Zhe Bei Mu
StarFritillaria thunbergii Miq.
Traditionally used for
- Cough & breathing
Cautions & contraindications
- Before surgery
- Toxic — professional use only
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and Transforms Phlegm; Stops Cough; Clears toxins and disperses abscesses; Dissipates Nodules and Softens Hardness
Traditional Chinese Uses
Zhe Bei Mu (Zhejiang fritillary bulb) is a cold, bitter herb that clears Heat and transforms Phlegm-Heat more powerfully than its relative Chuan Bei Mu. It is the preferred fritillary for acute, excess-type conditions — cough with yellow, thick phlegm from Lung Heat, and for softening and dispersing thyroid nodules, lymph node swellings, and breast lumps from Phlegm-Heat accumulation. Its stronger Heat-clearing and Phlegm-dissolving action is suited to robust constitutions and acute presentations.
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Fritillaria thunbergii, the Zhejiang fritillary, is a bulbous perennial herb of the Liliaceae family growing 50 to 80 cm tall from a flattened scaly bulb 2 to 5 cm across composed of two to three thick fleshy white scales that readily separate. Stems are erect, slender, simple, and glabrous. Leaves are linear to linear-lanceolate, 7 to 15 cm long; the lowermost are opposite or in whorls of three, while the upper leaves are usually in whorls of three to four with the uppermost tendril-tipped and coiling at the apex. Two to six pendulous broadly bell-shaped flowers are borne in the upper leaf axils; the six pale yellow-green tepals, about 2.5 to 3.5 cm long, are faintly tessellated with darker veins. The fruit is a six-winged erect capsule. Cultivated principally in Zhejiang.
Active Constituents
Peimine (verticine)
Isosteroidal alkaloid (cevanine type)Concentration: The Chinese Pharmacopoeia sets a combined minimum of 0.080% peimine plus peiminine in the dried bulb; sulfur fumigation of the bulb lowers both.
The principal marker alkaloid of the Zhejiang bulb and a main carrier of its antitussive and anti-inflammatory activity; in cellular assays it suppresses inflammatory mediator release and nociceptive signalling. It is also a non-competitive blocker of muscle-type nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, acting by open-channel block, enhanced desensitisation and resting-state block, with IC50 values of 2.9 microM on peak current and 1.2 microM on steady-state current in Torpedo receptors microtransplanted into Xenopus oocytes.
Peiminine (verticinone)
Isosteroidal alkaloid (cevanine type)Concentration: Assayed together with peimine against the Pharmacopoeia limit of 0.080% total in the dried bulb.
The second Pharmacopoeia marker alkaloid, reported as antitussive and expectorant in rodent models and as a promoter of apoptosis and autophagy in cultured tumour cells. Preclinical reports also describe neuroprotective effects on dopaminergic neurons; none of this has been tested in humans.
Peimisine
Isosteroidal alkaloidConcentration: Minor alkaloid, co-extracted with peimine and peiminine in supercritical CO2 and solvent extracts of the bulb.
A minor bulb alkaloid quantified alongside the two marker compounds in extraction-optimisation work; it contributes to the antioxidant activity of total alkaloid fractions but has little pharmacology of its own on record.
Steroidal alkaloid fraction of the bulb
Steroidal alkaloid mixtureConcentration: Total alkaloids are the fraction against which the drug is standardised; individual minor alkaloids were characterised from Fritillaria thunbergii var. chekiangensis.
Beyond the three marker compounds the bulb yields a series of further steroidal alkaloids, isolated and structurally characterised from the Zhejiang cultivated variety. These are the chemical basis on which Zhe Bei Mu is distinguished analytically from Fritillaria cirrhosa.
Non-alkaloid bulb fraction (polysaccharides, sterols, fatty acids, nucleosides)
Mixed polysaccharide, sterol and lipid fractionConcentration: Bulk of the dried bulb by weight; not standardised.
The bulb is largely starch and polysaccharide, with sterols, nucleosides, amino acids and fatty acids reported alongside the alkaloids. This fraction is not the basis of the drug's Pharmacopoeia identity and carries no established clinical activity.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Chuan Bei Mu (Fritillaria cirrhosa) and Chuanbei-labelled proprietary products
Zhe Bei Mu and Chuan Bei Mu are separate Pharmacopoeia drugs at very different market prices, and the price gap drives substitution toward the cheaper Zhe Bei Mu. A 2024 molecular quantification study using pyrosequencing of an ITS single-nucleotide polymorphism found that four of eight commercial Shedan Chuanbei capsule products were adulterated with Fritillaria ussuriensis or Fritillaria thunbergii, at 9 to 15 percent of total weight. The two drugs are not clinically interchangeable: Zhe Bei Mu is the colder, more strongly heat-clearing and nodule-dissipating drug, while Chuan Bei Mu is the moistening one used for chronic dry cough with Yin deficiency.
Clinical note: Do not treat the two as interchangeable and do not accept unlabelled Bei Mu. Where a patient is taking a Chuanbei proprietary product, be aware the contents may not be Fritillaria cirrhosa; buy from suppliers who can show species-level authentication.
Aconite root (Chuan Wu, Cao Wu, Fu Zi; Aconitum species)
Bei Mu is one of the drugs named as incompatible with aconite in the Eighteen Antagonisms, and Chinese pharmacopoeial practice treats the pair as contraindicated. A uniform-design rodent study of processed aconite combined with either Fritillaria cirrhosa or Fritillaria thunbergii found genuine interaction on efficacy endpoints rather than acute lethality: with Fritillaria thunbergii the combination was antagonistic on tracheal phenol red secretion, maximally so at a 1 to 1 ratio, while no interaction was seen on cough frequency. That is evidence of pharmacodynamic interference, not a demonstration of increased aconitine toxicity.
Clinical note: Observe the traditional contraindication and do not combine the two in one formula. Where a patient is already taking both, expect reduced expectorant effect rather than acute poisoning, but re-prescribe rather than continue.
Neuromuscular blocking agents and cholinesterase inhibitors
Peimine is a non-competitive blocker of muscle-type nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, inhibiting Torpedo receptors microtransplanted into Xenopus oocytes with low-micromolar IC50 values by open-channel block plus enhanced desensitisation. Additive block with a non-depolarising neuromuscular blocker, or opposition to a cholinesterase inhibitor used in myasthenia gravis, is pharmacologically plausible. Whether oral decoction achieves neuromuscular-junction concentrations anywhere near those IC50 values has not been measured, so this remains an inference from an in vitro preparation.
Clinical note: No action is warranted for ordinary use. Mention the herb to the anaesthetist before elective surgery, and use caution in patients with myasthenia gravis or on pyridostigmine.
Sulfur-fumigated Zhe Bei Mu
Sulfur fumigation is used in the trade to bleach and preserve Zhejiang Fritillaria bulbs. Hyperspectral imaging work with chemometrics showed that fumigated bulbs carry altered and reduced peimine and peiminine content relative to unfumigated material, so the fumigated drug is not pharmacologically equivalent to the unfumigated drug at the same weight. Sulfite residues are an additional concern in sulfite-sensitive asthmatics.
Clinical note: Prefer unfumigated bulbs, which are duller and less uniformly white. Avoid fumigated material entirely in sulfite-sensitive asthmatic patients, who are the exact population likely to be prescribed a phlegm-transforming drug.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 5–10 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】5～10g。 【注意】不宜与川乌、制川乌、草乌、制草乌、附子同用。 【性味与归经】苦，寒。归肺、心经。 — 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.
Transforms phlegm and dissipates clumps while softening hardness, together reducing phlegm nodules.
Core pair of a classical formula — Xiao Luo Wan, Yi Xue Xin Wu (Cheng Guopeng, 1732)
Clears heat, transforms phlegm and dissipates nodules while cooling and nourishing yin to soften hardness.
Scrofula and phlegm nodules from yin deficiency with phlegm-fire.
Core pair of a classical formula — Xiao Luo Wan, Yi Xue Xin Wu (Cheng Guopeng, 1732)
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
- Peimine, a main active ingredient of Fritillaria, exhibits anti-inflammatory and pain suppression properties at the cellular level
- Peimine, an Anti-Inflammatory Compound from Chinese Herbal Extracts, Modulates Muscle-Type Nicotinic Receptors
- Valuation on analgesic, expectorant and antitussive effects of compatible use of Aconiti Radix Cocta and Fritillaria cirrhosa or Fritillaria thunbergii
- Determination and Visualization of Peimine and Peiminine Content in Fritillaria thunbergii Bulbi Treated by Sulfur Fumigation Using Hyperspectral Imaging with Chemometrics
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
Peimine, a main active ingredient of Fritillaria, exhibits anti-inflammatory and pain suppression properties at the cellular level
A cellular study of peimine, the principal Fritillaria alkaloid and one of the two Pharmacopoeia markers for Zhe Bei Mu, reporting anti-inflammatory and pain-suppressing activity at the cellular level. This is preclinical work on an isolated compound, not on the whole bulb and not in patients.
Peimine, an Anti-Inflammatory Compound from Chinese Herbal Extracts, Modulates Muscle-Type Nicotinic Receptors
Two-electrode voltage-clamp study of purified Torpedo marmorata muscle-type nicotinic acetylcholine receptors microtransplanted into Xenopus oocytes. Peimine inhibited the receptor non-competitively with an IC50 of 2.9 microM on peak current and 1.2 microM on steady-state current, acting through open-channel block, accelerated desensitisation and block of resting receptors. This is the basis for treating a neuromuscular interaction as pharmacologically plausible but unquantified in people.
Valuation on analgesic, expectorant and antitussive effects of compatible use of Aconiti Radix Cocta and Fritillaria cirrhosa or Fritillaria thunbergii
A two-factor, seven-level uniform-design rodent study of processed aconite combined with either Fritillaria cirrhosa or Fritillaria thunbergii, using acetic-acid writhing, tracheal phenol red secretion and cough frequency as endpoints. For Fritillaria thunbergii the combination was antagonistic on phenol red secretion, maximally at a 1 to 1 ratio, while no interaction was detected on cough frequency. It bears on the classical aconite incompatibility as a question of efficacy interference rather than acute toxicity.
Determination and Visualization of Peimine and Peiminine Content in Fritillaria thunbergii Bulbi Treated by Sulfur Fumigation Using Hyperspectral Imaging with Chemometrics
Analytical study mapping peimine and peiminine across Fritillaria thunbergii bulbs subjected to sulfur fumigation, using hyperspectral imaging with chemometric models. It documents that fumigation changes the marker alkaloid content of the drug, which is why fumigated and unfumigated bulbs cannot be assumed equipotent at equal weight.
⚠ Rule-Based Cautions
These entries come from the deterministic rule tables that gate Verscienta's formula tools — classical pair prohibitions, pregnancy and lactation contraindications, and dose ceilings.
Incompatibilities (十八反 / 十九畏)
- 十八反: Wu Tou × Bei Mu — avoid combining with Fu Zi / Aconite / Aconitum / Chuan Wu / Cao Wu / Wu Tou / Shu Fu / Hei Shun Pian / Fu Pian / Guan Bai Fu / Xue Shang Yi Zhi Hao / Aconitum brachypodum
Historical Texts
Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing (Divine Husbandman's Classic of the Materia Medica)
Han dynasty, compiled c. 200 CERu Men Shi Qin (Confucians' Duties to Their Parents), Zhang Congzheng
Jin dynasty, 1228Ben Cao Hui Yan (Collected Statements on the Materia Medica), Ni Zhumo
Ming dynasty, 1624Ben Jing Feng Yuan, Zhang Lu
Qing dynasty, 1695Ben Cao Cong Xin, Wu Yiluo
Qing dynasty, 1757References
- Wu Fan; Tian Mei; Sun Yuefeng; Wu Changhao; Liu Xue. Efficacy, chemical composition, and pharmacological effects of herbal drugs derived from Fritillaria cirrhosa D. Don and Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. . Frontiers in Pharmacology (2022) [DOI]
- Liu Ziyi; Pei Yifei; Chen Tiezhu; Yang Zemin; Jiang Wenjun; Feng Xue; Li Xiwen. Molecular quantification of fritillariae cirrhosae bulbus and its adulterants . Chinese Medicine (2024) [DOI]
- Wei Kai; Teng Geer; Wang Qianqian; Xu Xiangjun; Zhao Zhifang; Liu Haida; Bao Mengyu; Zheng Yongyue; Luo Tianzhong; Lu Bingheng. Rapid Test for Adulteration of Fritillaria Thunbergii in Fritillaria Cirrhosa by Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy . Foods (2023) [DOI]
- Zhang Jianxing; Lao Aina; Xu Rensheng. Steroidal alkaloids from Fritillaria thunbergii var. chekiangensis . Phytochemistry (1993) [DOI]
- Ruan Xiao; Yang Li; Cui Wen-Xia; Zhang Men-Xing. Optimization of Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Total Alkaloids, Peimisine, Peimine and Peiminine from the Bulb of Fritillaria thunbergii Miq, and Evaluation of Antioxidant Activities of the Extracts . Materials (2016) [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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