Teng Li Gen
StarActinidia chinensis Planch.
Traditionally used for
- Cough & breathing
- Digestion
- Urinary & fluids
- Pain & joints
- Skin
- Liver & jaundice
Cautions & contraindications
- Bleeding disorders
- Allergy risk
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and removes toxicity; Promotes diuresis; Invigorates the Blood, transforms Phlegm and dissipates nodules
Traditional Chinese Uses
Teng Li Gen (Radix Actinidiae Chinensis) is the root of the kiwifruit vine, Actinidia chinensis. Sour-sweet (with an astringent quality) and cool, it enters the Stomach, Spleen, Lung, Liver and Large Intestine channels. It clears Heat and resolves toxicity, promotes urination, and invigorates the Blood while transforming Phlegm to dissipate nodules. Traditionally it is used for Heat-toxin sores and boils, damp-heat jaundice and painful urination, rheumatic joint pain and traumatic injury.
In modern Chinese oncology it is one of the more prominent anti-tumor herbs, employed particularly for cancers of the esophagus and stomach and other digestive-tract malignancies, on the rationale of clearing toxin, moving stasis and softening masses. It is typically decocted in substantial doses within a formula; such uses are supportive and should be managed by qualified practitioners alongside conventional care.
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
Actinidia chinensis is a vigorous, deciduous woody climbing vine of the Actinidiaceae, native to central and southern China. Mature stems may reach 8–10 m, twining over supports with reddish, hairy young shoots. The alternate leaves are broadly ovate to nearly orbicular, 7–15 cm long, with cordate bases and dense rusty hairs beneath. Dioecious flowers open cream-coloured and age to buff-yellow in early summer, the females followed by the familiar fuzzy brown berries — the commercial kiwifruit. While the fruit is a global food crop, the medicinal organ here is the woody root, which is dug, sliced, and dried for use. The species occurs naturally in mountain forests and along streamsides between roughly 200 and 1800 m elevation.
Active Constituents
Ursolic acid
Ursane-type pentacyclic triterpenoidIdentified by HPLC-MS as one of the two principal antitumour components of the root decoction. It is the compound most often credited with the antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic activity seen when root preparations are applied to gastric, colorectal and renal carcinoma cell lines.
Oleanolic acid
Oleanane-type pentacyclic triterpenoidThe second main antitumour component of the root decoction identified by HPLC-MS. It accompanies ursolic acid and shares its broad, low-potency cytotoxic profile against cultured tumour cells.
2alpha,3alpha,23,24-tetrahydroxyursa-12,20(30)-dien-28-oic acid
Ursane-type pentacyclic triterpenoidA triterpenoid first described from the roots of Actinidia chinensis. It was moderately cytotoxic, with IC50 values of 19.62, 18.86, 45.94, 62.41 and 28.74 uM against HepG2, A549, MCF-7, SK-OV-3 and HeLa cells respectively. These are micromolar potencies typical of triterpenes and far weaker than a cytotoxic drug.
Asiatic acid and 2alpha,3alpha,24-trihydroxyurs-12-en-28-oic acid
Ursane-type pentacyclic triterpenoidBoth were unambiguously confirmed against reference standards in the water extract of the root. They are part of a pool of forty-six pentacyclic triterpenes profiled in the root by UPLC-QTOF-MS.
Catechin and epicatechin
Flavan-3-olCatechin derivatives are among the main water-soluble components of the root extract, which matters because Teng Li Gen is given as a decoction and the triterpenes are poorly water-soluble. Much of what a patient actually ingests from a water decoction is this polyphenol fraction.
Esculin, esculetin and fraxin
CoumarinTwenty-four coumarins were characterised in the root water extract, of which these three were confirmed against reference standards. Coumarin derivatives are among the principal water-soluble constituents of the decoction.
Protocatechuic, vanillic, ferulic and syringic acids
Phenolic acidFifty-three phenolic acids were profiled in the root water extract, these four confirmed against standards. Together with the catechins they dominate the water-extractable fraction.
Rutin
Flavonol glycoside (quercetin-3-rutinoside)One of seventy-two flavonoids identified in the root water extract and one of the compounds confirmed against a reference standard.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Kiwifruit allergy and natural rubber latex (latex-fruit syndrome)
Actinidia chinensis is kiwifruit. Eleven allergens, Act d 1 to Act d 11, are recognised in green kiwifruit; the major one, Act d 1, is actinidin, a cysteine protease that itself breaches the epithelial barrier and drives sensitisation, and it survives processing. Act d 3, Act d 7, Act d 9 and Act d 11 cross-react with the latex allergens Hev b 5, Hev b 6, Hev b 8 and Hev b 11, which is the basis of latex-fruit syndrome. The allergen work has been done on the fruit; whether the root drug carries the same proteins in clinically relevant amounts has not been characterised, and a decoction would denature much protein. The honest position is that the species is a Class 1 food allergen, the root has not been cleared, and a latex- or kiwi-allergic patient should not be the person you test this on.
Clinical note: Ask about kiwifruit and latex allergy before prescribing Teng Li Gen. Do not give it to a patient with a history of kiwifruit reaction or latex-fruit syndrome. Advise any patient starting it to stop and seek care for oral itching, urticaria, throat tightness or wheeze.
Antiplatelet and anticoagulant drugs (aspirin, clopidogrel, warfarin, DOACs)
In a controlled human study, eating two to three kiwifruit daily for 28 days reduced platelet aggregation response and lowered plasma triglycerides in healthy volunteers. That result is for the fruit, not for the root drug, and no antiplatelet study of Radix Actinidiae chinensis exists. It is recorded here because practitioners and patients treat the species as one thing, and a patient told to take a kiwifruit-derived herb may increase fruit intake at the same time.
Clinical note: Do not extrapolate the fruit finding to the root, but if a patient on antiplatelet therapy is also eating large amounts of kiwifruit, mention it at the next bleeding-risk review.
Cytotoxic chemotherapy (oxaliplatin, 5-fluorouracil, platinum regimens)
Teng Li Gen is used in Chinese oncology practice alongside conventional chemotherapy, and its root extracts induce apoptosis, autophagy and ferroptosis in tumour cell lines. Ferroptosis induction through GPX4 and SLC7A11 suppression, reported in gastric cancer cells, is a redox-dependent mechanism that could in principle interact with platinum agents in either direction. Nothing has been measured in patients; no clinical trial of the herb as a single adjuvant has been published.
Clinical note: Disclose concurrent use to the treating oncology team rather than assuming it is inert, and do not offer it as a substitute for chemotherapy.
Actinidia arguta root sold as Radix Actinidiae chinensis - species substitution
This is not hypothetical: a 2024 paper published under the title Radix Actinidiae chinensis states in its own methods that the material used was the root of Actinidia arguta, a different species. Several Actinidia roots circulate in trade under the same Chinese name Teng Li Gen, and the literature does not consistently distinguish them.
Clinical note: Require the binomial on the supplier certificate. When reading efficacy claims for Teng Li Gen, check which Actinidia species the cited study actually used before relying on the dose.
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
0 verified · 1 unverified
Randomized controlled trial
1
1 verified · 0 unverified
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
4
0 verified · 4 unverified
Show 4 studies
- Actinidia chinensis Planch prevents proliferation and migration of gastric cancer associated with apoptosis, ferroptosis activation and mesenchymal phenotype suppression
- Cytotoxic Triterpenoids from Roots of Actinidia chinensis
- Chemical constituents of radix Actinidia chinensis planch by UPLC–QTOF–MS
- Radix Actinidiae chinensis induces the autophagy and apoptosis in renal cell carcinoma cells
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
Actinidia chinensis Planch prevents proliferation and migration of gastric cancer associated with apoptosis, ferroptosis activation and mesenchymal phenotype suppression
HPLC-MS of the root decoction identified ursolic acid and oleanolic acid as the two main antitumour components. Rat serum containing the absorbed drug inhibited proliferation and migration of HGC-27 gastric cancer cells, raised apoptosis in a way reversed by the caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK, lowered vimentin and Snail, and increased reactive oxygen species by suppressing GPX4 and SLC7A11, an effect blocked by the ferroptosis inhibitor ferrostatin-1. A zebrafish xenograft confirmed suppression of growth and metastasis. This is cell and zebrafish work on the correct species and the correct plant part; it is not evidence of efficacy in patients.
Cytotoxic Triterpenoids from Roots of Actinidia chinensis
Sixteen triterpenoids were isolated from the roots of Actinidia chinensis, including the new 2alpha,3alpha,23,24-tetrahydroxyursa-12,20(30)-dien-28-oic acid. The new compound was moderately cytotoxic against HepG2, A549, MCF-7, SK-OV-3 and HeLa cells with IC50 values of 19.62, 18.86, 45.94, 62.41 and 28.74 uM. The authors offer this as a chemical rationale for the traditional oncological use of the root, with potencies that are modest.
Chemical constituents of radix Actinidia chinensis planch by UPLC–QTOF–MS
UPLC-QTOF-MS profiling of the water extract of Actinidia chinensis root identified 295 constituents, including 46 pentacyclic triterpenes, 72 flavonoids, 53 phenolic acids, 24 coumarins and three anthraquinones, over 180 of them reported in Actinidia for the first time. Thirteen compounds were confirmed against reference standards. Catechin, coumarin and phenolic acid derivatives were the main water-soluble components, which is the fraction a decoction actually delivers.
Radix Actinidiae chinensis induces the autophagy and apoptosis in renal cell carcinoma cells
The extract inhibited 786-O and A498 renal carcinoma cells with IC50 values of 14.76 and 13.09 mg/mL, arrested cells in S phase and induced apoptosis and autophagy, raising LC3II/I and Beclin-1 and lowering P62 while reducing phosphorylation of PI3K, AKT, mTOR, P38 and ERK; the autophagy inhibitor 3-MA reversed these effects. Important caveat on species: although published as Radix Actinidiae chinensis, the paper's own methods identify the material as the root of Actinidia arguta, not Actinidia chinensis, so the result may not describe the drug named in this record.
Update on the global prevalence and severity of kiwifruit allergy: a scoping review
A scoping review of the worldwide literature on kiwifruit allergy, covering prevalence and the range of reactions reported, which extends to anaphylaxis. It is cited here because Actinidia chinensis is kiwifruit and any preparation of this species has to be prescribed with the species' allergen status in mind, even though the allergen work concerns the fruit rather than the root drug.
Effects of kiwi fruit consumption on platelet aggregation and plasma lipids in healthy human volunteers
A controlled human study in healthy volunteers found that consuming two to three kiwifruit daily reduced platelet aggregation response and lowered plasma triglycerides compared with control. This is a fruit study, not a study of the root drug Teng Li Gen, and is recorded here only because it is the only controlled human data on this species and is relevant to patients on antiplatelet therapy who increase kiwifruit intake.
Historical Texts
Kai Bao Ben Cao
Northern Song dynastyBen Cao Yan Yi
Northern Song dynastyBen Cao Gang Mu
Ming dynastyReferences
- Lingyan Wang; Zheng Li; Miaomiao Zhang; Qi Shen; Xuemei Zhang. Progress of Actinidia chinensis Planch. root extract (acRoots) in cancer immunity . Clinical and Translational Discovery (2023) [DOI]
- Yuanyuan Chen; Xiaojun Cai; Guowei Li; Xiaoying He; Xixi Yu; Xinwei Yu; Qiming Xiao; Zheng Xiang; Chaojie Wang. Chemical constituents of radix Actinidia chinensis planch by UPLC–QTOF–MS . Biomedical Chromatography (2021) [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 Teng Li Gen.
No notes yet.