← The ApothecaryCaprifoliaceaerootFact-checked 24 October 2026

EvidenceLimited evidence

SafetyUse with caution

PregnancyInsufficient data

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anti-inflammatory · analgesic · tonic

What the regulators say

Pharmacopoeias: Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Korean Herbal Pharmacopoeia

Medicine derived from itIngredient (10%) of Xianling Gubao capsules, approved by the China Food and Drug Administration in 2002 as an OTC treatment for osteoporosis

Accepted name Dipsacus asper Wall. ex DC.; D. asperoides is a synonym used in the Chinese and Korean pharmacopoeias. Osteoporosis and fractures are the plant's main traditional and laboratory uses. Wild populations have been weakened by mass harvesting; most supply is cultivated, chiefly in Hubei. Adulteration with Phlomoides umbrosa and D. japonicus is common in Korean markets.

Himalayan teasel

Dipsacus asper

Also calledXu duan / Chuan xu duan (Chinese) · Sok-dan (Korean herbal medicine name) · Sichuan teasel · Dipsaci Radix (pharmaceutical name)

In older monographsDipsacus asperoides, Dipsacus asper Wall. ex DC.

A teasel native to central and south-east Asia whose root, xu duan, was recorded in the Shennong Bencao Jing for its power to 'renew fractures and join bones'. It is still a standard Chinese and Korean remedy for bones, joints, back pain and threatened miscarriage, and an ingredient of the approved Chinese osteoporosis capsule Xianling Gubao. Most evidence for the root itself is from cells and animals.

What it is used for

Arthritis and joint pain
Limited
Used in China and Korea for rheumatic joint disease and joint pain. In a rat model of knee osteoarthritis, root extract (200 mg/kg for 21 days) restored weight-bearing and reduced cartilage-degrading enzymes and inflammatory cytokines. No human trials of the root alone.^3,5
Pregnancy and after birth
Limited
Recurrent miscarriage: a 2025 meta-analysis of 11 Chinese RCTs (888 women) of Shoutai pills, a formula containing xu duan, reported higher live-birth (RR 1.88) and pregnancy-retention rates with no excess adverse events; the effect cannot be attributed to xu duan alone.⁴
Back pain
Traditional
A traditional remedy in China and Korea for lumbar and knee pain, understood in Chinese medicine as a deficiency of the liver and kidney; not tested clinically on its own.^3,2
Bruises and sprains
Traditional
Used for traumatic haematoma, falls and blows, tendon injuries and fractures; its saponin asperosaponin VI aided tendon repair and bone formation in animal models.^3,2
Heavy periods
Traditional
Listed for uterine bleeding and gynaecological disorders; later Chinese formulas combine it with donkey-hide gelatin and mugwort leaf for these conditions. No clinical studies of the root alone.^3,2

How it is prepared

decoction

The dried root, raw or processed (wine stir-fried, salt stir-fried or sweated), is decocted, usually with other herbs in a formula.

Back pain · Arthritis and joint pain

dry extract / capsule

Xianling Gubao capsules, approved in China in 2002 as an over-the-counter osteoporosis medicine, contain 10% Dipsacus root with 70% Epimedium herb and four other herbs. Shoutai pills for preventing miscarriage combine xu duan with Cuscuta seed, Ligustrum fruit and Eucommia bark.

Amounts are as recorded by the named source, not a recommendation.

Safety

Pregnancy: Insufficient data
Breastfeeding: Insufficient data

Side effects

In volunteers taking total saponin tablets for six months: mild abdominal discomfort, constipation, swollen gums, raised ALT (a liver enzyme) and irritability

Toxicity

Systematic toxicology and pharmacokinetic data are almost absent. Xianling Gubao, which contains it, carries a liver-injury risk linked in rat studies to icariin, baohuoside I and bakuchiol from its Epimedium and Psoralea components rather than to Dipsacus.

Dangerous lookalikes

Dipsacus japonicus root (cytotoxic in a cell study) and Phlomoides umbrosa root are sold mixed with or instead of Dipsaci Radix; DNA barcoding (ITS2, matK) distinguishes them.

In the healing traditions

Traditional Chinese Medicine
Xu duan
Tastes pungent, bitter, slightly sweet then astringent. Used to tonify liver and kidney and for kidney-yang deficiency, for fractures, joint and tendon injuries, lumbar and knee pain, uterine bleeding and to prevent miscarriage (its traditional 'tocolysis' effect); TCM practitioners consider it a first choice for recurrent miscarriage. Prepared raw, 'sweated', stir-fried with wine (to promote blood circulation) or with salt water (to direct its action to the kidney).
Shennong Bencao Jing ('renews fractures and joins bones')
Korean medicine
Sok-dan (Korean medicine)
Listed in the Korean Herbal Pharmacopoeia as Dipsaci Radix for bone and arthritis-related diseases; in Korean markets it is often mixed or confused with Phlomidis Radix (Han-sok-dan, Phlomoides umbrosa) and with Dipsacus japonicus.

Active compounds

asperosaponin VI (akebia saponin D): triterpenoid saponin and pharmacopoeial quality marker (pharmacopoeial standard: above 2%); promotes bone-forming cells and inhibits bone-resorbing osteoclasts in cell and ovariectomised-rat studies; activates progesterone receptors in cell models
iridoid glycosides (loganin, sweroside, loganic acid): markers distinguishing Dipsaci Radix from Phlomidis Radix
phenolic acids (chlorogenic acid): raised by wine processing

History

The Shennong Bencao Jing records the root for its ability to 'renew fractures and join bones'. Its use shifted over the centuries from liver and kidney deficiency towards gynaecology in combination with donkey-hide gelatin and mugwort, and Shoutai pills, which contain it, have been used to prevent miscarriage for over 300 years.

Sources

Reference, not prescription. Nothing here is medical advice. Herbs can interact with medicines and be dangerous in pregnancy; tell your doctor or pharmacist about anything you take.