bioactivated to the same reactive pyrrolic species as the retronecine esters and are hepatotoxic in the same way, so their presence adds to, rather than substitutes for, the adonifoline burden that the Pharmacopoeia limit measures.
Hyperoside
Flavonol glycoside (quercetin 3-O-galactoside)Concentration: the flavonoid quality marker for the herb; in a survey of eighteen Hong Kong market samples only ten contained enough to meet the standard
Together with linarin, one of the two constituents shown to disrupt the outer membrane of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii by downregulating lptD and msbA, with an MIC of 312.5 µmol/L. It is a marker of adequate, not excessive, quality: a sample can be low in hyperoside and simultaneously over the adonifoline limit.
Linarin
Flavone glycoside (acacetin 7-O-rutinoside)Acts with hyperoside against multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, downregulating the membrane proteins lptD and msbA and compromising outer membrane integrity; the crude extract was bactericidal at 640 µg/mL in a concentration-dependent manner. This antibacterial fraction is the plausible basis of the traditional use in sores, conjunctivitis and dysentery.
Isoquercitrin
Flavonol glycoside (quercetin 3-O-glucoside)Identified as the pivotal bioactive compound of a twenty-flavonoid extract that restored lymphocyte proliferation, immunoglobulin levels and intestinal tight junction expression in cyclophosphamide-treated mice through TLR/MyD88/NF-kB signalling. Six of the twenty flavonoids, isoquercitrin among them, were detectable in blood after dosing.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Other pyrrolizidine-alkaloid-containing herbs (e.g. Gynura japonica / Tu San Qi, Tussilago farfara / Kuan Dong Hua, Petasites species, Symphytum officinale / comfrey)
Pyrrolizidine alkaloids are a leading cause of herb-induced liver injury in China, and pyrrolizidine-induced hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome accounts for the large majority of cases of that syndrome there. The injury is caused not by the alkaloid but by its cytochrome-P450-generated dehydropyrrolizidine metabolite, which forms pyrrole-protein adducts in sinusoidal endothelial cells; the endothelium sloughs, the sinusoids obstruct, and the patient presents with abdominal distension, ascites, hepatomegaly and portal hypertension. Because the adducts accumulate, the relevant exposure is the total alkaloid taken across all sources over time, and injury can present long after the last dose. The Pharmacopoeia limit of less than 0.004% adonifoline protects a daily dose of this herb alone; it offers no protection at all against a second alkaloid-bearing herb taken alongside it.
Clinical note: Never prescribe two pyrrolizidine-containing herbs together, and take an explicit history of self-collected or folk remedies, particularly Tu San Qi, which is the commonest cause of this syndrome in China. Avoid in pregnancy, in children and in any existing liver disease. Investigate new abdominal distension, ascites or right upper quadrant pain in a patient who has taken these herbs as hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome until proven otherwise, remembering that presentation may be months after exposure.
Proprietary preparations containing Senecio scandens (Qianbai Biyan tablets and capsules and at least nine other products)
Senecio scandens is the principal material of the Qianbai Biyan preparations used for rhinitis and sinusitis, and there is no adonifoline limit for preparations as there is for the raw herb. UPLC-MS analysis of fourteen preparations found eight containing adonifoline well above the limits set in Germany, the Netherlands and New Zealand, with the highest content, 156.10 µg per gram, in Qianbai Biyan tablets, giving a daily adonifoline intake of up to 1030.26 µg at the recommended dose. Content varied between batches of the same product. A patient taking a decoction containing Qian Li Guang while also using a Qianbai Biyan product receives the same alkaloids twice, and the accumulation is silent.
Clinical note: Ask specifically about Qianbai Biyan tablets and capsules and other proprietary rhinitis products before prescribing this herb, and count them towards total alkaloid exposure rather than treating them as unrelated.
Adulterated or substituted Qianliguang: Senecio vulgaris and other Senecio species, Lespedeza species, Achyranthes aspera, Lonicera confusa, Solanum nigrum
Of eighteen Qianliguang samples bought from Hong Kong herbal shops and authenticated by DNA barcoding at three loci, five were not Qianliguang at all but Lespedeza species, and four were mixtures containing Achyranthes aspera, Lonicera confusa or Solanum nigrum alongside the genuine herb. Nine of the eighteen exceeded the adonifoline toxicity limit. The authors concluded that market samples were either toxic or adulterated. Separately, metabolomic work distinguishing Senecio scandens from the morphologically similar Senecio vulgaris exists precisely because they are confused: Senecio vulgaris carries a high level of senecionine, so substituting it delivers a much larger hepatotoxic dose from an apparently identical herb.
Clinical note: Buy only authenticated material with a certificate of analysis for adonifoline; visual identification cannot distinguish this herb from Senecio vulgaris reliably, and the Lespedeza substitutes will simply not work. Treat unverified retail material as unsuitable for internal use.
Hepatotoxic drugs and hepatic stressors (e.g. paracetamol, methotrexate, isoniazid, azole antifungals, alcohol)
Acute exposure to Senecio scandens caused marked liver injury in vivo, with metabolomic disturbance of glutathione metabolism among the earliest changes. Glutathione is the main defence against the reactive pyrrolic metabolite, so anything that depletes it, from paracetamol to alcohol, removes the buffer that keeps a within-limit dose of this herb tolerable. Existing liver disease also reduces the reserve of sinusoidal endothelium available to lose.
Clinical note: Do not use in established liver disease, in heavy drinkers, or alongside a drug that requires liver-function monitoring in its own right. Where the herb is genuinely indicated, keep courses short and check transaminases if use is prolonged.
CYP3A4 inducers (e.g. rifampicin, carbamazepine, phenytoin, Hypericum perforatum / St John's wort)
Network toxicology of this species highlights CYP3A4 and CYP2C9, together with DNA-adduct pathways, as the toxicological nodes for its pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Since bioactivation rather than clearance is what makes these alkaloids toxic, induction of the responsible enzyme should in principle increase rather than decrease harm. No pharmacokinetic or clinical study has tested this for Senecio scandens, so the direction of effect is inferred from the metabolic route alone.
Clinical note: Treat as one more reason to avoid this herb in patients on enzyme-inducing drugs; there is nothing to monitor that would give early warning.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 15–30 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】15～30g。外用适量，煎水熏洗。 【性味与归经】苦，寒。归肺、肝经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
Evidence Tier
Strong evidence · 6 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
1
1 verified · 0 unverified
Randomized controlled trial
0
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
5
2 verified · 3 unverified
Show 5 studies
- Exploring the components of hepatotoxicity induced by Senecio scandens Buch.-Ham. based on integrated network toxicology, metabolomics, and in vivo experiments
- Multi-methodological approach for the Quality assessment of Senecionis scandentis Herba (Qianliguang) in the herbal market
- [Quantification of hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloid adonifoline in traditional Chinese medicine preparations containing Senecionis Scandentis Herba].
- Linarin and Hyperoside Inhibit lptD/msbA to Disrupt Membranes of Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii
- Flavonoid Extract of Senecio scandens Buch.-Ham. Ameliorates CTX-Induced Immunosuppression and Intestinal Damage via Activating the MyD88-Mediated Nuclear Factor-κB Signaling Pathway
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 components of hepatotoxicity induced by Senecio scandens Buch.-Ham. based on integrated network toxicology, metabolomics, and in vivo experiments
Network toxicology and molecular docking prioritised seneciphylline, senecionine, adonifoline and senkirkine as the hepatotoxic alkaloids of this species, with CYP3A4 and CYP2C9 and DNA-adduct pathways as the toxicological nodes. LC-MS/MS fingerprints of twelve samples showed considerable regional variation in alkaloid levels. Acute exposure caused marked liver injury in vivo, and spectrum-toxicity modelling identified seneciphylline as the alkaloid most strongly associated with hepatotoxicity among those detected. Liver metabolomics showed disturbance of lipid and bile acid metabolism, glutathione metabolism and the pentose phosphate pathway, with enrichment of cytochrome P450 xenobiotic metabolism and DNA-adduct carcinogenesis pathways, the canonical signature of pyrrolizidine bioactivation. The authors note that definitive potency ranking requires equimolar pure-compound work.
Multi-methodological approach for the Quality assessment of Senecionis scandentis Herba (Qianliguang) in the herbal market
Eighteen Qianliguang samples bought from Hong Kong herbal shops were authenticated organoleptically and by DNA barcoding at psbA-trnH, ITS2 and rbcL, assayed for hyperoside by HPLC-UV and for the toxic alkaloid adonifoline by UPLC-MS, and tested against Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Five samples were Lespedeza species rather than Qianliguang and four were mixtures containing Achyranthes aspera, Lonicera confusa or Solanum nigrum. Only ten met the hyperoside standard, while nine exceeded the adonifoline toxicity limit. Genuine samples inhibited both bacteria; the Lespedeza substitutes largely did not. The authors' conclusion is blunt: market samples were either toxic or adulterated.
[Quantification of hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloid adonifoline in traditional Chinese medicine preparations containing Senecionis Scandentis Herba].
Fourteen finished preparations containing Senecionis Scandentis Herba were analysed by UPLC-MS. The Chinese Pharmacopoeia limits adonifoline to less than 0.004% in the raw herb but gives no guidance for preparations. Eight of the fourteen contained adonifoline far above the limits set in Germany, the Netherlands and New Zealand. The highest content, 156.10 µg per gram, was in Qianbai Biyan tablets, which are themselves officially recorded in the Pharmacopoeia, giving a daily adonifoline intake of up to 1030.26 µg at the recommended dose; content varied between batches of the same product. The authors call for the raw-herb content limit to be extended to preparations.
Senecio scandens Buch. - Ham.: A comprehensive review of botany, phytochemistry, biological activity, toxicity, quality control, application, and practical domain
Systematic review of the literature on this species from 1972 to 2025. Over 200 constituents have been isolated, chiefly flavonoids, terpenoids and alkaloids, supporting anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant and antitumour activity, and the herb is used mainly for ocular and dermatological conditions. The review frames the central problem of the drug as the tension between that activity and the hepatorenal toxicity of its pyrrolizidine alkaloids, around which safety guidelines and dosage forms have gradually been built.
Linarin and Hyperoside Inhibit lptD/msbA to Disrupt Membranes of Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii
Crude extract of Senecio scandens was tested against ten clinical multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii isolates. It was bactericidal in a concentration-dependent way with an MIC of 640 µg/mL, disrupting cell wall and membrane integrity on electron microscopy. Proteomics cross-referenced with virulence and resistance databases implicated the membrane proteins msbA and lptD, and linarin and hyperoside were shown by docking and qPCR to downregulate them at 312.5 µmol/L. The work gives a concrete mechanism for the herb's antibacterial reputation, though at concentrations reached only locally.
Flavonoid Extract of Senecio scandens Buch.-Ham. Ameliorates CTX-Induced Immunosuppression and Intestinal Damage via Activating the MyD88-Mediated Nuclear Factor-κB Signaling Pathway
Twenty flavonoids were characterised in a flavonoid extract of Senecio scandens by UHPLC-Orbitrap MS, six of them detectable in blood. In cyclophosphamide-treated mice the extract at 80 to 320 mg/kg for seven days reduced weight loss and thymic and splenic atrophy, increased splenic T and B lymphocyte proliferation by 43.6% and 29.7%, normalised the CD4 to CD8 ratio and raised immunoglobulins, and restored intestinal tight junction proteins and secretory IgA while shifting the gut microbiota. Isoquercitrin was the pivotal constituent and TLR/MyD88/NF-kB the pathway. The extract studied is a flavonoid fraction, not the whole herb, so it does not speak to the alkaloid toxicity of a decoction.
⚠ Safety & Contraindications
- Pregnancy
- Young children
- Liver conditions
Contraindications
Its use is cautious in patients with deficiency-cold of the spleen and stomach.
Source: Xi S, Gong Y. Essentials of Chinese Materia Medica and Medical Formulas. Academic Press/Elsevier, 2017, pp. 53–72.
Historical Texts
Ben Cao Shi Yi
Tang dynasty (739 CE)Ben Cao Tu Jing
Northern Song dynasty (1061)Ben Cao Gang Mu
Ming dynasty (1596)References
- Zhang F, Wang CH, Wang W, Chen LX, Ma HY, Zhang CF, Zhang M, Bligh SWA, Wang ZT. Quantitative analysis by HPLC-MS2 of the pyrrolizidine alkaloid adonifoline in Senecio scandens . Phytochemical Analysis (2008) [DOI]
- Wang Y, Li Y, Cang S, Cai Q, Xu H, Wang Y, Liu R, Xu H, Li Q. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of pyrrolizidine alkaloids for the entire process quality control from Senecio scandens to Senecio scandens-containing preparations by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry . Journal of Mass Spectrometry (2020) [DOI]
- Yang M, Tan D, Lu A, Qin L, Wang C, Ling H, Lu Y, He Y. Identification and Simultaneous Determination of the Main Toxical Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids in a Compound Prescription of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Qianbai Biyan Tablet . International Journal of Analytical Chemistry (2021) [DOI]
- Xiong A, Yang L, Ji L, Wang Z, Yang X, Chen Y, Wang X, Wang C, Wang Z. UPLC-MS based metabolomics study on Senecio scandens and S. vulgaris: an approach for the differentiation of two Senecio herbs with similar morphology but different toxicity . Metabolomics (2012) [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.
📝 Notes
Public notes from the community and your own private notes on Qian Li Guang.
No notes yet.