The source is the dry extract of Acacia catechu (L.) Willd., a acacia plant in Leguminosae, which is concentrated by decocting with water.
Deciduous tree in its original form, 6 ~13m high. Branchlets are thin and spiny. Leaves are bipinnately compound, alternate; There are spiny needles at the base of leaf axis, which are flat; Feather10 ~ 20 pairs are attached to the leaf axis; There are 30 ~ 50 pairs of leaflets on each pinna, which are strip-shaped and sparsely hairy on both sides. Flowering from August to September, the raceme is axillary, the calyx base is connected into a tube shape, and the upper part is divided with sparse hair; Petals 5, long lanceolate, yellow or white; Stamens are numerous, protruding beyond the corolla; Pistil 1, ovary superior, oblong. The pod is flat and thin, with 6 ~12cm long and 0 ~ 2cm wide, and 7 ~ 8 seeds.
Habitat distribution in southern Yunnan, Hainan Island is cultivated.
It is a tropical positive tree species, which likes warm and humid environment and is not cold-resistant, so it should be cultivated on sunny slope. Seed propagation, suitable for direct seeding, should be planted in holes at the beginning of rainy season, with row spacing of 6-9 feet, hole width 1.5 feet, depth 1.2 feet, bottom width 1.2 feet, 5-6 seeds should be planted in each hole, and it is better to cover the seeds with soil. When the seedlings are 3 inches high, they should be planted in batches. Pay attention to loosening the soil during the growth period, and weeding is beneficial to drought resistance and seedling protection. Fertilization can be in July and August, and each plant can be applied with 2 ~ 3 liang of calcium superphosphate.
The medicinal material is called catechu paste, which is square or irregular block. The surface is black or brown, smooth and slightly shiny, brittle, irregular in section and reddish brown inside. Odorless, astringent, bitter first, then sweet.
The chemical composition contains 20-50% of catechin, 2-20% of catechin (c15h14o6), epicatechol, mucilage, fatty oil, gum and wax.
pharmacological action
1. Catechu aqueous solution can inhibit the peristalsis of duodenum and small intestine in rabbits, and promote the reverse peristalsis of cecum, thus having antidiarrheal effect; But it has little effect on the large intestine.
2. Catechu has a strong killing effect on ascites cancer cells in vitro.
3. Catechu decoction can inhibit staphylococcus aureus, diphtheria bacillus, Proteus, Shigella flexneri and typhoid bacillus; It also has inhibitory effect on common therapeutic dermatophytes. The extract of its leaves has inhibitory effects on Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.
Processing usually takes place from1February to March of the following year. Dry branches are collected, peeled off, chopped into small pieces, decocted in a clay pot or a copper pot with water, collected and filtered, and the filtrate is concentrated into syrup, cooled, and poured into a special model to obtain the catechu paste.
The taste is bitter, astringent and slightly cold.
Functions: clearing away heat and resolving phlegm, healing sores and stopping bleeding. Used for cough due to lung heat, hemoptysis, diarrhea and dyspepsia in children; For external use, it can be used to treat chronic ulcers, eczema, aphtha and tonsillitis.
Usage and dosage 0.3 ~1money; Appropriate amount for external use.