Property theory of Chinese materia medica: Clinical pharmacodynamics of traditional Chinese medicine

The property theory of Chinese materia medica is one of the foundations of traditional Chinese medicine.The property of Chinese materia medica(PCMM)is a multi-dimensional expression of the effect of Chinese materia medica(CMM),and it is related to the clinical prescription that fully reflects the clinical effect evaluation of CMM in a holistic,systematic,and scientific way.This paper discusses the source,development,and application of the PCMM by considering not only the five dimensions that constitute the PCMM but also the recognition of the human body and disease as given in traditional Chinese medicine.This paper aims to provide theoretical guidance for the rational use and development of CMM.

P-glycoprotein mediated interactions between Chinese materia medica and pharmaceutical drugs

P-glycoprotein(P-gp)is an important transmembrane ATP-binding cassette(ABC)drug efflux transporter expressed in various human tissues such as the intestines,liver,kidneys,and bloodbrain barrier.It limits the intracellular concentration of xenobiotics by pumping them out of the cells,affecting drug pharmacokinetics and therapeutic effects.With its broad substrate specificity,it has the potential to remove a wide range of drugs from Chinese materia medica(CMM),including conventional medicines and active compounds.Increasing evidence has confirmed the superior therapeutic effectiveness of CMM in treating a wide range of diseases worldwide,as well as in conjunction with western drugs.As a result,herbal medicine-drug compounds have prompted widespread concern,with the majority of these interactions involving transporters such as P-gp.This review systematically summarizes the inhibition or induction of P-gp expression/function by active CMM compounds and the underlying regulatory mechanisms.It will aid in improving understanding of the synergistic or inhibiting effects associated with transporter P-gp as well as rational safety concerns for using CMM,particularly in combination with drugs.

Bio-characteristic profiling related to clinic:A new technology platform for quality evaluation of Chinese materia medica

Quality evaluation is a bottleneck restricting the modernization and internationalization of Chinese materia medica (CMM). Due to characteristics of multi-component, multi-efficacy, multi-target, the existing quality evaluation system still cannot fully meet quality control needs of CMM. Hence, the author put forward “Bio-characteristic profiling related to clinic, BPRC” academic concept, meanwhile, fully take the advantage of analysis method with clinical monitoring superiority or profiling characteristics, build up “BPRC” new technology platform, in order to realize “real-time, dynamic and full-range monitoring” new technologies of CMM quality evaluation system and promote the further development of CMM industry.

Based on FP-Growth Algorithm to Excavate Medication Rule of Chinese Materia Medica for Radiation Esophagitis

Objective:To find the medication rule of Chinese materia medica for treating radiation esophagitis through FP-Growth algorithm.Methods:By searching the three major literature databases such as Chinese Journal Full-text Database,VIP Chinese Sci-tech Journals Database,Wanfang Data,etc.from the database establishment to May 10,2020,88 effective documents and 91 prescriptions were screened.The medication frequency of prescription in the paper was extracted and sorted.Results:The frequency of medicinal property from high to low were:slightly cold,cold,balance,warm,cool,slightly warm,and great cold.The frequency of medicinal taste from high to low were:sweet,bitter,pungent,slightly bitter,salty,slightly pungent,sour,light,astringent.The frequency of channel tropism from high to low were:lung,stomach,liver,heart,spleen,etc.,and 10 herbal combinations with clinical significance were obtained.There was one prescription with good correlation strength in the clinical treatment of radiation esophagitis.Conclusion:The medication rule of Chinese materia medica for the treatment of radiation esophagitis is based on the principles of clearing away heat and detoxification,benefiting Qi(气)and nourishing Yin(阴),and stopping bleeding and removing phlegm.Heat-clearing medicine,tonic medicine,phlegmresolving,cough–relieving medicine and asthma-relieving medicine,blood-activating and stasis removing medicine were highly frequent used.The high-frequency association rules are nourishing Yin–clearing heat–generating fluid,removing toxin–cooling blood–benefiting Qi,benefiting Qi–invigorating spleen–stopping bleeding.It is stable and feasible to use FP-Growth algorithm to mine traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)to treat diseases.

Discrimination of 11 Chinese Materia Medica from <i>Umbelliferae</i>by Electronic Nose

In this paper, electronic nose (E-nose) was used to discriminate the 11 Chinese Materia Medica (CMM) from Umbelliferae by the difference of their odors. The E-nose generated data were analyzed by discriminant function analysis (DFA) and the responses of 18 sensors of E-nose were evaluated by CA analysis. Results showed that a rapid evaluation of complex response of the samples could be obtained, in combination with DFA, SQC and the CA analysis of the E-nose was given better results in the recognition values of the odor of the 11 CMM. All the 11 CMM could be distinguished by E-nose coupled with DFA, sensor 2, 3, 4, 5, 11, 13 and 15 were found to be able to better discriminate between the CMM samples. The CMM from Umbelliferae produced from different areas and processed with different methods could be distinguished by the E-nose, too. The results of the similarity of fingerprints of the E-nose are fitted with the TCM records about the property (yaoxing), channel tropism (guijing), function and usage of the CMM. The E-nose is a technology that can reflect the holistic odor of a CMM and is relevant to the TCM doctor’s practical identification. The odor of CMM can be expressed by objective data instead of subjective sense by human nose. Based on the sensor`s intensity of E-nose, the fingerprint of a CMM can be established, too. Although the E-nose has so many advantages, only use E-nose technology is not enough to control the quality of a CMM. It must be combined with the other macroscopic discriminating technology, such as the E-tongue, the E-eye, to have a holistic evaluation of a CMM.

The Silk Road and Sources of Chinese Medicine Expansion: Part 1 – Materia Medica

The Silk Road stretched over land and across seas connecting Europe,Africa,and Asia.The trade of medicine along these routes has had profound impacts on the populations and traditions they have come into contact with.Chinese Medicine is no exception as it has taken numerous nonnative products and incorporated them into the unique philosophical construct of systematic correspondences that govern its practice.By looking at the four categories of primary source materials and studying the history of medical exchange along the Silk Road,we can determine how and where this information is used in Chinese Medicine.The Materia Medica(ben cao本草)texts are the first source of information for this study that will explore multiple sources to better understand the development of Chinese Medicine in relation to the rest of the world.

Survey of dose-effect relationship in Chinese materia medica

The research on the dose-effect relationship in Chinese materia medica is delayed due to the complexity of its composition, multi-efficacy, multi-targeting and other factors. Many experts put forward relevant research ideas and methods and worked out more and more research results in literature, experimental and clinical categories because of the progress of statistical methods and scientific and technological means in recent years. In this paper, these results were preliminarily combed to show the basic situation of dose-effect relationship research in Chinese materia medica.

First ISO International Standard on Chinese Materia Medica

ISO 18662-1：2017, Traditional Chinese medicine - Vocabulary - Part 1： Chinese Materia Medica （CMM） was officially released recently. The standard is the first terminology standard published by ISO/TC 249, Traditional Chinese medicine, which provides an important basis to standardize and uniform the terminology of traditional Chinese medicine in the international community.

Clinical metabolic analysis combined with traceability of biosynthetic pathway:a new approach to quality marker of Chinese materia medica

Quality marker(Q-marker)of Chinese materia medica(CMM)plays an important role in quality control of CMM products.However,its research strategy and technique remain unclear.Based on the fact that quality standard of CMM should be associated with clinical efficacy,taking Jinqi Jiangtang tablet treating type 2 diabetes as an example,the Q-marker related to activity via the reverse analysis of drug metabolism in clinic and traceability of botanic biosynthetic pathways is discovered and validated.Therefore,we proposed a new research strategy of Q-marker of CMM with"Discovery of clinical active constituents as guidance,Reverse analysis of metabolic transformations as link,and Traceability of biosynthesis pathways as key",to improve quality control of CMM products.

Enlightenment from WHO Pharmacovigilance in Construction of Chinese Materia Medica Pharmacovigilance System

With the widespread concern about the safety of Chinese materia medica, China urgently needs to build a Chinese materia medica pharmacovigilance system that conforms to the national development policy and has the characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM). A good job of pharmacovigilance of Chinese materia medica not only helps Chinese pharmaceutical companies to control their risks, but also guides them to use drugs safely and rationally. And it is also of great significance to the national drug regulatory work. Based on the monitoring of herbal safety in WHO pharmacovigilance system, the establishment of a Chinese materia medica pharmacovigilance system was explored in order to provide a valuable reference for the risk control of Chinese pharmaceutical companies, the clinical use of Chinese materia medica, and the national drug regulatory work.

Research progress in mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis

Knee osteoarthritis(KOA)is a chronic degenerative Osteoarthritis disease.The majority of patients with knee osteoarthritis were elderly patients.The disease not only greatly affects the work and life of patients but also brings serious burden to families and society.The traditional Chinese medicine has a long history in China,which has shown a multi-pathway and multitarget mechanism for the prevention and treatment of knee osteoarthritis.According to the properties of Chinese medicine,it was divided into four categories:drugs to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis,drugs to clear heat,drugs to dispel wind dampness and drugs to tonify deficiency.In addition,the relevant literatures at home and abroad in recent five years were reviewed to summarize and generalize the mechanism of traditionalChinese medicine in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis,in order to provide reference for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis with traditional Chinese medicine.

Philosophy and Philology:Two Approaches of Commentating the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing(Shen Nong's Classic of the Materia Medica)in the Ming and Qing Dynasties

This paper tests the hypothesis that the commentary trend of the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing(Shen Nong’s Classic of the Materia Medica)arises alongside the fashionable philology of the time,or the aversion against the Jin-Yuan medical philosophy.After surveying 12 major commentaries,it is concluded that the situation is more complicated than a simple assertion.The seemingly opposite philosophy and philology approaches have been used eclectically to innovate the understanding of ancient traditional Chinese medicine texts.

A novel method for integrating chromatographic fingerprint analytical units of Chinese materia medica:the matching frequency statistical moment method

Objective To facilitate the quality evaluation suitable for the unique characteristics of Chinese materia medica(CMM)by developing and implementing a novel approach known as the matching frequency statistical moment(MFSM)method.Methods This study established the MFSM method.To demonstrate its effectiveness,we applied this novel approach to analyze Danxi Granules(丹膝颗粒,DXG)and its constituent herbal materials.To begin with,the ultra-performance liquid chromatography(UPLC)was applied to obtain the chromatographic fingerprints of DXG and its constituent herbal materi-als.Next,the MFSM was leveraged to compress and integrate them into a new fingerprint with fewer analytical units.Then,we characterized the properties and variability of both the original and integrated fingerprints by calculating total quantum statistical moment(TQSM)parameters,information entropy and information amount,along with their relative standard deviation(RSD).Finally,we compared the TQSM parameters,information entropy and infor-mation amount,and their RSD between the traditional and novel fingerprints to validate the new analytical method.Results The chromatographic peaks of DXG and its 12 raw herbal materials were divided and integrated into peak families by the MFSM method.Before integration,the ranges of the peak number,three TQSM parameters,information entropy and information amount for each peak or peak family of UPLC fingerprints of DXG and its 12 raw herbal materials were 95.07−209.73,9390−183064μv·s,5.928−21.33 min,22.62−106.69 min^(2),4.230−6.539,and 50530−974186μv·s,respectively.After integration,the ranges of these parameters were 10.00−88.00,9390−183064μv·s,5.951−22.02 min,22.27−104.73 min^(2),2.223−5.277,and 38159−807200μv·s,respectively.Correspondingly,the RSD of all the aforementioned pa-rameters before integration were 2.12%−9.15%,6.04%−49.78%,1.15%−23.10%,3.97%−25.79%,1.49%−19.86%,and 6.64%−51.20%,respectively.However,after integration,they changed to 0.00%,6.04%−49.87%,1.73%−23.02%,3.84%−26.85%,1.17%−16.54%,and 6.40%−48.59%,respectively.The results demonstrated that in the newly integrated fingerprint,the analytical units of constituent herbal materials,information entropy and information amount were significantly reduced(P<0.05),while the TQSM parameters remained unchanged(P>0.05).Additionally,the RSD of the TQSM parameters,information entropy,and information amount didn’t show significant difference before and after integration(P>0.05),but the RSD of the number and area of the integrated analytical units significantly decreased(P<0.05).Conclusion The MFSM method could reduce the analytical units of constituent herbal mate-rials while maintain the properties and variability from their original fingerprint.Thus,it could serve as a feasible and reliable tool to reduce difficulties in analyzing multi-compo-nents within CMMs and facilitating the evaluation of their quality.

The Antagonistic Action of Heat-Clearing and Detoxifying Chinese Drugs on Endotoxins

In the recent decade, interest in treatment and prevention of many critical, severe and acute diseases caused by bacterial endotoxins has been aroused along with the advance of the knowledge on the nature of the endotoxin and the conditions involved. In abroad, attention has been mainly payed to raising antisera and monocolonal antibodies against the endotoxin and the induced mediators. However, the allergic reactions and the cost are still the problems. Till now, there is no drug that can antagonize endotoxin with high effectiveness and low toxicity. Clinical treatments are still confined in inhibiting or killing the pathogen, and correcting the internal environmental disturbance. Being less toxic and rich in resources with low cost and less side-effects, screening of effective Chinese drugs for antagonizing endotoxin is of important and practical significance. Endotoxin belongs to the category of toxic evils, or more precisely, the heat toxin in TCM. Therefore the application of heat-clearing and detoxifying Chinese drugs to antagonizing endotoxins is consistent with the theory of TCM. Some achievements in this field are reported as follows.

Achievements of the Compendium Bencao Tujing(Illustrated Classic of Materia Medica):A Preliminary Study

Bencao Tujing(Illustrated Classic of Materia Medica)is a brilliant and monumental compendium of materia medica by Su Song,which was published in 1061 and gathered ancestral knowledge from the Song dynasty as a legacy for posterity.The compendium emphasized the clinical applications of medicinal materials collected nationwide,which used illustrated atlases as references.The descriptions for each medicinal material subsumed the prescriptions containing it and were supplemented with relevant medical cases.Medical prescriptions predating the Song dynasty were included,which enhanced the clinical usefulness of the pharmacopoeia.The ancestral knowledge of materia medica was extensively merged with natural history throughout the compendium,which also made extensive reference to more than 200 Chinese classics,local gazetteers,and published works from the social and natural sciences.The inclusion of natural history and literature works changed the convention used in earlier pharmacopoeias to present medicines based solely on pharmacological analyses.The compendium also pioneered the inclusion of natural history in pharmacopoeia.Bencao Tujing helped establish China’s leading position in the field of materia medica.Su Song’s meticulous nature,truth-seeking attitude,and adherence to scientific thinking are truly worthy of emulation and promotion.

Production of Chinese Medicinal Herbs in North America:Challenge and Reconciliation

As the practice of traditional Chinese medicine developed in the United States since the 1970s,evidence has accumulated suggesting that an undetermined number of the herbs of the Chinese Materia Medica could be produced in North America.While some attempts have been made to establish production,growers are inhibited by lack of access to capital and technical support.The evidence in support of US domestic production–including(1)historical,(2)sociological,(3)ecological,and(4)agronomic factors–is reviewed.Economic obstacles to this type of production are described,as directly experienced by the farmers,Chinese herbal medicine practitioners,and organizers involved.When analyzed in reference to current trends,however,these economic obstacles appear,at least potentially,as temporary.Because popular demand supported the rise of traditional Chinese medicine practice and the growth of organic food production,these social movements could expand and promote conditions that favor domestic production of Chinese herbs.

The Silk Road and Sources of Chinese Medicine Expansion:Part 2-Formularies

Medicines have been traded along the Silk Road from antiquity until modern times.These products and their associated knowledge have been transferred over the land and sea between Asia,Europe,and Africa.Numerous texts that contain formulas and treatments passed along the Silk Road.Collections of these formulas and treatment methods called formularies contain unique information that informs this transfer of medicine.The texts and information flowed in both directions along these routes and while Chinese medicine influenced foreign medical practices both in history,and today,the incorporation of non-Chinese medicine and information also continues to influence Chinese medicine.

Analysis of the Application of“Jing(精)”in Ben Cao Gang Mu(《本草纲自〉Compendium of Materia Medica)

Taking the Ben Cao Gang Mu(《本草纲目》Compendium of Materia Medica)(Jinling edition金陵本)as the research object and“Jing”as the search term,this article summarizes the quantity of medicinals containing“Jing”in Ben Cao Gang Mu,analyzes the connotation and application of“Jing”in traditional Chinese medicine,and finds that the application of“Jing”in medicine does not deviate from the original meaning of“Jing,”but endows it with the concepts of medicine and pharmacy,and expands the application scope of“Jing.”This study is helpful to understand and use spermicide more reasonably.

Development of Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica(HKCMM) standards

The development of HKCMM standards is one of the achievements of developing Hong Kong into an intemational centre for Chinese medicine. In order to enable more people concerned to have an intimate knowledge of this standard, the author was invited to introduce the development of HKCMM standards to readers, including： 1） the history of the project and the basis for legislative supports; 2） the composition and operation of the regulatory division, the research institution and the evaluation committee; 3） the progress of HKCMM standards; 4） the contents and features of HKCMM standards.

Characterization and Comparison Analysis of WHO Monographs on Selected Medicinal Plants and Iso Standards of Chinese Materia Medica

Medicinal plants or Chinese materia medica(CMM)are now attracting worldwide attention as they have increasingly prominent advantages over chemical drugs in disease treatment and healthcare.Since the 1990s,World Health Organization(WHO)and International Organization for Standardization established the Technical Committee of Traditional Chinese Medicine(ISO/TC 249)have carried out the development of quality standards on medicinal plants or CMMs respectively,and a considerable number of monographs and international standards have been published.Since the two international organizations adhere to different principles,the standards they develop naturally have different emphasis.Driven by market demand and international trade,ISO mainly takes quality,efficacy and safety into consideration when developing standards,while WHO pays more attention to clinical practice,quality control and medication guidance.Up to now,there is a lack of comparative analysis on the records,background,principles,basic content,and main requirements of quality standards on medicinal plants or CMMs respectively published by WHO and ISO.Therefore,based on international standards of CMM developed by ISO/TC 249 platform and WHO Monographs on Selected Medicinal Plants,this paper systematically compares the purposes,selected principles,standard-developing process,basic content,and main quality requirements to summarize their similarities and differences,and find their merits,aiming to serve as a reference to the development of international standards for CMMs that helps them go global.