Pearl and Its Applications

In our impression, pearls are highly valued ornaments, and many women adore jewelry made from pearls. However, pearls are also a type of medicinal material. For instance, calcined concha margaritifera is made from the calcined shell of pearls, which is known as the concha margaritifera. After undergoing multiple processing steps, the shell transforms into a medicinal material that possesses the effects of calming the nerves, clearing the liver, and improving vision. It is effective in treating symptoms such as palpitations, insomnia, vertigo, headache, and redness of the eyes due to liver heat.

1. The Efficacy of Calcined Concha Margaritifera

Soothing the liver, calming yang, stabilizing panic, and stopping bleeding. It treats symptoms such as dizziness, tinnitus, palpitations, insomnia, mania, convulsions, vomiting blood, epistaxis, and menorrhagia. According to the "Dictionary of Chinese Medicine," it nourishes liver yin, clears liver fire, treats mania, convulsions, dizziness, tinnitus, palpitations, chest and abdominal distension, blood heat in women, menorrhagia, and convulsions in children. According to the "New Reference on Herbal Medicine Pieces," it soothes the liver and calms yang, stabilizes the spirit and soul, treats convulsions, eliminates heat, and clears eye cataracts.

2. The Functions of Calcined Concha Margaritifera

1. Effects on the Liver: Injections made from the nacreous layers of pearls such as Pinctada martensii and Cristaria plicata offer protective effects against carbon tetrachloride-induced liver injury. They can reduce liver cell damage and accelerate the recovery of glutamic-pyruvic transaminase.

2. Anti-allergic Effects: Both the hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid hydrolysis products of Pinctada martensii's nacreous layer can inhibit the contraction of isolated guinea pig intestinal tubes caused by histamine. Its ether extract can also inhibit the contraction of intestinal tubes caused by histamine, preventing histamine-induced shock and death in guinea pigs.

3. Other Effects: The 30% sulfuric acid hydrolysis product of Pinctada martensii contains various amino acids (such as methionine, alanine, etc.). While it has no effect on the blood vessels and blood pressure of rabbit ear shells, it can increase the amplitude of heartbeats in isolated toads, reduce the tension of isolated rabbit intestines, and have a brief diuretic effect on rabbits.

3. Introduction to Concha Margaritifera

Introduction 1: Concha margaritifera refers to the shells of animals such as Hyriopsis cumingii, Cristaria plicata, or Pinctada fucata. They can be collected throughout the year. After collecting the shells, the flesh and dirt are removed, washed, boiled in alkaline water, then rinsed in fresh water. The outer black layer is scraped off, and the shells are then dried or baked. The main producing areas are Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hubei, Anhui, and other regions.

Introduction 2: Hyriopsis cumingii has an irregularly quadrilateral shape with concentric growth rings on its shell surface. The posterior margin protrudes upward, forming a large triangular sail-like posterior wing. The inner surface of the shell has distinct traces of the mantle, with oval anterior adductor muscle scars and triangular posterior adductor muscle scars. Both left and right shells have two pseudo-main teeth. The shell has a shiny appearance and is hard in texture. It has a slight fishy odor and a bland taste.

Introduction 3: Cristaria plicata has an irregular triangular shape with an upward-stretching large crest on the posterior dorsal margin. The inner surface of the shell has slightly distinct traces of the mantle. The anterior adductor muscle scar is large and wedge-shaped, while the posterior adductor muscle is irregularly oval. There are vertical ribs and grooves below the posterior lateral teeth, and there are no pseudo-main teeth on both the left and right shells.

Introduction 4: Pinctada fucata has a nearly square shape with large posterior auricles and small anterior auricles. The dorsal margin is straight, and the ventral margin is rounded. The growth lines are extremely strong and form sheet-like patterns. The adductor muscle is large, oblong, and has a long, prominent main tooth.