Description
Bidens pilosa was first recorded in Supplement to Compendium of Materia Medica (Ben Cao Shi Yi). It is also known by various names, including Bidens herb, Bidens tripartita, Ghost Needle Grass, and other traditional names. Bidens pilosa is widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of Asia and America, as well as in various regions of eastern, central, southern, and southwestern China. It commonly grows in roadside wastelands, hillsides, and fields at elevations ranging from 50 to 3,100 meters. Bidens pilosa is an annual herbaceous plant with an erect stem featuring a blunt quadrangular shape. Its lateral leaflets are elliptical or ovate-elliptical. It is a commonly used traditional herbal plant in Chinese folk medicine.
The whole plant of Bidens pilosa mainly contains flavonoid compounds, including hyperoside, quercetin, and chalcone compounds such as butein; phenolic acids including protocatechuic acid, gallic acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, and salicylic acid; as well as amino acids, coumarins, alkaloids, anthraquinone glycosides, sugars, carotenoids, and vitamins.
