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lei gong teng, Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. F.

Translated and edited by: Joe Hing Kwok Chu

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Description

The herb of lei gong teng comes from the roots, leaves and flowers of the

tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f. It is collected during summer and autumn.

Lei gong teng is a deciduous climbing vine growing to 12 meters,  with

brown, angular, downy twigs. The leaves are light green, smooth on

top, and pale gray with light hairs underneath.  They have crenate

margins and pointed apexes, and are ovate to elliptic, 5-15 cm long,

2.5 - 7 cm wide. The scented hermaphroditic (having male and female

organs) flowers, which bloom in September, are small and whitish with

five petals and are about 9 mm across, in terminal panicles in July. The

fruit is 3-winged, and brownish red, about 1.5 cm long. The plant can grow

in light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. It can survive in acid,

neutral and basic (alkaline) soil.  It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland)

or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Pharmaceutical name: Radix Tripterygium wilfordii 

Biological name: Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f.

Pronunciation in Cantonese:  lui kong teng

Common Name: three-wing-nut

Folk Name: walk seven steps and die, intestine-breaking plant

Distribution: native of southern part of mainland China, Taiwan, Burma

Properties (characteristics): bitter and very toxic 

Actions & Indications: for: anti-inflammatory,  killing worms, resolving

toxin, treating proteinuric renal disease, using as immuno-suppressive agent

on autoimmune diseases.

Chemical ingredients:

1. Saponins:

(1). wilforgine, wilforgine-B,wilfordine, wilfornine, wilfortrine,

wilfortrine-D, wilforzine[1-3], wilformine [4], wilfordinic acid,

hydroxywilfordii acid [5],wilfornine [6], neowilforine [7]

(2). celacinnine, celafurine, celabenzine, celallocinnine [8-9]

(3). triptofordinine A-1, A-2 [10],  triptofordin D-1, D-2, E [11],

triptofordin A, B, C-1 C-2 [12],

triptofordin F-1, F-2, F-3, F-4 [13]

2. Diterpene group

(1). triptolide, tripdiolide[14], triptonide,[14-15],tripterolide[16].

(2.). triptolidenol [16-17], tripnolide [18], neotriptophenolide,

triptophenolide methyl ether [19], isoneotrip-tophenolide, hypolide

methyl ether [20].

(3). triptonoterpene, triptonoterpene methyl ether [17], 

triptonoterpenol [21]12-ydroxy-abieta-8, 11, 13 -trien-3-one,

11-hydroxy-14-methoxy-abieta-8,

11-hydroxy-14-methoxy-abieta-8, 11, 13-trien-3-one [22].

3. Tetra-triterpene group

(1). wilforlide A, wilforlide B [23].

(2). tritotriterpenoid lactone [24], tretotriterpenic acid A [25, 26],

tritotriterpenic acid B [27], tritotriterpenic acid C [28], 3-epikatonic acid [29],

polpunonic acid, triptodihydroxy acid methyl ester [30], tripterine [31].

(3). 3,24-dioxofridelan-29-oic acid [29], salaspermic acid [29,32].

4. wilfornide [20]

5. 1,8-dihydroxy-4-hydroxymethyl anthraquinone [33].

6. syringareisnol [34].

7 Other Chemicals: dulcitol, glucose [31], tannin

8. trace mineral: iron, manganese, zinc, copper, selenium etc

Medical Functions: 

1. Effects on immune system

2. Anti-inflammatory effects

3. Anti -cancer effect

 Triptolide and   tripdiolide   , () are

highly effective in treating cancer.

Using alcohol extract of lei gong teng, triptolide or tripdiolide on mice

with leukemia L₁₂₁₀, (50~400mcg/kg), showed that the therapy was

highly effective ^[58].

The effective dosage for mice with L₁₂₁₀ and P₃₈₈ was 0.1mg/kg. Using

triptolide of 0.25mg and 0.2mg/kg on mice with leukemia L₆₁₅, has proved

to prolong the survival rates to more than 159.8% and 87.8% respectively

and also has caused some of the mice to survive long term. Using spleen

cell L₆₁₅, once a month continually for three months to attack the cancer

cells that survived long term, did not affect the survival rate of the mice

or cause them to get ill ^[24,58,59].

Go to Cancer Index Page

4. Effects on contraception

5. Effects on urinary system

6. Effects on anti-organism and worms 

7. Other Effects

8. Inhibits  acute phase of rejection during transplant

Effect of triptolide on cardiac allograft survival in mice
Zhou Xiaoming, Fang Xiangdong, Luo Aiwu, Li Quanqi, Li Jinsheng,

Wang Xiaoning1 (Cardio thoracic Surgery,Nan fang Hospital 1

Institute of Molecular Immunology, the First Military Medical

University, Guangzhou 510515 2 Department of Pediatrics,

General Hospital, Guangzhou Military Area Command)

Editor Note: This may be an old document that has been retrieved.

Please contact researchers for any  new information.

 According to a  report from Xin Hua She News of China, the acute

phase of transplant rejection rate dropped from 30 ~40% to 5% using

triptolide.

See the archived Chinese site of this article on inhibiting

the acute phase of rejection in Chinese

9. Inside body

10. Effects of toxicity

Other Research: Four compounds purified from T. wilfordii may

confer protection against the FSGS (focal segmental glomerulosclerosis)

factor.^a

Modern Clinical Application :

Examples

1. proliferative arthritis　

(1). Dosage per day for adults: 20 to 30 g of dried stem of lei gong teng.

Use low heat to simmer for 3 to 4 hours. Adjust the amount for children.

Take until symptoms are clear. Fifteen days after symptoms are clear,

change to every other day or every 3 days per dose; then slowly wean

from it. If symptoms do not subside after 15 days, it is deemed

ineffective.

There were 60 patients. Average stay in the hospital: 3 to 4 months.

Result: 17 healed.

Effective: 20. Better: 19. Not effective: 4.

The characteristic of this herb is warm and toxic. It is effective for acute

cases. It is  much less effective on cases with deformed joints. [1]

(2). Combining 2/3 of lei gong teng with bark and 1/3 without bark and

made into 15% tincture. Dosage: 10 to 15 ml per day, made into 3 servings

for after meals. Continuously taken for 3 to 5 months (average 4.5 months).

After symptoms are controlled, dosages were decreased. Result: Clinically

healed: 18. Obviously improved: 95. Better 46. Not effective: 6. Total

effectiveness: 96.4%.[2]

(3). Total saponins dosage 1 to 1.5 mg per day, into 3 servings, taken

after meals. The largest dosage was 90 mg. While using this therapy,

other medicines were suspended.

After 1 to 2 weeks, the symptoms started to subside. After treatments,

ESR and other values of proliferative arthritis indicators started to

decrease. Some of them became normal. EgC, IgA, and IgM obviously

decreased. After more than 3 months of therapy,

among 136 patients, with lesser clinical symptoms : 24, obviously improved: 51,

improved: 52, ineffective: 9, total effectiveness: 93.3%.

(4).

(5).

(6).

2. tonic inflammation of spinal cord

3. lupus

4. purpura

5. kidney inflammation

6. asthma

7. tuberculosis of the lungs

8. psoriasis

Using water decoction of lei gong teng and alcohol extract of lei gong teng:

They both contain 50 lei gong ten 50 g, and ji xue tang 50 g each. Take orally

50 ml, twice a day after meals.

30 days is one therapy period.

Result:

Total patients: 193

Patients taking alcohol extract: 116

Effective rate: 86.2%

Patients taking water decoction: 77

Effective rate: 72.72%

It showed that the alcohol extract was more effective

than the water decoction. [21]

9. dermatitis

10. Reiter syndrome 

^{Research on Pharmacological Processes: to be loaded}

Toxicity and Side Effects:

There are 3 types of toxicity: ^[A]

• 1. Acute toxicity: within a few hours after using the medication, multiple organ damages, even death.

• 2. chronic toxicity reaction: usually symptoms of organ damages appear during treatment period with lei gong teng,  with slow progression.

• 3. relapse of toxic reaction: after treatment of acute toxicity reaction, after certain period the symptoms return.

1. Toxic reactions: dizziness, palpitation, weakness, nausea, vomiting,

stomach ache, diarrhea, pain in liver and kidney areas, bleeding in the

digestive tract, even respiration and circulation exhaustion and death.

2. decrease of total blood cell counts ⁽²⁾

3. mutation type of illness: using lei gong teng tincture for external use

can cause mutation type of illness. ⁽³⁾

4. Long term use of lei gong teng could significantly decrease bone

mineral density of levels in female systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)^b

5. long term use of lei gong teng causes hair loss and malfunction of

immune system.[c]

Antidotes:

I. Prevention

1). For external use: use ointment and avoid tincture.

2). Pay attention to the dosage according to the body constitution of

individual patients.

3). Avoid using on patients with liver problems.

II. Antidotes for toxicity

1). Empty stomach and induce diarrhea.

2). During the early stages, use adrenocortical hormone.

Dexamethasone 5~10mg with added 50% glucose 40 ml can

be used in IV administering, followed with dexamethasone of 1.5mg,

3 times a day for 2~3 weeks. anisodamine (654-2) can also be used.

3).  Use dextran 40 (low Molecular Dexran, Rheomacrodex) 500ml

IV administering, when

toxin has been absorbed but no symptom of toxicity. 20% solution of

Manitol for IV administering, and furosemide 40mg (Frusemide,

Fursemide, Lasix) for muscle injection. Pay attention to the balance

of electrolytes and correct acidosis immediately.

4). Skin allergy can be treated with antihistamines or with traditional

Chinese herbs for dispersing heat and  neutralizing toxin.

5). Chinese herb treatment:

• (a) fresh feng wei cao (Pterismultifida Poir) 250 to 500 g each time. Or combine with jin qian cao, wu kuai, tian qi. This single item formula has been successfully used to treat more than 10 serious cases. The combined formula has been used successfully on 7 cases including one who almost died for the toxin. 

• (b) yang mei (Myrica rubra.et Zucc) :  drinking juice of the fruit, 100 cc to 200 cc, every 1 or 2 hours, gradually decrease the volume was successful in treating a patient who breathing and heart rate were suddenly stop. Using or bark or root of yang mei 60 to 250 g each time, 2 to 3 times a day is also effective.

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Almost all of them are from sources of Chinese writings.

[A] according to the study of Li Rui_lin and Shu Da-fu et al 李瑞琳、舒達夫等

(a). M. Sharma, R. Sharma, XL Ge, R.S.Reddy, E.T.McCarthy, V. J. Savin, Medical College

of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, U.S.A.

(b). Department of dermatology, Huashan hospital, Shanghai Medical University, Shanghai

200040, China (Huang L and Feng SF); Radiology Institute,  Shanghai Medical University,

Shanghai 200040, China (Wang HF).

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