Lasiosphaera Calvatia
Aliases：Mǎ Pì (Horse Excrement); Mǎ Pì Bó (Horse Fart Ball); Mǎ Pì Jūn (Horse Excrement Fungus); Huī Gū (Gray Mushroom); Mǎ Pì Bāo (Horse Fart Puff); Wū Lóng Jūn (Black Dragon Fungus); Huī Bāo Jūn (Gray Spore Fungus); Rén Tóu Jūn (Human Head Fungus); Huī Jūn (Gray Fungus); Jī Shèn Jūn (Chicken Kidney Fungus); Niú Shǐ Jūn (Cow Dung Fungus); Dà Qì Jūn (Big Air Fungus); Yào Bāo (Medicine Pouch); Xiāng Mò Gū (Fragrant Powder Mushroom); Dì Yān (Ground Smoke).
Mǎ Bó (Puff-ball) is a Chinese medicinal substance. It is the dried fruiting body of Lasiosphaera fenzlii Reich., Calvatia gigantea (Batsch ex Pers.) Lloyd, or Calvatia lilacina (Mont. et Berk.) Lloyd, fungi of the Lycoperdaceae family. The herb appears in flattened spherical, subglobose, or top-shaped forms, with a grayish-brown to yellowish-brown peridium. The gleba is light and spongy, giving a fine, smooth texture when rubbed between the fingers, and the spores disperse like dust when disturbed. It was first recorded in the Ben Cao Jing Ji Zhu (Commentary on the Materia Medica). The Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu) states that it “clears the lung, disperses blood heat, and detoxifies.”
Efficacy & Actions
Clears the lung, relieves sore throat, and stops bleeding.
Indications
Internal treatment: Sore throat, hoarseness (loss of voice), and cough due to wind-heat congesting the lung. External treatment: Epistaxis (nosebleed) and traumatic bleeding.
Modern Pharmacology
Antitumor effect: Active components such as polysaccharides from Puff-ball (Lasiosphaera/Calvatia) exhibit antitumor activity. Hemostatic effect. Antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects. Antioxidant effect. Promotion of wound healing: The homogeneous polysaccharide from Puff-ball can promote wound healing. Antitussive effect.
Ingredients
Steroids: Ergosterol, ergosta-7,22-dien-3-one. Calvacin, calvatic acid. Amino acids, calvatin (mucoprotein). Polysaccharides. Inorganic Elements: Rich in elements such as K, Ca, Zn, Mg, Mn, Fe, and P, with varying contents depending on the species.
Usage & Dosage
Oral Administration: Decoction, 1.5–6g; it must be wrapped in a cloth during decoction; or prepared in pills or powder. Topical Application: Appropriate amount, ground into powder and sprinkled on the affected area, or mixed for application, or used as an insufflation powder (for nasal or throat application).
Contraindications
Contraindicated in patients with wind-cold lodging in the lung presenting with cough and loss of voice. Use with caution in pregnant women and women during menstruation. Use with caution in patients with spleen-stomach deficiency-cold.
Selected Formulas
For severe epidemic infection with head and face swelling (Dazatouwen) and throat obstruction (Li Gao formula, Puji Xiaodu Yin) Take Mabo (Puffball) together with Huangqin (Scutellaria), Huanglian (Coptis), Lianqiao (Forsythia), Banlangen (Isatis root), Niubangzi (Arctium fruit), and Bohe (Mint). Decoct in water and drink. For sore and swollen throat (Sheng Hui Fang) Take 1 fen of Mabo and 1 sloughed snake skin (burned to ash). Grind into powder, wrap 1 qian in cotton, hold in the mouth and swallow the saliva. For acute throat obstruction (Jingyan Liangfang) Take equal parts of Mapibo (Mabo) and Yanxiao (saltpeter). Grind into powder and blow into the throat. For chronic cough (Puji Fang, Mapibo Wan) Take Mapibo, grind into powder, mix with honey to make pills the size of waxberry seeds. Take 20 pills each time. For hematemesis (Xiuzhen Fang) Take Mapibao (Mabo), grind into powder, mix with sugar to make pills the size of a bullet. Take half a pill each time with cold water. For epidemic throat ulceration (Yihou Qianlun Fang, Qingyan Xiaodu Yin) Take Mabo together with Jinyinhua (Honeysuckle), Lianqiao, Banlangen, Xuanshen (Scrophularia), and Bohe. Decoct in water and drink.
Daily Consumption
Puff-ball Infusion: Take 3–10g of Puff-ball (Lasiosphaera/Calvatia), steep in boiling water or decoct for 10–15 minutes. It may help relieve exogenous cough or mild throat discomfort.
Medicinal Parts
Dried fruiting body.
Selection & Storage
Store in a dry place, protected from dust and moisture.
