Traditionally used for
- Cough & breathing
- Digestion
- Bowel health
- Pain & joints
- Heart & circulation
Cautions & contraindications
- Bleeding disorders
- Before surgery
☯ TCM Properties
Dispels Wind; Generates flesh and strengthens bones and tendons; Strengthens the Stomach and regulates the digestive tract; Invigorates Blood circulation
Traditional Chinese Uses
Zou Ma Tai is the rhizome of Ardisia gigantifolia, a pungent, neutral herb of the Lung, Stomach, Spleen and Large Intestine channels, used in southern Chinese folk and clinical practice as a Wind-Damp-dispelling remedy. It dispels Wind and unblocks the channels for Wind-Damp bi syndrome, rheumatic and rheumatoid arthritis, and aching joints and low back, and it invigorates Blood to reduce swelling and pain from traumatic injury and fracture, where it is said to generate flesh and strengthen sinew and bone.
It additionally strengthens the Stomach and regulates the digestive tract, being applied to poor appetite, diarrhea and dysentery. It is typically decocted, and also used in medicated wines and topical applications for musculoskeletal complaints.
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Zou Ma Tai ("running-horse platform") is a southern Chinese folk-medicine name that has been variously attributed in regional sources to Ardisia crispa (Primulaceae) and to several other small evergreen shrubs of comparable habit, but no single authoritative binomial is given by Bensky and Gamble, the Chinese Pharmacopoeia or the standard Zhong Yao Da Ci Dian entries consulted. Because the same name is applied to more than one species and the references conflict, no responsible morphology, parts used or therapeutic actions can be specified with confidence here. The entry is therefore treated as botanically unidentifiable.
Active Constituents
Ardisiacrispin A
Oleanane-type triterpenoid saponin (13,28-epoxy cyclamiretin A glycoside)Concentration: Isolated from the rhizome as a principal saponin; no validated percentage assay for the crude drug has been published
Isolated directly from the rhizome of Ardisia gigantifolia by Wen and colleagues (2008) alongside four new cyclamiretin A glycosides, and among the most cytotoxic of that set in MTT assays against tumour cell lines. Its congener ardisiacrispin B is also present and is one of the eleven ingredients used to model the herb's anti-colorectal-cancer activity. The trivial names commemorate Ardisia crispa, the species of first isolation, but both compounds were confirmed in A. gigantifolia rhizome itself.
Cyclamiretin A 13,28-epoxy-oleanane saponins (the AG-series saponins, including AG4 and AG8)
Oleanane-type triterpenoid saponinConcentration: Dominant class of the rhizome; at least seventeen 13,28-epoxy saponins have been isolated from the drug
Seventeen 13,28-epoxy triterpenoid saponins from the rhizome were screened against MCF-7 cells; a C-30 methyl group and a four-sugar chain carrying L-rhamnose proved crucial for cytotoxicity, and the active members carried over to T47D, MDA-MB-231 and SK-BR-3 cells. AG8 kills triple-negative breast cancer lines through mitochondrial ROS generation. AG36, the compound with the strongest reported activity, is not a native constituent but a microbial biotransformation product of one of these saponins.
Bergenin
Isocoumarin C-glucosideConcentration: Present in the rhizome together with at least five acylated derivatives
Bergenin and its 11-O- and 4-O-acyl esters are the characteristic phenolic markers of the rhizome. Bergenin, 11-O-galloylbergenin, 11-O-protocatechuoylbergenin and 11-O-syringylbergenin were among the eleven compounds used to build the herb's anti-colorectal-cancer network-pharmacology model.
11-O-Veratroylbergenin
Acylated isocoumarin C-glucoside (bergenin ester)Concentration: Minor constituent; described as a new compound from the rhizome in 2013
Reported as a new bergenin derivative from the rhizome alongside five known esters. In that study the galloyl esters rather than the veratroyl ester carried the antioxidant activity: 11-O-(3'-O-methylgalloyl)bergenin, 11-O-galloylbergenin and 4-O-galloylbergenin scavenged DPPH with EC50 values of 9.7, 9.0 and 7.8 umol/L, appreciably stronger than the vitamin C control at 28.3 umol/L.
Belamcandaquinones F, G, H and I
Dimeric 1,4-benzoquinone derivativesConcentration: Minor rhizome constituents
Isolated from the rhizomes with one resorcinol derivative and four known compounds. Two of the isolates showed strong cytotoxicity against most of the PC-3, EMT6, A549, HeLa, RM-1 and SGC7901 panel, with IC50 values under 30 uM, compared against cisplatin.
5-(8Z-Heptadecenyl)resorcinol
5-AlkylresorcinolConcentration: Isolated from the leaves and stems, not from the rhizome that constitutes the drug
Recovered by antitubercular bioassay-guided fractionation of the chloroform extract of the leaves and stems. It inhibited Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv with a MIC of 34.4 uM in the MABA assay and 91.7 uM in the LORA assay. Because the medicinal drug is the rhizome, this activity should not be read across to the rhizome without separate assay.
5-(8Z-Pentadecenyl)resorcinol
5-AlkylresorcinolConcentration: Isolated from the leaves and stems, not from the rhizome that constitutes the drug
The second antitubercular resorcinol from the leaf and stem extract, weaker than its heptadecenyl homologue at MIC 79.2 uM (MABA) and 168.3 uM (LORA). A synthetic derivative of it outperformed the parent compound, marking the scaffold rather than the herb as the lead.
Ardisiaoside A
Triterpenoid glycosideConcentration: Newly reported from this species in 2025; abundance in the crude drug not established
A triterpenoid glycoside reported from Ardisia gigantifolia for the first time in 2025. It reduced gastric cancer cell viability at low micromolar concentrations (IC50 1.08 uM in AGS and 2.50 uM in MKN45), induced G2/M arrest and senescence, and cut CD44 surface expression and tumoursphere formation. Preclinical cell-culture data only.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Ardisia crenata (Zhu Sha Gen, Xiao Luo San)
Ardisia gigantifolia (Zou Ma Tai) and Ardisia crenata (Zhu Sha Gen or Xiao Luo San) are collected wild from the same forests, sold in the same Yao and Mulam markets, and prescribed for the same indication of rheumatism, so a dispensing or collection error substitutes one for the other. Ethnobotanical surveys in Mulam and Yao communities in Guangxi list both roots side by side for rheumatism, and a 2025 UPLC-QTOF-MS study profiled the two as chemically distinct drugs: flavonoid content differs sharply between the Zou-ma-tai and Luo-san groups, and the Luo-san group was significantly more active in suppressing nitric oxide production. The substitution matters because A. crenata contains FR900359, an extraordinarily potent and selective Gq/11 protein inhibitor with marked vasorelaxant and hypotensive consequences, a pharmacology A. gigantifolia does not share. This is a species-identity hazard, not a pharmacokinetic interaction.
Clinical note: Insist on rhizome material with verifiable botanical identification and a supplier who distinguishes Zou Ma Tai from Zhu Sha Gen. Do not accept the two as interchangeable because a source lists them under a shared Ardisia heading, and be alert to unexplained hypotension in a patient taking material of uncertain provenance.
Warfarin and other anticoagulant or antiplatelet drugs
The 2023 Journal of Ethnopharmacology review of the species lists antithrombotic activity among the herb's reported pharmacological effects, and the drug is prescribed traditionally to invigorate blood and disperse stasis, frequently as a long-macerated medicinal liquor. No pharmacokinetic or clinical interaction study with any anticoagulant has been performed on this species, and no coagulation endpoint has been measured in a human taking it. The concern is a plausible additive effect, not a documented one.
Clinical note: Treat with the ordinary caution for a blood-invigorating herb: avoid initiating alongside warfarin, a direct oral anticoagulant or dual antiplatelet therapy without monitoring, and stop before elective surgery. Note that the traditional dose form is an alcoholic maceration, which carries its own interaction burden.
Evidence Tier
Moderate evidence · 8 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
8
1 verified · 7 unverified
Show 8 studies
- Antitumor Activity of Triterpenoid Saponin-Rich Adisia gigantifolia Extract on Human Breast Adenocarcinoma Cells in Vitro and in Vivo
- AG36 Inhibits Human Breast Cancer Cells Proliferation by Promotion of Apoptosis In vitro and In vivo
- Triterpenoid Saponin AG8 from Ardisia gigantifolia stapf. Induces Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells Apoptosis through Oxidative Stress Pathway
- Antiangiogenic effects of AG36, a triterpenoid saponin from Ardisia gigantifolia stapf.
- Anti-colorectal cancer of Ardisia gigantifolia Stapf. and targets prediction via network pharmacology and molecular docking study
- Comprehensive metabolic profiling of three plants of Ardisia based on UPLC-QTOF-MS coupled with bioactivity assays
- Ardisiaoside A, a new triterpenoid glycoside from Ardisia gigantifolia, induces cell senescence and targets cancer stem cells in gastric cancer
- Bioassay-Guided Isolation and Structural Modification of the Anti-TB Resorcinols from Ardisia gigantifolia
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
Antitumor Activity of Triterpenoid Saponin-Rich Adisia gigantifolia Extract on Human Breast Adenocarcinoma Cells in Vitro and in Vivo
The saponin-rich ethanolic extract AGB-5, prepared from Ardisia gigantifolia rhizomes, inhibited MCF-7 human breast adenocarcinoma proliferation with an IC50 of 11.89 plus or minus 1.12 ug/mL, raised the S-phase fraction, and increased caspase-3 and caspase-9 activity dose-dependently. In BALB/c mice engrafted with MCF-7 cells it reduced tumour volume and normalised red and white cell counts. The authors describe this as the first in vivo confirmation of antitumour activity for the species. No human data. The journal prints the species name in the title with a typographical error as Adisia.
AG36 Inhibits Human Breast Cancer Cells Proliferation by Promotion of Apoptosis In vitro and In vivo
AG36, a biotransformation product of an Ardisia gigantifolia triterpenoid saponin rather than a native constituent, inhibited MCF-7, MDA-MB-231 and SK-BR-3 cells with IC50 values of roughly 0.73, 18.1 and 23.4 uM at 48 hours, produced G2/M arrest, and engaged both the mitochondrial and the death-receptor apoptotic pathways. It suppressed MCF-7 xenograft growth in BALB/c nude mice. Preclinical only, and about a semi-synthetic derivative, so it does not establish antitumour activity for the crude herb.
Triterpenoid Saponin AG8 from Ardisia gigantifolia stapf. Induces Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells Apoptosis through Oxidative Stress Pathway
AG8, a triterpenoid saponin of the rhizome, reduced viability of the triple-negative lines MDA-MB-231, BT-549 and MDA-MB-157 dose-dependently, impaired mitochondrial membrane potential in a manner reversed by N-acetyl-L-cysteine, raised the Bax to Bcl-2 ratio and cytoplasmic cytochrome c, and suppressed ERK and AKT phosphorylation. Sensitivity varied by TNBC subtype. Cell culture only.
Antiangiogenic effects of AG36, a triterpenoid saponin from Ardisia gigantifolia stapf.
AG36 inhibited proliferation, migration and invasion of human umbilical vein endothelial cells, suppressed phosphorylated FAK and AKT, and downregulated VEGF and VEGFR2. Tumour growth and in vivo p-VEGFR2 and p-Akt expression were reduced in a xenograft model, and docking placed AG36 in the VEGFR2 ATP pocket. As above, AG36 is a biotransformation product of the herb's saponin, not the herb.
Anti-colorectal cancer of Ardisia gigantifolia Stapf. and targets prediction via network pharmacology and molecular docking study
Three fractions of the herb inhibited colorectal cancer cells, the petroleum ether fraction most strongly (IC50 15.45 ug/mL on HCT116, 150.31 ug/mL on SW620), while the n-butanol and ethyl acetate fractions were far weaker. Eleven constituents were carried into a network model, among them ardisiacrispin B, bergenin, 11-O-galloylbergenin, 11-O-protocatechuoylbergenin, 11-O-syringylbergenin, epicatechin-3-gallate, gallic acid, quercetin and stigmasterol, with SRC, MAPK1, ESR1, HSP90AA1 and MAPK8 proposed as core targets. The network and docking components are computational predictions, not measured activity.
Comprehensive metabolic profiling of three plants of Ardisia based on UPLC-QTOF-MS coupled with bioactivity assays
Directly separates Ardisia gigantifolia (Zou-ma-tai) from the two Luo-san drugs Ardisia hanceana and Ardisia crenata. Roots of all three were profiled by UPLC-QTOF-MS, yielding 328 metabolites and 86 differentially accumulated ones, with flavonoids the main discriminant between the Zou-ma-tai and Luo-san groups and catechin and gallic acid content higher in the Luo-san group. In a nitric oxide inhibition assay at 0.2 mg/mL the Luo-san group was significantly more active than Zou-ma-tai (p less than 0.001). Useful as a chemical basis for not treating the three species as interchangeable.
Ardisiaoside A, a new triterpenoid glycoside from Ardisia gigantifolia, induces cell senescence and targets cancer stem cells in gastric cancer
Four compounds were isolated from Ardisia gigantifolia, including the new triterpenoid glycoside ardisiaoside A plus beta-sitosterol and two long-chain n-alcohols. Ardisiaoside A reduced gastric cancer cell viability with IC50 values of 1.08 uM (AGS) and 2.50 uM (MKN45), induced G2/M arrest and senescence, lowered CD44 expression and downregulated OCT4, NANOG and Notch pathway components, consistent with a cancer stem cell effect. Cell culture and docking only.
Bioassay-Guided Isolation and Structural Modification of the Anti-TB Resorcinols from Ardisia gigantifolia
Antitubercular bioassay-guided fractionation of the chloroform extract of Ardisia gigantifolia leaves and stems yielded 5-(8Z-heptadecenyl)resorcinol and 5-(8Z-pentadecenyl)resorcinol, active against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv at MIC 34.4 and 79.2 uM (MABA). Fifteen synthetic derivatives were made and one exceeded its parent. Note the plant part: this is leaf and stem material, whereas the medicinal drug is the rhizome.
Historical Texts
Sheng Cao Yao Xing Bei Yao (Handbook of the Properties of Fresh Medicinal Herbs), He Kejian
Qing dynasty, 1711Ben Cao Gang Mu Shi Yi (Supplement to the Compendium of Materia Medica), Zhao Xuemin
Qing dynasty, completed 1765Ling Nan Cai Yao Lu (Record of Medicinal Herb Gathering in Lingnan), Xiao Budan
Republican period, 1932Yao, Mulam and Maonan ethnomedical field surveys, Guangxi and Hunan
Contemporary, documented 2015 to 2022References
- Tian-Liang, Xi-Gu-Ri-Gan, Yu J, Qu S, Xie Q, Shama R, Bao M, Su H, Liu B, Borjigidai A. Ardisia gigantifolia stapf (Primulaceae): A review of ethnobotany, phytochemistry, pharmacology, clinical application, and toxicity . Journal of Ethnopharmacology (2023) [DOI]
- Wen P, Zhang XM, Yang Z, Wang NL, Yao XS. Four new triterpenoid saponins from Ardisia gigantifolia Stapf. and their cytotoxic activity . Journal of Asian Natural Products Research (2008) [DOI]
- Mu LH, Gong QQ, Zhao HX, Liu P. Triterpenoid Saponins from Ardisia gigantifolia . Chemical and Pharmaceutical Bulletin (2010) [DOI]
- Mu LH, Yan H, Wang YN, Yu TF, Liu P. Triterpenoid Saponins from Ardisia gigantifolia and Mechanism on Inhibiting Proliferation of MDA-MB-231 Cells . Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin (2019) [DOI]
- Liu H, Zhao F, Yang R, Wang M, Zheng M, Zhao Y, Zhang X, Qiu F, Wang H. Dimeric 1,4-benzoquinone derivatives and a resorcinol derivative from Ardisia gigantifolia . Phytochemistry (2009) [DOI]
- Mu LH, Feng JQ, Liu P. A new bergenin derivative from the rhizome of Ardisia gigantifolia . Natural Product Research (2013) [DOI]
- Mu LH, Huang CL, Zhou WB, Guo DH, Liu P. Methanolysis of triterpenoid saponin from Ardisia gigantifolia stapf. and structure-activity relationship study against cancer cells . Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters (2013) [DOI]
- Luo B, Liu Y, Liu B, Liu S, Zhang B, Zhang L, Lin C, Liu Y, Kennelly EJ, Guo Z, Long C. Yao herbal medicinal market during the Dragon Boat Festival in Jianghua County, China . Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2018) [DOI]
- Hong L, Guo Z, Huang K, Wei S, Liu B, Meng S, Long C. Ethnobotanical study on medicinal plants used by Maonan people in China . Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2015) [DOI]
- Hu R, Lin C, Xu W, Liu Y, Long C. Ethnobotanical study on medicinal plants used by Mulam people in Guangxi, China . Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (2020) [DOI]
- Lu Z, Chen H, Lin C, Ou G, Li J, Xu W. Ethnobotany of medicinal plants used by the Yao people in Gongcheng County, Guangxi, China . Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine (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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