Shan Hai Luo
StarCodonopsis lanceolata (Siebold & Zucc.) Trautv.
Traditionally used for
- Cough & breathing
- Menstrual & women's health
- Energy & fatigue
- Skin
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Lung Heat, nourishes Yin, resolves swelling, removes toxicity, discharges pus, eliminates Phlegm and promotes milk secretion
Traditional Chinese Uses
Shan Hai Luo is the root of Codonopsis lanceolata (Radix Codonopsis Lanceolatae; also called Yang Ru Gen or Si Ye Shen), a sweet, pungent, neutral herb entering the Spleen and Lung channels. It nourishes Yin and clears Lung Heat while resolving toxicity, dispersing swelling, and discharging pus, so a key traditional use is for Heat-toxin abscesses, especially breast abscess (mastitis) and lung abscess with pus, as well as sores and swellings. It also transforms Phlegm to ease cough.
A second well-known action is promoting lactation: it is used, alone or with tonic and channel-freeing herbs, for insufficient breast milk, and it gently supports Spleen and Lung with a demulcent, restorative quality. The root is decocted, often at generous dose. Because it both tonifies and drains toxicity, it is combined to fit the pattern under professional guidance.
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Shan Hai Luo is an obscure Pinyin folk name that does not correspond to any single, authoritatively documented species in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Bensky & Gamble, or Flora of China. The phrase literally suggests “mountain-sea spiral/snail,” and the term has been applied variably in regional sources, sometimes to a Codonopsis-like climbing herb and sometimes to unrelated taxa. Because no binomial can be securely established, no morphological description is offered. Entries bearing this name in older Chinese works should be cross-checked against local floras before any therapeutic interpretation. Treat as unidentified pending further evidence.
Active Constituents
Lancemaside A
Oleanane triterpenoid saponinConcentration: described as the major triterpene saponin of the root, and concentrated in the n-butanol-soluble fraction of the extract
The principal saponin of the root and the constituent most of the pharmacology rests on. It raises nitric oxide production in human umbilical vein endothelial cells by inducing eNOS through the PI3K/Akt pathway, which is the proposed basis for the blood pressure effect seen in trial. It also inhibits acetylcholinesterase in vitro with an IC50 of about 13.6 microM, close to donepezil at 10.9 microM in the same assay.
Echinocystic acid
Oleanane triterpene aglyconeThe aglycone produced when intestinal microflora deglycosylate lancemaside A, and probably the species actually absorbed after oral dosing. It inhibits acetylcholinesterase with an IC50 of about 12.2 microM and reversed scopolamine-induced memory deficits in mice more potently than the parent saponin, with increased BDNF and phosphorylated CREB expression.
Codonoside A
Triterpenoid saponinOne of the triterpenoid saponins recorded from the root of this species in the Chinese materia medica literature.
Codonoside B
Triterpenoid saponinOne of the triterpenoid saponins recorded from the root of this species.
Codonoside C
Triterpenoid saponinOne of the triterpenoid saponins recorded from the root of this species.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Antihypertensive drugs (ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers, calcium channel blockers)
A six-week double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trial in eighty prehypertensive adults found systolic blood pressure significantly reduced from baseline on Codonopsis lanceolata extract, with a significant rise in serum nitrite in the elevated-systolic subgroup. The mechanistic counterpart is that lancemaside A induces eNOS and raises nitric oxide output in human endothelial cells through PI3K/Akt. The trial studied prehypertensive subjects who were not on antihypertensive drugs, so additive effect with conventional agents is inferred rather than measured.
Clinical note: Monitor blood pressure when this herb is added for a patient already on antihypertensive therapy, particularly at the start. Trial doses were of a water or ethanol root extract, not of the 15 to 60 g decoction dose used traditionally, so extrapolate cautiously in either direction.
Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (donepezil, rivastigmine, galantamine)
Lancemaside A and its gut-microbial metabolite echinocystic acid inhibit acetylcholinesterase in vitro with IC50 values of 13.6 and 12.2 microM, against 10.9 microM for donepezil in the same experiment, and both reverse scopolamine-induced deficits in mice on passive avoidance, Y-maze and Morris water maze tasks. Whether oral dosing in humans reaches enzyme-inhibiting concentrations in brain is unknown, and no human study has looked.
Clinical note: No dose change is indicated on present evidence. If a patient on a cholinesterase inhibitor develops new nausea, bradycardia or cramping after starting this herb, consider it as a contributor.
Dang Shen (Codonopsis pilosula) and Codonopsis tangshen
Shan Hai Luo is the root of Codonopsis lanceolata, also known as yang ru and si ye shen, and among its recorded aliases are tu dang shen and nai shen. The genus and the alias overlap invite confusion with Dang Shen, the root of Codonopsis pilosula and Codonopsis tangshen, which is a different drug with a different chemistry, the polyacetylene glycoside lobetyolin and tangshenosides rather than the lancemaside saponins. Their traditional actions are not interchangeable: Shan Hai Luo boosts qi and nourishes yin but principally resolves toxicity, disperses swelling, drains pus and promotes lactation, and is dosed at 15 to 60 g fresh or dried, whereas Dang Shen is a straightforward Spleen and Lung qi tonic at 9 to 30 g.
Clinical note: Order by binomial. Note also that almost all the modern pharmacology on Codonopsis lanceolata comes from Korean deodeok food and extract research; do not read Dang Shen trial data across to this species or the reverse.
Evidence Tier
Moderate evidence · 3 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
1
1 verified · 0 unverified
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
2
1 verified · 1 unverified
Show 2 studies
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
Beneficial effects of Codonopsis lanceolata extract on systolic blood pressure levels in prehypertensive adults: A double‐blind, randomized controlled trial
Eighty prehypertensive adults aged 19 to 60 were randomised 1:1 to Codonopsis lanceolata extract or starch placebo for six weeks. Systolic blood pressure fell significantly from baseline and catalase activity rose in both the elevated-systolic and stage 1 hypertension subgroups. In the elevated-systolic subgroup serum nitrite rose significantly against placebo; in the stage 1 subgroup high-sensitivity CRP and malondialdehyde fell significantly against placebo. The effect differed by baseline systolic pressure.
Lancemaside A, a major triterpene saponin of Codonopsis lanceolata enhances regulation of nitric oxide synthesis via eNOS activation
Lancemaside A, purified from the n-butanol fraction, raised nitric oxide production in human umbilical vein endothelial cells dose-dependently, restored nitric oxide output suppressed by the eNOS inhibitor L-NAME, and increased eNOS mRNA, acting through the PI3K/Akt/eNOS pathway. This is the mechanistic counterpart to the blood pressure findings in trial.
Lancemaside A isolated from Codonopsis lanceolata and its metabolite echinocystic acid ameliorate scopolamine-induced memory and learning deficits in mice
Lancemaside A and echinocystic acid, its metabolite formed by intestinal microflora, inhibited acetylcholinesterase with IC50 values of 13.6 and 12.2 microM against 10.9 microM for donepezil, and both reversed scopolamine-induced memory and learning deficits in mice on passive avoidance, Y-maze and Morris water maze tasks while raising BDNF and phosphorylated CREB. Echinocystic acid was the more potent, consistent with the saponin being a prodrug requiring gut-microbial deglycosylation.
Historical Texts
Ben Cao Gang Mu Shi Yi
Qing dynasty (1765)References
- Park J, Kim H, Choung SY, Jeon YJ, Jeon HJ, Jun Youn S, Choi Y, Cho HS, Kang J, Seo Y, Kim KW, Song MY. The efficacy and safety of Codonopsis lanceolata water extract for sarcopenia: A study protocol for randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial . Medicine (2022) [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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