A BOTANICAL STUDY OF THE CHINESE DRUG CHINCHIAO

Chinchiao is a famous Chinese drug often used in the treatment of rheumatism, but the botanical origin of this drug still remains indiscriminated in recent literatures.Since 1961 the authors have collected and identified the plant specimens of the drugs sold in market under the general name "Chinchiao", the result is tabulated as follows: An analytical key for all the plants above-mentioned as well as the other species of the Section Aptera of genus Genthana is provided to facilitate identification. After careful examination and comparison of the descriptions and illustrations of Chinchiao in a number of the Chinese ancient herbals, we come to the conclusion that the original plant of the genuine Chinchiao should be Gentiana macrophylla Pall. In addition to the description, photographs of the plants and drugs are also presented.