Traditional medicine in Tanzania:a review of historical perspective,current practices and challenges

The use of traditional medicine(TM)is essential for preventing and treating diseases and thus improving human health.Worldwide,TM has been used since time immemorial.In Tanzania,the use of TM was most common during precolonial era before it was discriminated during the Germany colonial rule.However,it regained the attention during the private sector emergence era(1985-2004).Currently,there are ongoing efforts to integrate TM and modern medicine to improve healthcare systems in developing countries for sustainable healthcare management.This review aims to provide an overview of the historical and current status,challenges,and future direction for TM in Tanzania.The analysis revealed that the development of TM was somehow underdeveloped during the colonial rule but regained its popularity after independence.Currently,there are many opportunities such as the presence of legal and institutional frameworks,a varied medicinal biodiversity,with some of them being endemic to Tanzania,political will etc.Despite the available opportunities,there are numerous challenges to the development and use of TM.These include inadequate financial and human resources for research,poor conservation of medicinal biodiversity;modernization;intellectual property rights of TM knowledge;lack of safety,efficacy,and quality data of medicinal products.The development and utility of TM as a resource is crucial to protect practise.Thus,the study recommends more capacity building in terms of finances,technology development,human resources training,advocacy and integration of TM into healthcare system.

The Value of Traditional Medicine Should not be Underestimated-Traditional Chinese Medicine in Treatment of Autoimmune Diseases

Autoimmune diseases of the nervous system(ADNS)are characterized by the formation of a pronounced neurologic deficit and often lead to disability.The attention of doctors and researchers is increasingly attracted by complementary medicine as adjuvant or preventive therapy for various diseases,including autoimmune diseases.Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)is a combination of treatment methods that include acupuncture,herbal medicine,dietetics,physical exercises,and other methods that are often used in conjunction with recognized approaches of official medical science.The article describes the application of TCM techniques in autoimmune diseases of the nervous system,and demonstrates clinical experience in the use of acupuncture,herbal medicine,diets and physical exercises.Traditional and complementary medicine is an important and often underestimated healthcare resource,especially in the prevention and treatment of autoimmune diseases of the nervous system.

Advances in the function of traditional medicine for vitiligo treatment

Vitiligo has a significant impact on a substantial number of individuals worldwide.Traditional Chinese medicine has a long history of serving as a therapeutic treatment for vitiligo.Nevertheless,given the increasing volume of research on the utilization of traditional Chinese medicine for vitiligo treatment,it is imperative to conduct a comprehensive review that elucidates the efficacy of Chinese traditional medicine and other active ingredients in the treatment of vitiligo.This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the clinical preparations used to treat vitiligo,while also highlighting the potential monomers and extracts derived from traditional Chinese medicine for vitiligo treatment.A thorough analysis of the pharmacological effects of traditional Chinese medicine on vitiligo treatment will provide valuable insights and reliable information for the development of new treatment strategies.

《Asian Journal of Traditional Medicines》刊物简介

《Asian Journal of Traditional Medicines》(亚洲传统医药)是2006年创刊(国际刊号:ISSN 1817-4337),由沈阳药科大学主办,香港盛京药大出版传媒有限公司出版,是海内外公开发行的传统医药行业全英文资讯期刊——发行国家包括日本、韩国、新加坡等东南亚国家以及欧美各国。

Current scenario of traditional medicines in management of diabetic foot ulcers:A review

Diabetic foot infections and diabetic foot ulcers(DFU)cause significant suffering and are often recurring.DFU have three important pathogenic factors,namely,microangiopathy causing local tissue anoxia,neuropathy making the foot prone to injuries from trivial trauma,and local tissue hyperglycaemia favouring infection and delaying the wound healing.DFU have been the leading cause for non-traumatic amputations of part or whole of the limb.Western medicines focus mainly on euglycaemia,antimicrobials,debridement and wound cover with grafts,and off-loading techniques.Advances in euglycaemic control,foot care and footwear,systemic antimicrobial therapy,and overall health care access and delivery,have resulted in an overall decrease in amputations.However,the process of wound care after adequate debridement remains a major cost burden globally,especially in developing nations.This process revolves around two basic concerns regarding control/eradication of local infection and promotion of faster healing in a chronic DFU without recurrence.Wound modulation with various dressings and techniques are often a costly affair.Some aspects of the topical therapy with modern/Western medicines are frequently not addressed.Cost of and compliance to these therapies are important as both the wounds and their treatment are“chronic.”Naturally occurring agents/medications from traditional medicine systems have been used frequently in different cultures and nations,though without adequate clinical base/relevance.Traditional Chinese medicine involves restoring yin-yang balance,regulating the‘chi’,and promoting local blood circulation.Traditional medicines from India have been emphasizing on‘naturally’available products to control wound infection and promote all the aspects of wound healing.There is one more group of chemicals which are not pharmaceutical agents but can create acidic milieu in the wound to satisfy the above-mentioned basic concerns.Various natural and plant derived products(e.g.,honey,aloe vera,oils,and calendula)and maggots are also used for wound healing purposes.We believe that patients with a chronic wound are so tired physically,emotionally,and financially that they usually accept native traditional medicine which has the same cultural base,belief,and faith.Many of these products have never been tested in accordance to“evidence-based medicine.”There are usually case reports and experience-based reports about these products.Recently,there have been some trials(in vitro and in vivo)to verify the claims of usage of traditional medicines in management of DFU.Such studies show that these natural products enhance the healing process by controlling infection,stimulating granulation tissue,antimicrobial action,promoting fibroblastic activity and collagen deposition,etc.In this review,we attempt to study and analyse the available literature on results of topical traditional medicines,which are usually advocated in the management of DFU.An integrated and‘holistic’approach of both modern and traditional medicine may be more acceptable to the patient,cost effective,and easy to administer and monitor.This may also nevertheless lead to further improvement in quality of life and decrease in the rates of amputations for DFU.

Feasibility and simulation model of a pilot scale membrane bioreactor for wastewater treatment and reuse from Chinese traditional medicine

The lack and pollution of water resource make wastewater reuse necessary. The pilot scale long-term tests for submerged membrane bioreactor were conducted to treat the effluents of anaerobic or aerobic treatment process for the high-strength Chinese traditional medicine wastewater. This article was focused on the feasibility of the wastewater treatment and reuse at shorter hydraulic retention time （HRT） of 5.0, 3.2 and 2.13 h. MLSS growth, membrane flux, vacuum values and chemical cleaning periods were also investigated. The experimental results of treating two-phase anaerobic treatment effluent demonstrated that the CODfilt was less than 100 mg/L when the influent COD was between 500-10000 mg/L at HRT of 5.0 h, which could satisfy the normal discharged standard in China. The experimental results to treat cross flow aerobic reactor effluent demonstrated that the average value of CODfilt was 17.28 mg/L when the average value of influent COD was 192.84 mg/L at HRT of 2.13 h during 106 d, which could completely meet the normal standard for water reuse. The maximum MLSS and MLVSS reached 24000 and 14500 mg/L at HRT of 3.2 h respectively. Membrane flux had maximal resume degrees of 94.7% at vacuum value of 0.02 MPa after cleaning. Chemical cleaning periods of membrane module were 150 d. A simulation model of operational parameters was also established based on the theory of back propagation neural network and linear regression of traditional mathematical model. The simulation model showed that the optimum operational parameters were suggested as follows： HRT was 5.0 h, SRT was 100 d, the range of COD loading rate was between 10.664-20.451 kg/（m3.d）, the range of MLSS was between 7543-13694 mg/L.

Annual advances in traditional medicine for tumor therapy in 2019

Today,the treatment of tumors remains a difficult problem.Traditional medicine has been used to treat cancer in different countries worldwide.However,while traditional medicine is popular globally,it is not yet accepted by Western medicine as some of the ingredients and the mechanism of action for the therapeutic effect have not been fully elucidated.Thus,scholars studying traditional medicine in the treatment of cancer have strived to solve this problem.In this review,we summarized the research progress of several traditional medicines used as tumor therapies in 2019 from the PubMed database.Studies of tumors treated with traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)are popular worldwide and obtain the most attention,which attracts more researchers to this field.The anti-tumor effects of Chinese herbal medicine-derived phytochemicals,such as polyphenols,polysaccharides,saponins,and alkaloids were the new research targets for 2019.The anti-tumor effects of TCM formula such as Sijunzi decoction,and Xiaopi formula have attracted the most attention in the past year.In addition to TCM,we also focused on the anti-tumor studies of other traditional medicines,including Thai traditional medicine,traditional medicine in Sri Lanka,traditional African medicine,traditional Korean medicine,and traditional Japanese medicine.

Annual advances of traditional medicine on tumor immunity regulation in 2020

Tumor burden remains a global health problem that threatens human life worldwide.Over the past few years,the evolution of immune checkpoint inhibitors has represented one of the most successful approaches in the field of tumor therapy.Drugs regulating tumor immune microenvironment or enhancing body immunity have indicated a novel perspective to treat tumors.Therefore,an increased number of scientists have been shifting their research focus to explore the immunity regulation effects of anti-tumor traditional medicine or natural products.In this review,we summarize the research progress of traditional medicines on tumor immunity regulation in 2020.Our findings suggest that more herbal medicine-derived phytochemicals and formulas were derived from traditional Chinese medicine,and more papers were published in comprehensive journals.Traditional medicine can comprehensively regulate the tumor immune microenvironment,including natural killer cells,dendritic cells,CD4+/CD8+T lymphocytes,regulatory T cells,myeloid-derived suppressor cells,tumor-associated macrophages,immunosuppressive factors,and immune checkpoints.In 2020,a greater number of research papers focused on active ingredients and formulas that regulate tumor-associated macrophages and immune checkpoints.Active ingredients such as flavonoids became a global hotspot in 2020.Certain natural products were also found to exert synergistic anti-tumor activity with immune checkpoint inhibitors,such as curcumin.However,a distinct lack of high-quality experimental and clinical studies remains a prevalent and challenging issue that hinders the further development of traditional medicine.

Annual advances of Chinese minority traditional medicine in 2019

Traditional medicine systems practiced by various ethnic minorities represent an important part of traditional Chinese medicine.The past 12 months have witnessed extensive research pertaining to different Chinese minority traditional medicine(CMTM).The annual CMTM review evaluates research published during 2019 in different CMTM including Tibetan medicine,Uyghur medicine,Mongolian medicine,Korean medicine and Zhuang medicine.Research in the field of Tibetan medicine focused on pharmacology,pharmacy,plant sciences,medicinal chemistry and integrated complementary medicine and the top three countries were China,USA and India.Research in Uyghur medicine mainly pertained to chemistry,pharmacology,pharmacy,and food science technology and the publications were mainly from China.Research in Mongolian medicine mainly pertained to pharmacology,pharmacy,analytical chemistry,biochemistry,molecular biology and experimental research;the publications were mainly from China and Mongolia.In short,research related to traditional medicine of various ethnic minorities was mainly conducted in China and the neighboring countries.The research focus for each minority medicine is essentially on the effects and mechanisms of action of the active ingredients of the ethnodrugs and the special prescriptions or therapies.The generated evidence will facilitate further developments in this field.

The Core Mechanism of Traditional Medicine Is the Rational and Effective Use of Potassium Ions

The use of traditional medicines including natural drugs, especially traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of human diseases;however, so far, the mechanism of its prevention, health care and treatment of diseases is unclear. Here, I propose that the core mechanism of traditional medicines is to correct the relative deficiency of potassium ions in body and at the same time improve the utilization efficiency of potassium ions, so as to improve or restore cell functions in organs and tissues, and let the body return to a normal state. In order to achieve such a core goal, the therapeutic effect of natural drugs has an important relationship with the rational matching of prescriptions and the quality of drugs, with particular emphasis on the concentrations and quantum energy levels of potassium ions or their compounds in the formula. The understanding of the core effect of potassium in natural drugs has a specific and important guiding role for the artificial cultivation and rational use of natural drugs. Moreover, these ideas may also provide an important theoretical basis for the development of modern agriculture and medicine, and the rational and comprehensive utilization of potassium resources.

The“Top 50 High Impact Researches of Traditional Medicine”published in 2021

In recent years,significant progress has been achieved in both basic and clinical research within the field of traditional medicine,garnering increasing attention worldwide.To further promote a high-quality and international development of traditional medicine,the editorial board of Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine provided a collection of the“Top 50 High-impact Researches of Traditional Medicine”published in 2021 through objective indicators and a strict selection process.The findings of the selected articles have a significant academic influence and possess considerable academic value both nationally and internationally.The selected articles cover a wide range of topics,including clinical research,acupuncture,pharmacology,chemistry,biosynthesis,medicinal plant resources,and new formulation and drug delivery system research on traditional medicine.Therefore,this article outlines the selection process of the top 50 high-impact research articles,analyzes their research characteristics,and provides a brief summary of their new findings and perspectives in the field of traditional medicine.

Traditional Medicine Diagnostic Codes in ICD-11 and Alternative Diagnostic Classifications in the Mainstream Healthcare

In 2018,the 11^(th) Edition of the International Classification of Diseases(ICD-11)defined a diagnostic code list for standard traditional medicine(TM)conditions.The codes improve patient safety by providing more comprehensive and accurate medical records for hospitals in the Western Pacific Region.In these facilities,TM is often a standard of care for those populations.In several mainstream media sources,writers are circumventing evidence-based peer-reviewed medical literature by unduly influencing public opinion and,in this case,against the new ICD-11 codes.The dangers imposed by the transgression of popular writing onto the discipline of peer-reviewed works are present since best practices in medical record-keeping will fail without the inclusion of TM in the ICD-11 codes.Such failures directly affect the health of the patients and policymakers in regions where TM and conventional medicine are combined.This article investigates the boundaries between substantial evidence and popular opinion.In this era where media is used to manipulate evidence,the reader’s use of sound judgment and critical thought are thwarted.This article also challenges three controversial themes in pop literature,including the threat to endangered species,increased patient risk,and contaminants in the TM.These themes are made without evidence and are,in fact,of flawed logic.There is no reason to assume that improved medical record-keeping and knowledge of patient cases increase risks.

An appraisal of the regulatory policies governing the use of herbal traditional medicine

The regulation of herbal traditional medicine(HTM)is of much importance as it ensures the safety,quality and efficacy thereof.However,there are variations in the regulation of HTM worldwide with some countries being more supportive of HTM than others.This literature review aimed to evaluate and compare the regulatory policies governing the use of HTM in developed and developing countries as well as to determine the regulatory challenges faced by regulatory authorities and governments across the world.The countries investigated in this study were Germany,the United States of America,Japan,South Africa,China and India.Variations were evident between countries,however,Germany and Japan were found to be more advanced with regards to the regulation of HTM.Germany and Japan had stricter regulatory policies and lesser safety concerns.South Africa and the United States of America appear to have inadequate or ineffective HTM regulatory systems which was seen by the countries’limited or lack of regulations and additional safety concerns.The findings showed the difference in HTM regulation between developed and developing countries were not as large as could be expected.The United States of America(developed country)was found to have poor HTM regulations,while China and India(developing countries)were found to have thorough regulations.The findings also show that both developed and developing countries continue to face challenges with regards to establishing regulations and registration procedures for HTM.

Toxicological advances of traditional medicine in 2019

There were many researches concerning toxicology of traditional medicine(TM)and active natural products during the past 12 months.This annual toxicology review summarized target organs of TM like liver,kidney and heart.Safety medication of TM has been concerned to different kinds of people,including infants,children,pregnancy and the postnatal period.Besides rodents,zebrafish embryoes have been regarded as common models to evaluate the safety of TM.New technologies in toxicology focus on rapidly screening and identification of toxins in TM.Multispectral optoacoustic tomography imaging the precise location of TM-induced liver injury with 3D information and integrating serum exosomal microRNA and liver microRNA profiles are used to explain the mechanism of TM-induced hepatotoxicity.Taken together,study on the toxicity mechanism of other target organs,drug safety in elders,new models and methods should be paid attention to in the prevention of TM toxicology in the future.

Annual advances of Chinese minority traditional medicine in 2020

Chinese minority traditional medicine is a traditional medicine formed during the long-term medical practice of various ethnic groups and is the crystallization of the wisdom of the people in all ethnic groups in China.The unique meaning carried by Chinese minority traditional medicine makes it an inseparable and important part of traditional Chinese medicine.The rich clinical experience and theoretical studies with different Chinese minority traditional medicine provide new ideas and new methods for Chinese medicine development.The pieces of literature published in 2020 on the traditional application analyzed the phytochemical composition,pharmacological effects,and mechanisms of the different ethnic groups including Tibetan,Mongolian,Zhuang,Dai,and Uyghur medicines,among others.This study found that some projects were stalled or delayed due to the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak in 2020 compared with 2019,resulting in a decrease in the number of articles in certain fields.However,studied on Chinese minority traditional medicine have shown an overall upward trend this year with the Tibetan,Mongolian,and Dai medicines as the top three.In addition,the Chinese minority traditional medicine application under the coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic situation background was also summarized.Consequently,this study found that among the Chinese minority traditional medicine-related publications in 2020,publications using Chinese minority traditional medicine to treat coronavirus disease 2019 account for a certain percentage.Thus,this article systematically reviews and summarizes the related research of Chinese minority traditional medicine published in 2020 and provides references for future Chinese minority traditional medicine development.

Toxicological advances of traditional medicine in 2020

There were many researches concerning toxicology of traditional medicine and active natural products during the past 12 months.This annual toxicology review summarized different toxic analysis methods of traditional medicine,evaluated models,toxic target organs,toxic mechanisms,popular research issues and herbs in 2020.Caenorhabditis elegans came to use for the assessment of toxicity.Omics technology such as genomics,transcriptome,metabolomics and proteomics were applied extensively.2020 toxicology research demonstrated that liver,kidney and heart were the mainly toxic target organs of traditional medicine.Their toxic mechanisms included cell apoptosis,metabolic disorder,oxidative stress,inflammatory damage,liver and renal fibrosis and even inducing carcinogenesis.In addition,the safety assessment of Aconitum carmichaeli Debx.,Tripterygium wilfordii Hook.f.and Polygonum multiflorum Thunb.as well as their detoxification methods were still hot issue.Therefore,study on the toxicity mechanism of target organs,processing and extract methods,quality control and dose control,new models and methods should be used in the prevention of traditional medicine toxicology in the future.

Messages from the International Symposium on Ayurveda & Other Traditional Medicines,Jamnagar,India,January 2000

Ayurveda is one of the most ancient medical prac-tice in the world with a history of 5000 years. Vajikaranais a branch of Ayurveda dealing with male potency andfertility. Almost all male diseases and therapeutic mea-sures have been described here. In the International Symposium on Ayurveda andOther Traditional Medicines, two scientific Sessions wereexclusively devoted to Rasayana (rejuvenation) and Va-jikarana, conducted on January 5- 6, 2000 at GujaratAyurved University, Jamnagar under the patronship ofthe Honorable Vice-Chancellor, Dr. P. N. V. Kurup.Besides the Indian specialists, scientists from Australia,