Sesamum indicum

Background

Chinese Name (pinyin): Mayou

Chinese Name  :

Common Name  :Sesame oil

Specific Name  : Oleum sesami

Scientific Name:
Collection  :

Description  : A pale yellow or brownish yellow, clear liquid, odour slight or aromatic of cooked sesame seed, taste weak, freely miscible with chloroform, ether, petroleum ether or carbon disulfide, slightly soluble in etahnol.Relative density: 0.917 - 0.923 (Appendix Vll A)Refractivew index 1.471 - 1.475 (Appendix Vll F)Acid value: Not more than 2.5 (Appendix lX N)Saponification value: 188 - 195 (Appendix lX N)Iodine value: 103 - 116 (Appendix N)

Identification  :

Processing  :

Action  : Lubricant and excipient.

Indication  : for relaxing the bowels and moistening the lung when taken orally, also used as ground substance in making ointments and plaster for external application

Precautions  :

Dosage  : 17 to 68 ml.

Storage  : Preserve in tightly closed containers, stored in a cool place, and protected from light.

Background

Chinese Name (pinyin): Heizhima

Chinese Name  :

Common Name  :Black Sesame

Specific Name  : Semen sesami nigrum

Scientific Name:
Collection  : The plant is collected in autumn when the fruit is ripe, dried in the sun. The seed is gathered, remove from foreign matter and dried in the sun.

Description  : Flattened ovoid, about 3mm long, and 2 mm wide. Externally black, smooth or reticulately wrinkled. A dotted brown raphe at the apex, testa thin, 2 cotyledons, white, oily, odor weak, taste sweet, slightly oily aromatic.

Identification  : 1.Macerate 1 g of the broken seed with 10 ml of petroleum benzene (60 - 90ºC) for 1 hour. Decant the supernatant to a test tube, add 10 ml of sucrose, shake for 30 seconds, a pink color is produced in the acid layer and gradually turns to red on standing.2.Triturate 0.5g into pieces, add 10 ml of chloroform and macerate for 2 hours, filter and evaporate the filtrate. Dissolve the residue in 1 ml of chloroform and use it as the test solution. Dissolve the sesamin CRS and B-butanol CRS separately in chloroform to produce two solutions each containing 2 mg per ml as the reference solutions. Carry out the method for thin layer chromatography (Appendix V1 B), using silica gel G as the coating substance and cyclohexane ether-ethyl acetate (20:5.5:2.5) as the mobile phase. Apply separately 5 µl of each of the two solutions to the plate. After developing and removal of the plate, dry it in the air, spray with 10% solution of sulfuric acid in ethanol, visualize with a current of hot air until the color of the spots appear clearly. The spots in the chromatogram obtained with the test solution correspond in position and color to the spots in the chromatogram obtained with the two reference solutions.

Processing  : Eliminate foreign matter, wash clean, dry in the sun. Break to pieces before use.Stir fried: Stir fry as describe under the method for simple stir frying (Appendix 11 D) until it cracks, break to pieces before use.

Action  : To tonify the liver and the kidney, to replenish vital essence and blood, and to relax the bowels.

Indication  :

Precautions  :

Dosage  : 9 to 15 g.

Storage  : Preserve in a ventilated and dry place, protected from moth.