Wuzi Yanzong prescription(五子衍宗丸)from Traditional Chinese Medicine for male infertility:a narrative review

Wuzi Yanzong prescription(WYP),as a classical prescription for male infertility with kidney essence deficiency,is composed of Gouqizi(Fructus Lycii),Tusizi(Semen Cuscutae),Wuweizi(Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis),Fupenzi(Fructus Rubi Chingii)and Cheqianzi(Semen Plantaginis).It has been used for hundreds of years in the treatment of male infertility,known as“the first prescription of ancient and modern seeds”,with convincing clinical evidence.At present,more than 100 chemical compounds have been isolated from WYP,including polysaccharide,fatty acids,flavonoids,phenylpropanoids,organic acids,alkaloids,terpenoids,etc.Pharmacological and clinical studies show that WYP has an obvious effect on reproductive system diseases,especially male infertility,which has a very wide application prospect.It also has effects on the nervous system,inhibiting liver injury,lowering blood sugar and blood lipid,anti-aging,improving immunity,resisting hypoxia and fatigue effects.This study reviewed the chemical constituents,quality control,pharmacology,and clinical application of WYP.There is no doubt about the clinical value of WYP,but its quality control system is not perfect,pharmacological mechanism is not fully explained,and clinical applications need to be reevaluated.Therefore,the follow-up researches should proceed from the theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM)and clinical applications,further explain the theoretical connotation,reveal the mechanism of action,and provide the basis for the secondary development of classic famous prescriptions.In addition,WYP is mostly used in combination with western medicines besides being used alone.Whether it can improve the efficacy and reduce side effects will also be a meaningful research direction in the future.

Relationship between Tissue Distributions of Modified Wuzi Yanzong Prescription(加味五子衍宗方) in Rats and Meridian Tropism Theory

Objective： To investigate the relationship between tissue distributions of modified Wuzi Yanzong prescription（加味五子衍宗方, MWP） in rats and meridian tropism theory. Methods： A high-performance liquid chromatography with Fourier transform-mass spectrometry（HPLC-FT） method was used to identify the metabolites of MWP in different tissues of rats after continued oral administration of MWP for 7 days. The relationship between MWP and meridian tropism theory was studied according to the tissue distributions of the metabolites of MWP in rats and the relevant literature. Results： Nineteen metabolites, mainly flavanoid compounds, were detected in the different rat tissues and classified to each herb in MWP. Further, it was able to establish that the tissue distributions of the metabolites of MWP were consistent with the descriptions of meridian tropism of MWP available in literature, this result might be useful in clarifying the mechanism of MWP on meridian tropism. In the long run, these data might provide scientific evidence of the meridian tropism theory to further promote the reasonable, effective utilization, and modernization of Chinese medicine. Conclusion： The tissue distributions of MWP in vivo were consistent with the descriptions of meridian tropism of MWP.