Ren Dong Teng
StarLonicera japonica Thunb.
Traditionally used for
- Colds & fever
- Pain & joints
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and Resolves Toxicity; Dispels Wind-Dampness; Unblocks the Channels and Collaterals; Cools the Blood
Traditional Chinese Uses
Ren Dong Teng (honeysuckle vine, lonicera stem) is a cool herb that clears Heat toxin and opens the channels and collaterals. Its Heat-clearing action is applied for febrile illness and inflammatory conditions similar to its flowers (Jin Yin Hua), while its channel-opening quality makes it additionally useful for Wind-Hot bi syndrome — arthritis and joint pain with heat, redness, and swelling. It is gentle and can be taken in larger doses for acute inflammatory joint conditions.
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Lonicera japonica, Japanese honeysuckle, is a vigorous, semi-evergreen woody climbing vine of the family Caprifoliaceae, native to East Asia and widely naturalized elsewhere. The slender, twining stems are pubescent when young and become hollow and woody with age, climbing to 6 meters or more over trees, fences, and shrubs. Leaves are opposite, ovate to oblong, 3 to 8 cm long, entire and softly hairy beneath. Fragrant tubular flowers are borne in axillary pairs, opening white and aging to yellow over one to two days; the corolla is bilabiate with a long tube. Small purple-black berries follow in late summer. The slender vining stem with attached leaves, collected in autumn or winter, is the part used as Ren Dong Teng.
Active Constituents
Chlorogenic acid
Caffeoylquinic acid (phenolic ester)Concentration: the principal phenolic acid of the dried stem, but present at markedly lower levels than in the flower bud (Jin Yin Hua) of the same plant
The characteristic marker constituent of Lonicerae Japonicae Caulis and the compound on which its pharmacopoeial assay rests. It is antioxidant and anti-inflammatory in cell and rodent models, but in the stem it is accompanied by a larger share of dicaffeoylquinic acids than in the flower.
Isochlorogenic acid A (3,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid)
Dicaffeoylquinic acid (phenolic ester)Identified by compound-knockout fractionation as one of the substances chiefly responsible for the anti-inflammatory activity of the stem; it down-regulates TNF-alpha and IL-6 mRNA in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages.
Isochlorogenic acid C (4,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid)
Dicaffeoylquinic acid (phenolic ester)Co-responsible with isochlorogenic acid A for the anti-inflammatory fraction of the stem, suppressing TNF-alpha and IL-6 transcription in macrophages.
Ochnaflavone
BiflavonoidThe main component of the biflavonoid-rich fraction of the stem; it down-regulates TNF-alpha and IL-6 mRNA in LPS-induced macrophages. Biflavonoids of this kind are a feature of the stem rather than the flower bud.
Loganin
Iridoid glycosideOne of the iridoids whose content differs significantly between the stem and the flower bud, and one of the markers used to tell the two drugs apart analytically.
Secoxyloganin
Secoiridoid glycosideA secoiridoid marker that differentiates Lonicerae Japonicae Caulis from Lonicerae Japonicae Flos in quantitative multi-constituent profiling.
Secologanic acid
SecoiridoidAmong the constituents found to differ most sharply in content between the stem and the flower bud of Lonicera japonica, and therefore useful for authenticating which part has been supplied.
Morroniside
Iridoid glycosideAn iridoid whose content separates stem from flower material in multivariate analysis of Lonicera japonica samples.
Luteoloside (cynaroside)
Flavone glycosideThe main flavone glycoside used as a discriminating marker between the caulis and the flos; luteolin is the corresponding aglycone.
Hederagenin glycosides
Oleanane triterpenoid saponinTriterpene saponins based on hederagenin and oleanolic acid are described in the stem. They contribute the saponin fraction that the flower bud has in much smaller measure, and are surface-active, which is relevant to gastric irritation on large decoction doses.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Lonicerae Japonicae Flos (Jin Yin Hua), the flower bud of the same plant
Both drugs come from Lonicera japonica Thunb., but they are separate pharmacopoeial entries taken from different organs. Simultaneous determination of 47 constituents across 44 batches of flower and stem showed that both the types and the contents of the constituents differ significantly, with secologanic acid, luteoloside, loganin, secoxyloganin and morroniside among the markers that separate them. The stem is the far cheaper material, which is what drives the substitution.
Clinical note: Ren Dong Teng and Jin Yin Hua are not interchangeable. Confirm which organ has been supplied; stem material is woody stem and branch, flower material is unopened buds. If a formula calls for Jin Yin Hua, do not accept stem.
Lonicerae Flos (Shan Yin Hua), from Lonicera macranthoides, L. hypoglauca, L. confusa and L. fulvotomentosa
Since the 2005 Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Lonicerae Japonicae Flos (from L. japonica) and Lonicerae Flos (from L. macranthoides and related species) have been separate drugs precisely because their chemistry differs, and the differences between them are the subject of a dedicated review literature. The same congeneric species are grown at scale and their stems can enter the ren dong teng trade under the shared vernacular name.
Clinical note: Where a supplier cannot state the botanical source species, treat the identity as unconfirmed. Ren Dong Teng in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia is the stem and branch of Lonicera japonica Thunb. only.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 9–30 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】9~30g。 【性味与归经】甘，寒。归肺、胃经。 — 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.
The flower clears heat and toxin while the stem also frees the channels and collaterals, so together they address toxic heat that has lodged in the channels and joints.
Used for hot, painful, swollen joints and for febrile illness with body aches.
Named pairing — Lü Jingshan, Shi Jinmo Dui Yao
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
2 verified · 0 unverified
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
Anti-inflammatory property and functional substances of Lonicerae Japonicae Caulis
Ethanol extract of the stem reduced diarrhoea, inactivity and depressed behaviour in DSS- and LPS-treated mice, limited multi-organ damage and suppressed TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6 and IFN-gamma. Compound-knockout fractionation localised the effect to the isochlorogenic acid-rich and biflavonoid-rich fractions, and specifically to isochlorogenic acids A and C and ochnaflavone.
Study on anti-inflammatory efficacy and correlative ingredients with pharmacodynamics detected in acute inflammation rat model serum from Caulis Lonicerae japonicae
Ethyl acetate and n-butanol fractions of the stem were the active fractions in xylene-induced ear oedema in mice and reduced carrageenan-induced paw oedema and IL-1, NF-kappaB and TNF-alpha in rats. Of 27 stem-derived components detectable in rat serum after oral dosing, only 11 correlated with the anti-inflammatory effect.
Historical Texts
Ben Cao Jing Ji Zhu
Southern Dynasties (c. 500 CE)References
- Cao YX, Ji P, Wu FL, Dong JQ, Li CC, Ma T, Yang HC, Wei YM, Hua YL. Lonicerae Japonicae Caulis: a review of its research progress of active metabolites and pharmacological effects . Frontiers in Pharmacology (2023) [DOI]
- Cai Z, Wang C, Zou L, Liu X, Chen J, Tan M, Mei Y, Wei L. Comparison of Multiple Bioactive Constituents in the Flower and the Caulis of Lonicera japonica Based on UFLC-QTRAP-MS/MS Combined with Multivariate Statistical Analysis . Molecules (2019) [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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