The Shy Plant
害羞的植物
A child asked “why does it do that?” fifty years ago. This is what science has finally said back — and what it still can’t.
五十年前，一个孩子问：”它为什么会这样？”这篇文章讲的，是科学终于给出的回答——以及它至今仍答不上来的部分。
⚠ Before You Read Further⚠ 阅读前须知
This article is a science-and-history tour of one plant. It is not treatment advice. Snakebite is a hospital emergency — antivenom, not a plant. Avoid it if you are pregnant or trying to conceive. If you have thyroid disease, or a bleeding problem, speak to your doctor first. Nothing here replaces that.
这篇文章是一次关于一种植物的科学与历史之旅，不是治疗建议。被蛇咬是需要立刻送医的紧急情况——需要的是抗蛇毒血清，不是植物。怀孕或正在备孕者请避免使用。患有甲状腺疾病或出血问题者，请先咨询医生。这里没有任何内容可以取代医生的意见。
Touch it, and it folds. Everybody knows that. Almost nobody asks the second question — the one a small boy asked about a thorny little plant by the fence: why does it do that?
一碰，它就合起来。人人都知道。可几乎没有人问第二个问题——那个小男孩对着篱笆边的小刺草问出的问题：它为什么要这样？
For most of the plant’s history in science, there was no good experimental answer. Then, in 2022, a Japanese team showed that the folding is a defence — plants that could not fold were eaten by grasshoppers more than plants that could. A reflex we have been poking for centuries turned out to have a job.
在科学史的大部分时间里，这个问题没有一个像样的实验答案。直到 2022 年，一个日本团队才证明：这种折叠是一种防御——无法折叠的植物，比能折叠的植物更容易被蝗虫啃食。我们戳了几百年的反射动作，原来是有”工作”的。
And that is only the beginning. Researchers have dropped these plants onto foam until the plants appeared to stop caring. They have put them to sleep with ether — and watched them wake up seven hours later. A famous scientist was told by the Royal Society, twice, that his papers about this plant were not good enough.
这还只是开头。研究人员把这种植物一次次摔到泡沫垫上，直到它们似乎不再在意。他们用乙醚把它们麻醉，七个小时后又看着它们醒来。一位著名科学家，两次被英国皇家学会告知，他关于这种植物的论文还不够好。
And it is growing in the drain outside your gate.
而它，此刻就长在你家门外的排水沟旁。
As a kid, duri semalu was one of the plants that made me wonder: how? Why? I played with it every chance I got — and by play I don’t mean only touching it to watch it react. I tested it in many ways. When I’m curious, I can hardly let something go until I have an answer that satisfies me.
小时候，duri semalu 是让我好奇的植物之一：怎么会这样？为什么？我一有机会就玩它——而我说的”玩”，不只是碰一下看它的反应，我会用很多种方法去试它。我一旦好奇起来，不得到一个让自己满意的答案，就很难放下。
I was lucky. My mother was a science teacher and my father a maths teacher in a secondary school, and they took my questions seriously, almost every time. When they didn’t know the answer, they found it for me, and sometimes they took me along: to the library, to their lecturers, to a doctor friend. Some of my questions were hard. Why are plants green? Why do the stars twinkle? Where are they, how far, how do they measure it?
我很幸运。母亲是中学的科学老师，父亲是数学老师，他们几乎每一次都认真对待我的问题。他们不知道答案时，会去替我找，有时还会带我一起去：图书馆、他们的讲师、一位医生朋友。有些问题很难。植物为什么是绿色的？星星为什么会闪烁？它们在哪里、有多远、怎么测量？
Mimosa pudica was one of those subjects swept away by daily life, or overlooked. Five decades later, I wanted to tie the knot on it.
含羞草就是那些被日常生活冲走、或被我们忽略的题目之一。五十年后，我想把这个结系上。
About This Article关于这篇文章
Every claim below comes from published studies I found and read online. They have not been cross-checked against the AJ Herbs book library, so treat this as a well-sourced field report, not a final verdict. Each popular claim about the plant gets a badge: Confirmed, Partial, Plausible (Not Yet Confirmed) or Busted. The full source list is at the bottom.
以下所有说法，都来自我在网上找到并读过的已发表研究。它们尚未与 AJ Herbs 的书籍资料库交叉核对，所以请把它当作一份有出处的田野报告，而不是最终定论。关于这种植物的每一个流行说法，都会得到一个标签：已证实、部分成立、有可能（尚未证实）或被破除。完整来源列表在文末。
In This Article本文目录
- In Plain English通俗版说明
- How the Flinch Works它是怎么”缩”起来的
- Three Ways to Ask the Question三种提问的方式
- One Plant, Many Names一种植物，许多名字
- What’s Inside里面有什么
- Nine Claims, Tested九个说法，逐一检验
- Why It’s Everywhere为什么到处都是
- In the News近期研究
- Using It Honestly诚实地谈用法
- Try It Tonight今晚就试试
- Petua CornerPetua 角落
- Honest Limitations诚实的局限
- Caution注意事项
- Five Decades Later五十年后
- References参考资料
In Plain English — Words You’ll Meet通俗版说明 — 你会遇到的词
Tap any underlined word for a one-line explanation. Here are the words that come up most: pulvinus, action potential, habituation, mimosine, tannin, in vitro.
点击任何带下划线的词，可以看到一句话解释。最常出现的词有：叶枕、动作电位、习惯化、含羞草碱、单宁、体外实验。
How the Flinch Works
它是怎么”缩”起来的
Water, calcium and a tiny electrical wave
水、钙，和一阵微小的电波
Brush a leaflet and, within a second or two, the whole row of leaflets snaps shut, the leaf stalk droops, and the signal can run on to neighbouring leaves. There are no muscles and no nerves. What it has is the pulvinus — a hinge of water-filled cells. When the signal arrives, those cells let water out, lose pressure, and the hinge collapses.
轻轻碰一下小叶，一两秒内，整排小叶会啪地合上，叶柄下垂，信号还会继续传到邻近的叶子。它没有肌肉，也没有神经。它有的是叶枕——一个由充满水的细胞组成的铰链。信号一到，这些细胞放出水分、失去压力，铰链就塌了。
What carries the signal? A 2022 study in Nature Communications (Hagihara, Toyota and colleagues) recorded calcium and electrical activity at the same time. A surge of calcium ions, coupled with an action potential and a slower “variation potential”, triggers the movement. In plain words: the plant sends a wave of electrical and chemical news down its own body, in a way that has more in common with a nerve than you would expect from a weed.
是什么在传递信号？2022 年发表在《自然·通讯》的一项研究（Hagihara、Toyota 等人）同时记录了钙离子和电信号。钙离子激增，加上动作电位和较慢的”变异电位”，触发了这个动作。通俗地说：植物沿着自己的身体传送一波电与化学的消息，与神经的相似之处，远超你对一株杂草的想象。
So what is it for?那么，它有什么用？
Here is the part the boy wanted. The same team tested whether the folding actually protects the plant. Grasshoppers fed more on plants whose leaves were kept from folding than on plants that folded normally. The folding appears to be an anti-herbivore defence — and the researchers also found it can startle the insect.
这就是那个男孩想知道的部分。同一个团队测试了折叠是否真的在保护植物。当叶子被阻止折叠时，蝗虫啃食得更多；能够正常折叠的植物，被啃得较少。这种折叠似乎是一种抗食草动物的防御——研究人员还发现，它能把昆虫吓一跳。
Honest note: this is one study, in one lab setup, with one type of insect. It is the first experimental evidence I could find. It is strong, not final.
诚实说明：这只是一项研究，一种实验条件，一种昆虫。这是我能找到的第一份实验证据。它很有力，但不是定论。
The scientist the Royal Society turned down被皇家学会拒绝的科学家
More than a century ago, the Indian scientist Jagadish Chandra Bose recorded electrical responses in this plant and argued that plants and animals share more physiology than anyone assumed. The Royal Society turned down papers of his in 1901 and 1904. He was elected a Fellow in 1920.
一百多年前，印度科学家贾格迪什·钱德拉·鲍斯（Jagadish Chandra Bose）记录了这种植物的电反应，并提出植物与动物共享的生理机制，比人们想象的要多。英国皇家学会在 1901 年和 1904 年拒绝了他的论文。1920 年，他当选为皇家学会会员。
Three Ways to Ask the Question
三种提问的方式
Touch it. Drop it. Put it to sleep.
碰它、摔它、让它入睡。
A curious child doesn’t stop at touching. Scientists, it turns out, kept going in much the same spirit. Three experiments tell the story.
好奇的孩子不会只停在”碰一下”。科学家们，也以相似的精神一路追问下去。三个实验，就是这个故事。
A wave of calcium and electricity一波钙与电
Touching or wounding the leaf sets off a calcium surge and an electrical signal that travel through the plant and bend the pulvinus (2022 study).
触碰或弄伤叶子，会引发钙离子激增和电信号，在植物体内传播并使叶枕弯曲（2022 年研究）。
Verdict: well supported.
结论：证据充分。
Does it learn?它会学习吗？
In a 2014 experiment (Gagliano and colleagues), potted plants were dropped 15 cm onto foam. After the first four to six drops, they stopped folding. Some still showed the learned response after 28 days.
在 2014 年的一项实验中（Gagliano 等人），盆栽植物被从 15 厘米高处摔到泡沫垫上。头四到六次之后，它们不再折叠。有些植物在 28 天后仍表现出这种学到的反应。
Verdict: contested. Other researchers question the design and whether it counts as learning.
结论：有争议。其他研究者对实验设计，以及它是否算”学习”，提出了质疑。
The ether experiment乙醚实验
In the 19th century, Claude Bernard showed that ether stops the plant responding to touch. In 2017, Yokawa and colleagues repeated it with modern tools: under diethyl ether the leaves stayed still, and the response returned after about 7 hours. Anaesthetics also stopped the electrical signals.
19 世纪，克洛德·贝尔纳（Claude Bernard）证明乙醚会让这种植物对触碰失去反应。2017 年，Yokawa 等人用现代工具重复了实验：在乙醚下叶子纹丝不动，约 7 小时后反应恢复。麻醉剂同时也阻断了电信号。
Verdict: reproducible and striking.
结论：可重复，而且令人惊叹。
Put them side by side and something odd emerges. The same drugs that stop a human nerve from firing also stop this plant from folding. That doesn’t make the plant “conscious”. It does tell us that the machinery of electrical signalling is older and more widely shared than the textbooks of our school days implied.
把它们放在一起看，就有点奇怪：能让人类神经停止放电的药物，同样能让这株植物停止折叠。这并不代表植物”有意识”，但它确实说明，电信号这套机制，比我们学生时代课本所暗示的更古老，也更普遍。
One Plant, Many Names
一种植物，许多名字
Pokok semalu, puteri malu, lajjalu, makahiya
Pokok semalu、puteri malu、lajjalu、makahiya
Native to tropical Central and South America, Mimosa pudica is now found across the tropics. The scientific name is a joke the plant tells on itself: pudica is Latin for “bashful”. Malay and Indonesian name it the same way — semalu and puteri malu both mean shy. In Sanskrit it is lajjalu, in Bengali lajjabati, in Tagalog makahiya. Almost every culture that met this plant said the same thing: it is shy.
Mimosa pudica 原产于中美洲和南美洲热带地区，如今遍布热带。学名本身就带着一点幽默：pudica 在拉丁文里是”害羞的”。马来语和印尼语也这样命名——semalu 和 puteri malu 都是”害羞”。梵语叫 lajjalu，孟加拉语叫 lajjabati，他加禄语叫 makahiya。几乎每一种遇见它的文化，都说了同一句话：它很害羞。
It also shows up in traditional medicine across the world. Reviews record it in Ayurveda, where classical authors Charaka and Sushruta are cited, and in folk use in Cambodia, Cameroon, Indonesia and Bangladesh. The uses recorded are wide-ranging, which is exactly why the nine claims below need testing one by one.
它也出现在世界各地的传统医药中。综述文献记载，阿育吠陀（其中引用了古典作者 Charaka 和 Sushruta），以及柬埔寨、喀麦隆、印尼和孟加拉国的民间用法中，都有它的身影。记载的用途非常广泛，这正是下面九个说法需要逐一检验的原因。
The Malaysian angle马来西亚的角度
A 1993 floristic survey of Mimosa in Peninsular Malaysia found M. pudica mostly in open, disturbed and derelict habitats, farmland and ex-mining land. Think of it as the plant that moves in after we leave. Malaysian research groups have since taken it seriously: a University of Malaya and FRIM team on snake venom, a Universiti Putra Malaysia group that flagged it as an under-valued medicinal weed for diabetes, and a team at the International Islamic University Malaysia that isolated enzyme-blocking compounds.
1993 年对西马来西亚含羞草属植物的一次植物区系调查发现，M. pudica 多出现在空旷、受干扰的荒地、农地和废矿地。可以把它想成”我们离开之后搬进来的植物”。此后，马来西亚的研究团队也认真对待它：马来亚大学与 FRIM 团队研究蛇毒；马来西亚博特拉大学（UPM）小组把它称为糖尿病领域”被低估的药用杂草”；马来西亚国际伊斯兰大学（IIUM）团队则分离出了能抑制酶的化合物。
What’s Inside
里面有什么
Four families of compounds worth knowing
值得认识的四类成分
Mimosine含羞草碱
The reason this plant is not “just a harmless weed”. Linked to hair loss and goitre in livestock fed the related Leucaena tree. Only small amounts are reported in M. pudica, and nobody has measured it in a tea.
这是为什么它不是”无害的杂草”。在大量喂食近缘银合欢的牲畜中，与脱毛和甲状腺肿大有关。文献报道含羞草中的含量较少，但没有人测过一杯茶里有多少。
Tannins单宁
A 1986 review reports roughly 10% tannin in the root. Tannins tighten tissue and bind protein — the likely reason behind traditional use on bleeding and wounds, and a candidate for the venom story below.
1986 年的一篇综述报告，根部约含 10% 单宁。单宁能收紧组织、结合蛋白质——这可能是传统上用于出血和伤口的原因，也是下面蛇毒故事的主角。
Flavonoids黄酮类
Common plant antioxidants. In enzyme tests, quercetin was a strong blocker of a sugar-digesting enzyme — more on that in the diabetes panel.
常见的植物抗氧化物。在酶实验中，槲皮素是糖消化酶的强力抑制剂——详见糖尿病那一栏。
Stigmasterol豆甾醇
A plant sterol that, alongside quercetin, outperformed the diabetes drug acarbose in a test-tube enzyme assay. Test tube. Not a person.
一种植物甾醇。在试管酶实验里，它与槲皮素一起，表现胜过降糖药阿卡波糖。试管，不是人。
Nine Claims, Tested
九个说法，逐一检验
What people say about this plant — and what the studies found
人们对这种植物的说法——以及研究真正发现了什么
“The folding is a pointless party trick”“折叠只是个没用的把戏”
Busted被破除Grasshoppers ate more from plants that were prevented from folding (2022). The reflex has a job: defence.
阻止折叠后，蝗虫啃食得更多（2022 年）。这个反射是有”工作”的：防御。
“It feels pain”“它会感到疼痛”
Busted被破除It has electrical signalling, and anaesthetics switch the response off. But there is no evidence of pain. Signalling is not suffering. Pain needs a brain to feel it.
它有电信号，麻醉剂会把反应关掉。但没有任何证据显示它会痛。有信号不等于有痛苦，疼痛需要有大脑去感受。
“Plants can learn”“植物会学习”
Plausible (Not Yet Confirmed)有可能（尚未证实）One lab’s experiment suggests habituation in this plant, lasting up to 28 days. The design has been questioned. Interesting, not settled.
一个实验室的研究显示，这种植物可能出现习惯化，并持续长达 28 天。其实验设计受到质疑。有趣，但没有定论。
“It cures diabetes”“它能治愈糖尿病”
Partial部分成立In enzyme tests, stigmasterol (IC50 91.08) and quercetin (75.16) blocked a sugar-digesting enzyme better than acarbose (351.02) — in vitro. A Malaysian cell study found the extract plus insulin raised glucose uptake about five-fold. In rats, it lowered glucose in diabetic rats but not in normal ones. No human trial found. A drug-like signal, not a cure.
在酶实验中，豆甾醇（IC50 91.08）和槲皮素（75.16）抑制糖消化酶的效果优于阿卡波糖（351.02）——属于体外实验。一项马来西亚细胞研究发现，提取物加胰岛素后，葡萄糖摄取增加约五倍。在大鼠身上，它能降低糖尿病大鼠的血糖，却不影响正常大鼠。没有找到人体试验。这是一个类似药物的信号，不是治愈。
“It’s a proven antivenom”“它是经证实的抗蛇毒药”
Busted被破除The strongest Malaysian story has a twist. A University of Malaya and FRIM team screened 17 plants; only Mimosa pudica fully neutralised a lethal dose of cobra venom — but only when venom and extract were mixed before injection. The follow-up found no protection in any rescue mode or by oral pre-treatment, and the authors called its snakebite use questionable. It works in the test tube. It did not work in the animal. Go to hospital.
这是最有马来西亚特色的故事，但有个转折。马来亚大学与 FRIM 团队筛选了 17 种植物，只有含羞草能完全中和致死剂量的眼镜蛇毒——但前提是蛇毒与提取物在注射之前就已混合。后续研究发现，在任何”事后救治”模式或口服预处理中，都没有保护作用，作者也称其用于蛇咬”值得怀疑”。它在试管里有效，在动物身上无效。请立刻去医院。
“It heals wounds”“它能愈合伤口”
Partial部分成立A 2026 PLOS One rabbit study (16 animals, 4 per group) found that by day 14 the Mimosa-treated wounds showed normal tissue and early hair-follicle regrowth. But wound-contraction length did not differ from saline, and tensile strength was not tested. Promising histology; unproven healing.
2026 年 PLOS One 的一项兔子研究（16 只动物，每组 4 只）发现，到第 14 天，含羞草处理的伤口显示正常组织和早期毛囊再生。但伤口收缩长度与生理盐水组没有差异，也没有测试抗张强度。组织学上有前景，愈合效果未证实。
“It stops heavy bleeding”“它能止住大出血”
Plausible (Not Yet Confirmed)有可能（尚未证实）A 1986 Bombay pilot gave the plant to nine women with heavy periods. It was uncontrolled, and the authors themselves called for proper trials. Interesting history, thin evidence — and heavy bleeding needs a doctor’s assessment first.
1986 年孟买的一项先导研究，让九名月经过多的女性使用了这种植物。研究没有对照组，作者本人也呼吁开展正规试验。历史有意思，证据薄弱——而且大出血首先需要医生评估。
“It calms anxiety, depression and seizures”“它能安抚焦虑、抑郁和癫痫”
Plausible (Not Yet Confirmed)有可能（尚未证实）Mouse studies only. In one, an aqueous extract at 160 mg/kg delayed the onset of status epilepticus by 70.91%. A mouse is not a person, and a seizure is not something to experiment with at home.
只有小鼠研究。其中一项里，160 毫克/公斤的水提取物使癫痫持续状态的发作延迟了 70.91%。小鼠不是人，而癫痫发作也不是可以在家里试验的事。
“It’s completely harmless — it’s just a weed”“完全无害——不过是杂草”
Busted被破除Beyond mimosine: in a Peruvian rat study, 250 mg/kg raised fertility while 500 mg/kg lowered it, and a root powder at 150 mg/kg disrupted the oestrous cycle for two weeks. In the lab, 0.5 mM mimosine reversibly arrested human cells. The route matters: injection killed mice at 400 mg/kg, while an oral dose of 2000 mg/kg caused no deaths in 48 hours. “Free” and “growing wild” do not mean “safe”.
除了含羞草碱：在秘鲁的一项大鼠研究中，250 毫克/公斤使生育力上升，500 毫克/公斤则使其下降；150 毫克/公斤的根粉使发情周期紊乱了两周。在实验室里，0.5 mM 的含羞草碱能使人体细胞可逆地停滞。给药途径很重要：400 毫克/公斤注射会使小鼠死亡，而 2000 毫克/公斤口服在 48 小时内没有致死。”免费”和”野生”并不等于”安全”。
Why It’s Everywhere
为什么到处都是
A shy plant with an unshy strategy
一株害羞的植物，却有不害羞的策略
Seeds that wait up to 44 years. Wind, bees, floodwater, self-pollination. A plant that can start a colony from a single seed. It is an invasive weed in many countries, harming pasture and farmland — and a fire hazard when dense thickets dry out.
种子能等上长达 44 年。风、蜜蜂、洪水、自花授粉皆可。一粒种子就能建立一个群落。在许多国家，它是入侵杂草，危害牧场和农地——浓密的灌丛干枯时，还是火灾隐患。
Now the Wrong Default angle, which cuts both ways. Plants that grow free on roadsides attract no research funding — nobody can patent a weed. That is why so little is known. But “free” also means no one is checking the safety for you. Neglect and hype are two sides of the same default.
再来看”错误的默认值”这个角度，它是双向的。路边免费生长的植物，没有研究经费——没有人能为一株杂草申请专利，所以人们知道得很少。但”免费”也意味着没有人替你检查安全性。被忽视与被吹捧，是同一个默认值的两面。
In the News
近期研究
What researchers have published most recently
研究者最近发表了什么
Why it folds它为什么折叠
Nature Communications: calcium and electrical signals trigger the folding, and the folding defends against herbivorous insects.
《自然·通讯》：钙和电信号触发折叠，而折叠能抵御食草昆虫。
Seizures in mice小鼠的癫痫
Frontiers in Pharmacology: an aqueous extract protected mice in a chemically induced temporal lobe epilepsy model. Mice only.
《药理学前沿》：水提取物对化学诱导的颞叶癫痫小鼠模型有保护作用。仅限小鼠。
Wounds in rabbits兔子的伤口
PLOS One: Mimosa-treated rabbit wounds showed normal tissue by day 14, though wound contraction matched saline.
PLOS One：含羞草处理的兔子伤口在第 14 天呈现正常组织，但伤口收缩与生理盐水组相同。
Using It Honestly
诚实地谈用法
Why there is no dosage table in this article
为什么这篇文章没有剂量表
Most AJ Herbs articles give a dosing table. This one doesn’t, and that is a finding in itself. There is no human dose-finding for Mimosa pudica. The only human data are historical: the 1986 Bombay pilot of nine women, uncontrolled. Everything else is cells, enzymes, mice, rats and rabbits. Anyone quoting you an exact dose is guessing.
大多数 AJ Herbs 文章都有剂量表，这篇没有，这本身就是一个发现。含羞草没有任何人体剂量研究。唯一的人体资料是历史性的：1986 年孟买九名女性的无对照先导研究。其余的全是细胞、酶、小鼠、大鼠和兔子。任何给你确切剂量的人，都是在猜。
What the evidence does support is curiosity, not consumption: it is a fascinating plant to watch, and a fair target for proper human research.
证据真正支持的是好奇心，而不是服用：这是一种很有趣、值得观察的植物，也是一个值得认真做人体研究的对象。
I pick a few stems and brew tea every two to three months. That is my own occasional habit, not a recommendation, and not a dose.
我每隔两三个月，会摘几根茎来泡茶。这只是我自己偶尔的习惯，不是推荐，也不是剂量。
Try It Tonight
今晚就试试
A home observation — not research
一次家中的观察——不是研究
Be the curious kid again再做一次那个好奇的孩子
- Find a healthy plant. Wear gloves — the stems are thorny.找一株健康的植株。戴上手套——茎上有刺。
- Touch just the tip of one leaflet. Watch how far the folding travels, and how fast.只碰一片小叶的尖端。看看折叠传得多远、多快。
- Time how long it takes to open again. Try again a minute later. Does it change?记录它重新张开要多久。一分钟后再试一次，有变化吗？
- Write down what you notice. Then ask your own “why?”把你的发现写下来。然后问你自己的那个”为什么？”
This is a home observation for curiosity. It is not a controlled experiment, and your results prove nothing — but it is exactly where the best questions start.
这只是出于好奇的家庭观察，不是对照实验，你的结果也证明不了什么——但最好的问题，正是从这里开始的。
Petua Corner
Petua 角落
Practical notes from the field
来自田野的实用笔记
Know what you’re looking at认清你看到的是什么
- Identify first. M. pudica is a low, creeping herb with round, fluffy pink-purple flowers. The giant sensitive plants (M. pigra and M. diplotricha) also fold their leaves, and M. pigra thickets have been recorded in Perak. The studies in this article are on M. pudica only.先辨认。M. pudica 是低矮匍匐的草本，开圆形蓬松的粉紫色花。大含羞草类（M. pigra 和 M. diplotricha）的叶子同样会折叠，而且霹雳州已有记录到 M. pigra 的灌丛。本文所有研究，仅针对 M. pudica。
- Don’t pick it from the roadside or a drain bank. Roadsides are often sprayed with herbicide, and drain banks collect what washes down. Free is not the same as clean.不要在路边或排水沟旁摘取。路边常被喷洒除草剂，排水沟边则会积聚被冲下来的东西。免费不等于干净。
- Mind the thorns. Gloves and long sleeves. The stems and leaf stalks can scratch.小心刺。戴手套、穿长袖。茎和叶柄会刮伤皮肤。
- Pesticide-free, grown-yourself is best if you want to keep it as a garden curiosity. Pot it on a windowsill and let children test it.如果只想把它当成园中的小趣味，自己种、不喷农药最好。放在窗台花盆里，让孩子去试它。
Honest Limitations
诚实的局限
- Most evidence is cells, enzymes and animals. There is no human trial for any of the nine claims.大部分证据来自细胞、酶和动物。九个说法中，没有任何一个有人体试验。
- The learning experiment is contested.关于”学习”的实验有争议。
- Mimosine in a cup of M. pudica tea has not been measured.没有人测量过一杯含羞草茶中的含羞草碱含量。
- The cinnamon-irritation finding came from the same rabbit study; read it alongside my cinnamon article.肉桂刺激的发现来自同一项兔子研究；请与我的肉桂文章对照阅读。
- The sources were found online and not cross-checked against the AJ Herbs library.这些来源是在网上找到的，尚未与 AJ Herbs 资料库交叉核对。
Caution
注意事项
- Pregnant or trying to conceive: avoid. Animal studies show effects on fertility and the oestrous cycle.怀孕或备孕：避免。动物研究显示它会影响生育力和发情周期。
- Thyroid disease: mimosine is linked to goitre in livestock. Ask your doctor first.甲状腺疾病：含羞草碱与牲畜甲状腺肿大有关。请先咨询医生。
- Heavy bleeding: needs medical assessment. Do not self-treat.大出血：需要医疗评估，不要自行处理。
- Children: no safety data. Observe the plant, don’t feed it to them.儿童：没有安全性数据。让他们观察，不要让他们服用。
- Snakebite: hospital antivenom. Always.被蛇咬：去医院用抗蛇毒血清。永远如此。
- Skin: stems are thorny, and some people react to the plant. Stop if it irritates.皮肤：茎有刺，也有人会对这种植物起反应。若有刺激，请停止接触。
Five Decades Later
五十年后
A boy asked why a thorny little plant folds when touched. His parents didn’t wave the question away. They took him to the library, to their lecturers, to a doctor friend. Fifty years on, we have a better answer than any of them could have found: a wave of calcium and electricity, a hinge of water, a defence against grasshoppers.
一个男孩问：为什么一株长刺的小草，一碰就会折叠？他的父母没有把问题挥开。他们带他去图书馆、去找讲师、去找一位医生朋友。五十年后，我们有了比他们当时能找到的更好的答案：一波钙与电，一个水的铰链，一种对付蝗虫的防御。
But we also have a more honest list of what we don’t know. It isn’t a proven antivenom. It isn’t a diabetes cure. It isn’t harmless. It is a real plant with real chemistry and real questions still open — and it has been growing in the drain outside our gates the whole time.
但我们也有了一份更诚实的”未知清单”。它不是被证实的抗蛇毒药，不是糖尿病的治愈方法，也不是无害的。它是一种真实的植物，有真实的化学成分，也有真实未解的问题——而它，一直就长在我们家门外的排水沟旁。
That is the knot, tied as tightly as the evidence allows. The rest is for the next curious child.
这就是那个结，系到了证据所允许的最紧处。剩下的，留给下一个好奇的孩子。
References (13)参考资料（13）
- Hagihara T, Mano H, Miura T, Hasebe M, Toyota M. Calcium-mediated rapid movements defend against herbivorous insects in Mimosa pudica. Nature Communications 13, 2022. doi:10.1038/s41467-022-34106-x pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9663552
- Yokawa K, Kagenishi T, Pavlovic A, et al. Anaesthetics stop diverse plant organ movements, affect endocytic vesicle recycling and ROS homeostasis, and block action potentials in Venus flytraps. Annals of Botany, 2017–2018. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6215046
- Gagliano M, et al. Experience teaches plants to learn faster and forget slower in environments where it matters. Oecologia, 2014. University of Western Australia summary. news.uwa.edu.au/201404286629/april-2014/clever-plants-learn-
- Vejayan J, et al. 2007. Anti-snake venom screening of plants. Journal of Tropical Forest Science (FRIM). jtfs.frim.gov.my/jtfs/article/view/745
- Ambikabothy J, Ibrahim H, Ambu S, Chakravarthi S, Awang K, Vejayan J. Efficacy evaluations of Mimosa pudica tannin isolate (MPT) for its anti-ophidian properties. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 137(1):257–262, 2011. eprints.um.edu.my/10092/
- Runa et al. 2026. Mimosa pudica wound-healing study in rabbits. PLOS One. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12904443/
- Baharuddin et al. 2021. Mimosa pudica as an under-valued medicinal weed for diabetes. Plants 10(8):1692 (Universiti Putra Malaysia). doi:10.3390/plants10081692 pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8399142
- Tasnuva ST, et al. α-glucosidase inhibitors isolated from Mimosa pudica L. Natural Product Research 33(10):1495–1499, 2019 (IIUM). eprints.um.edu.my/23274/
- Vaidya GH, Sheth UK. Mimosa pudica (Linn.): its medicinal value and pilot clinical use in patients with menorrhagia. Ancient Science of Life 5(3):156–160, 1986. wisdomlib.org/uploads/journals/ansci/v-5-3-139-211-jan-mar-1
- Patro G, et al. 2016. Mimosa pudica review. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5206927
- Aqueous extract of Mimosa pudica and pilocarpine–picrotoxin kindling-induced temporal lobe epilepsy in mice. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2025. doi:10.3389/fphar.2024.1301002 www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/f
- Global Invasive Species Database: Mimosa pudica profile. iucngisd.org/gisd/pdf.php?sc=1002
- Floristic survey of the genus Mimosa in Peninsular Malaysia, 1993. BIOTROPIA No. 9, 1996. doi:10.11598/btb.1996.0.9.124 doi.org/10.11598/btb.1996.0.9.124