Pinelliae Rhizoma and Its Prescription Compatibility for Depression Treatment： A Review
10.13422/j.cnki.syfjx.20251795
- VernacularTitle:半夏及其方剂配伍治疗抑郁症研究进展
- Author:
Zhe XIE
1
;
Yifan SHI
1
;
Linzhe SU
1
;
Ming BAI
1
;
Yucheng LI
1
;
Baoying WANG
1
;
Erping XU
1
Author Information
1. Henan Collaborative Innovation Center for the Whole Industry Chain Research and Development of Yu-based Traditional Chinese Medicine，Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences，Henan University of Chinese Medicine，Zhengzhou 450046，China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
depression;
stagnation syndrome;
Pinelliae Rhizoma;
active ingredient;
Pinelliae Rhizoma herb pairs;
Pinelliae Rhizoma formulas
- From:
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae
2026;32(9):284-293
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Depression is a common mental disorder that falls under the category of "stagnation syndrome" in traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）. Its complex pathogenesis poses challenges for the development of novel therapeutic agents. Currently， clinically used antidepressants are often accompanied by significant side effects， and statistics show that about one-third of patients do not respond to these medications. TCM demonstrates advantages in the treatment of depression through multi-target， multi-pathway and multi-mechanistic approaches. Pinelliae Rhizoma， a phlegm-resolving herb， exhibits effects such as drying dampness and resolving phlegm， as well as eliminating stuffiness and reducing masses. The characteristics of harmonizing Yin and Yang and resolving stagnation in the middle energizer align precisely with the pathogenesis of depression syndrome， demonstrating therapeutic efficacy in affected patients. Literature studies have found that the active ingredients of Pinelliae Rhizoma， such as cavidine， baicalein， β-sitosterol， as well as Pinelliae Rhizoma herb pairs， such as Pinelliae Rhizoma-Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex， Pinelliae Rhizoma-husked sorghum， Pinelliae Rhizoma-Prunellae Spica， exhibit significant antidepressant effects. Furthermore， TCM formulas containing Pinelliae Rhizoma as the principal therapeutic agent， such as Banxia Xiexin Tang， Banxia Houpo Tang， and Wendan Tang， as well as formulas incorporating Pinelliae Rhizoma like compound Xiaochaihu Tang， Chaihu Jia Longgu Muli Tang， and Erchen Tang， have also demonstrated favorable antidepressant efficacy. The antidepressant mechanism of these agents may involve modulation of 5-hydroxytryptamine （5-HT） and dopamine （DA） levels， up-regulation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor （BDNF） expression， regulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal （HPA） axis， reduction of oxidative stress， modulation of nuclear transcription factor-κB （NF-κB） signaling pathway， and inhibition of microglia-mediated inflammatory responses. This review summarized the antidepressant mechanisms and clinical applications of the active components， herb pairs， and TCM formulas containing Pinelliae Rhizoma， aiming to provide a reference for modern research on the use of Pinelliae Rhizoma in antidepressant therapy.
