Articles

Pharmacokinetics of Chinese medicines: strategies and perspectives

The modernization and internationalization of Chinese medicines (CMs) are hampered by increasing concerns on the safety and the efficacy. Pharmacokinetic (PK) study is indispensable to establish concentration-...

Authors: Ru Yan, Ying Yang and Yijia Chen

Extrahepatic cytochrome P450s play an insignificant role in triptolide-induced toxicity

Triptolide, an active ingredient of Chinese medicine plant Tripterygium wilfordii Hook.f., has been shown to exert anti-tumor, immunosuppressive, anti-inflammatory, and anti-fertility pharmacological effects. How...

Authors: Yuan Wei, Dujun Wang, Meng Chen, Zhen Ouyang, Shuo Wang and Jun Gu

Comparative study of the polyphenol content-related anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of two Urera aurantiaca specimens from different geographical areas

Urera aurantiaca is an Argentinean species that has been traditionally used to treat symptoms of inflammation. The aim of this study was to determine and compare the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of t...

Authors: Carla Marrassini, Ignacio Peralta and Claudia Anesini

Wentong decoction cures allergic bronchial asthma by regulating the apoptosis imbalance of EOS

Eosinophils (EOS) is one of the most important cells involved in the pathogenesis of chronic airway inflammation in asthma, and its apoptosis is part of the mechanisms of asthma. Therefore, this study aimed to...

Authors: Yue Yan, Hai-Peng Bao, Chun-Lei Li, Qi Shi, Yan-Hua Kong, Ting Yao and You-Lin Li

Techniques for extraction and isolation of natural products: a comprehensive review

Natural medicines were the only option for the prevention and treatment of human diseases for thousands of years. Natural products are important sources for drug development. The amounts of bioactive natural p...

Authors: Qing-Wen Zhang, Li-Gen Lin and Wen-Cai Ye

HPLC–ICP-MS speciation analysis and risk assessment of arsenic in Cordyceps sinensis

Cordyceps sinensis, one of the most valued traditional herbal medicines in China, contains high amount of arsenic. Considering the adverse health effects of arsenic, this is of particular concern. The aim of this...

Authors: Tian-Tian Zuo, Yao-Lei Li, Hong-Yu Jin, Fei Gao, Qi Wang, Ya-Dan Wang and Shuang-Cheng Ma

A concise classification of bencao (materia medica)

Books that record the sources and applications of medicinal materials are commonly known as bencao (materia medica) in China. Bencao (materia medica) literature review is the very first step in the standard authe...

Authors: Zhongzhen Zhao, Ping Guo and Eric Brand

Wenyang Huazhuo Tongluo formula inhibits fibrosis via suppressing Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in a Bleomycin-induced systemic sclerosis mouse model

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease characterized by fibrosis of the skin and internal organs. So far, no Western medicine treatment can completely inhibit or reverse the progress of SSc, while a...

Authors: Qian Wang, Wenhua Zang, Li Han, Lei Yang, Songshan Ye, Jingfeng Ouyang, Chaoyun Zhang, Yuefeng Bi, Cuiyue Zhang and Hua Bian

Psoriasis therapy by Chinese medicine and modern agents

Psoriasis is a chronic, painful, disfiguring and non-contagious skin disease that has globally affected at least 200 million patients. In general, mild to moderate psoriasis patients will be treated by chemica...

Authors: Shikang Meng, Zibei Lin, Yan Wang, Zhenping Wang, Ping Li and Ying Zheng

Approaches in studying the pharmacology of Chinese Medicine formulas: bottom-up, top-down—and meeting in the middle

Investigating the pharmacology is key to the modernization of Chinese Medicine (CM) formulas. However, identifying which are the active compound(s) of CM formulas, which biological entities they target, and th...

Authors: Tao Huang, Linda L. D. Zhong, Chen-Yuan Lin, Ling Zhao, Zi-Wan Ning, Dong-Dong Hu, Man Zhang, Ke Tian, Chung-Wah Cheng and Zhao-Xiang Bian

Paeoniflorin exerts neuroprotective effects by modulating the M1/M2 subset polarization of microglia/macrophages in the hippocampal CA1 region of vascular dementia rats via cannabinoid receptor 2

Cerebral hypoperfusion is a pivotal risk factor for vascular dementia (VD), for which effective therapy remains inadequate. Persistent inflammatory responses and excessive chemotaxis of microglia/macrophages i...

Authors: Xian-Qin Luo, Ao Li, Xue Yang, Xiao Xiao, Rong Hu, Tian-Wen Wang, Xiao-Yun Dou, Da-Jian Yang and Zhi Dong

Coptidis rhizoma and its main bioactive components: recent advances in chemical investigation, quality evaluation and pharmacological activity

Coptidis rhizoma (CR) is the dried rhizome of Coptis chinensis Franch., C. deltoidea C. Y. Cheng et Hsiao or C. teeta Wall. (Ranunculaceae) and is commonly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for the treatment o...

Authors: Fan-Cheng Meng, Zheng-Feng Wu, Zhi-Qi Yin, Li-Gen Lin, Ruibing Wang and Qing-Wen Zhang

Development of models for classification of action between heat-clearing herbs and blood-activating stasis-resolving herbs based on theory of traditional Chinese medicine

Action (“gongxiao” in Chinese) of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is the high recapitulation for therapeutic and health-preserving effects under the guidance of TCM theory. TCM-defined herbal properties (“yaox...

Authors: Zhao Chen, Yanfeng Cao, Shuaibing He and Yanjiang Qiao

Ginsenoside G-Rh2 synergizes with SMI-4a in anti-melanoma activity through autophagic cell death

Melanoma is a leading cause of cancer death worldwide, and SMI-4a and G-Rh2 exert anti-tumor activity in multiple cancer. However, SMI-4a as well as a synergistic relationship between SMI-4a and G-Rh2 in anti-...

Authors: Da-lun Lv, Lei Chen, Wei Ding, Wei Zhang, He–li Wang, Shuai Wang and Wen-bei Liu

Complete chloroplast genome of the medicinal plant Amomum compactum: gene organization, comparative analysis, and phylogenetic relationships within Zingiberales

Amomum compactum is one of the basic species of the traditional herbal medicine amomi fructus rotundus, with great pharmacology effect. The system position of A. compactum is not clear yet, and the introduction o...

Authors: Ming-li Wu, Qing Li, Jiang Xu and Xi-wen Li

Internationalization of traditional Chinese medicine: current international market, internationalization challenges and prospective suggestions

Through reviewing the current international market for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), this paper identified the internationalization challenges for TCM, including unclear therapeutic material basis and me...

Authors: Annie Xianghong Lin, Ging Chan, Yuanjia Hu, Defang Ouyang, Carolina Oi Lam Ung, Luwen Shi and Hao Hu

Authenticity analyses of Rhizoma Paridis using barcoding coupled with high resolution melting (Bar-HRM) analysis to control its quality for medicinal plant product

Rhizoma Paridis (Chonglou) is a commonly used and precious traditional Chinese medicine. Paris polyphylla Smith var. yunnanensis (Franch.) Hand. -Mazz. and Paris polyphylla Smith var. chinensis (Franch.) Hara are...

Authors: Bao-Zhong Duan, Ya-Ping Wang, Hai-Lan Fang, Chao Xiong, Xi-Wen Li, Ping Wang and Shi-Lin Chen

Bioactive polysaccharides from natural resources including Chinese medicinal herbs on tissue repair

Functional polysaccharides can be derived from plants (including herbs), animals and microorganisms. They have been widely used in a broad of biomedical applications, such as immunoregulatory agents or drug de...

Authors: Qiu Li, Yiming Niu, Panfei Xing and Chunming Wang

Shuganyin decoction improves the intestinal barrier function in a rat model of irritable bowel syndrome induced by water-avoidance stress

To determine the effect of Shuganyin decoction (SGD) on the intestinal barrier function in an irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) rat model induced by water-avoidance stress.

Authors: Lu Lu, Liang Yan, Jianye Yuan, Qing Ye and Jiang Lin

SWOT analysis and revelation in traditional Chinese medicine internationalization

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is currently the best-preserved and most influential traditional medical system with the largest number of users worldwide. In recent years, the trend of TCM adoption has inc...

Authors: Haitao Tang, Wenlong Huang, Jimei Ma and Li Liu

Seeing the unseen of Chinese herbal medicine processing (Paozhi): advances in new perspectives

Processing (Paozhi) represents a unique Chinese pharmaceutic technique to facilitate the use of Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) for a specific clinical need in the guidance of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) t...

Authors: Xu Wu, Shengpeng Wang, Junrong Lu, Yong Jing, Mingxing Li, Jiliang Cao, Baolin Bian and Changjiang Hu

Effects of Huang Bai (Phellodendri Cortex) on bone growth and pubertal development in adolescent female rats

To evaluate the effects of Huang Bai (Phellodendron amurense) on growth and maturation in adolescent female rats.

Authors: Sun Haeng Lee, Hyun Jeong Lee, Sung Hyun Lee, Young-Sik Kim, Donghun Lee, Jiu Chun, Jin Yong Lee, Hocheol Kim and Gyu Tae Chang

iTRAQ-based proteomic analysis to identify the molecular mechanism of Zhibai Dihuang Granule in the Yin-deficiency-heat syndrome rats

Zhibai Dihuang Granule (ZDG) is a traditional Chinese medicine which has been used to treat Yin-deficiency-heat (YDH) syndrome for thousands of years in China. However, little work has been conducted to explor...

Authors: Chang-Ming Liu, Jing Chen, Su Yang, Ting-Ting Jiang, Zhong-Liang Chen, Hui-Hui Tu, Lian-Gen Mao, Yu-Ting Hu, Lin Gan, Zhong-Jie Li and Ji-Cheng Li

Different modulation of Panax notoginseng on the absorption profiling of triptolide and tripterine from Tripterygium wilfordii in rat intestine

Compatibility with Panax notoginseng (PN) reduced the plasma concentration of triptolide and delayed the T_max of Tripterygium wilfordii (TW), the sovereign medicine of Qing-Luo Tong-Bi decoction, which hinted the...

Authors: Yiqun Li, Huiting Cao, Mengzhu Liu, Benyong Zhang, Xinlong Zhang, Donglei Shi, Liwei Guo, Jinao Duan, Xueping Zhou, Huaxu Zhu and Qichun Zhang

Advances in bio-active constituents, pharmacology and clinical applications of rhubarb

Rhubarb is one of the most ancient, commonly used and important herbs in Chinese medicine. The modern researches of rhubarb clarified the efficacies, ingredients and mechanisms in a more scientific and rigorou...

Authors: Yu-Jie Cao, Zong-Jin Pu, Yu-Ping Tang, Juan Shen, Yan-Yan Chen, An Kang, Gui-Sheng Zhou and Jin-Ao Duan

Metabolic regulations of a decoction of Hedyotis diffusa in acute liver injury of mouse models

Dysfunctional metabolisms are contributed to LPS/GALN-induced hepatitis. However, whether Hedyotis diffusa (HD) employs metabolic strategies against hepatitis is unknown.

Authors: Min Dai, Fenglin Wang, Zengcheng Zou, Gemin Xiao, Hongjie Chen and Hongzhi Yang

Discrimination of Radix Polygoni Multiflori from different geographical areas by UPLC-QTOF/MS combined with chemometrics

Nowadays, Radix Polygoni Multiflori (RPM, Heshouwu in Chinese) from different geographical origins were used in clinic. In order to characterize the chemical profiles of different geographical origins of RPM s...

Authors: Jin-Fa Tang, Wei-Xia Li, Fan Zhang, Yu-Hui Li, Ying-Jie Cao, Ya Zhao, Xue-Lin Li and Zhi-Jie Ma

Active fraction (HS7) from Taiwanofungus camphoratus inhibits AKT-mTOR, ERK and STAT3 pathways and induces CDK inhibitors in CL1-0 human lung cancer cells

The non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. In NSCLC, the oncogenic AKT-mTOR, ERK and STAT3 pathways are commonly dysregulated and have emerged as attractive targets ...

Authors: I-Chun Lai, Gi-Ming Lai, Jyh-Ming Chow, Hsin-Lun Lee, Chuan-Feng Yeh, Chi-Han Li, Jiann-Long Yan, Shuang-En Chuang, Jacqueline Whang-Peng, Kuan-Jen Bai and Chih-Jung Yao

Hepatoprotective properties of Penthorum chinense Pursh against carbon tetrachloride-induced acute liver injury in mice

Penthorum chinense Pursh (Penthoraceae, PCP), a well-known Miao ethnomedicine, has been traditionally used to treat several liver-related diseases, such as jaundice and viral hepatitis...

Authors: Meng Wang, Xiao-Jiao Zhang, Ruibing Feng, Yun Jiang, Da-Yong Zhang, Chengwei He, Peng Li and Jian-Bo Wan

Chemical characterization of wound ointment (WO) and its effects on fracture repair: a rabbit model

Wound ointment (WO), a kind of Chinese medicine, can significantly promote fracture healing. The study aimed at analyzing the chemical composition and the effects of WO on fracture of rabbits and tried to expl...

Authors: Zhixue Ou, Qi Cheng, Yueping Chen, Tao Chen, Xiangbin Rong, Feipan Long, Xiaoyun Zhang, Qinghua Liang and Zhe Feng

Effects of pretreatment with methanol extract of Peucedani Radix on transient ischemic brain injury in mice

Stroke is the second most common cause of death and may result in various disabilities; thus, identification of neuroprotective therapeutic agents is important. Peucedani Radix (PR), the root of Angelica decursiv...

Authors: So-Youn Jung, Kyoung-Min Kim, Suin Cho, Sehyun Lim, Chiyeon Lim and Young Kyun Kim

Effect of methanol extract of Salviae miltiorrhizae Radix in high-fat diet-induced hyperlipidemic mice

The dried root of Salvia miltiorrhiza, Salviae miltiorrhizae Radix (SR), is one of the most popular medicinal herbs in Asian countries such as China and Korea. In Asian traditional medicine, SR is considered to h...

Authors: Chiyeon Lim, Sehyun Lim, Byoungho Lee, Buyeo Kim and Suin Cho

Ten years of exploration, a new journey to start: advancing Chinese Medicine to the next level

Authors: Chunming Wang, Chin Kio Lei, Ruibing Wang, Jianbo Xiao and Yitao Wang

Revealing topics and their evolution in biomedical literature using Bio-DTM: a case study of ginseng

Valuable scientific results on biomedicine are very rich, but they are widely scattered in the literature. Topic modeling enables researchers to discover themes from an unstructured collection of documents wit...

Authors: Qian Chen, Ni Ai, Jie Liao, Xin Shao, Yufeng Liu and Xiaohui Fan

Anti-tumor effects of the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana

Since the incidence of cancer has been on the rise due to increasing exposure to various carcinogenic factors in recent years, cancer has gradually become the first killer to the health of human beings. A grow...

Authors: Yanan Zhao, Ailin Yang, Pengfei Tu and Zhongdong Hu

Efficacy of Chinese herbal medicine for stroke modifiable risk factors: a systematic review

The vast majority of stroke burden is attributable to its modifiable risk factors. This paper aimed to systematically summarise the evidence of Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) interventions on stroke modifiable ...

Authors: Wenbo Peng, Romy Lauche, Caleb Ferguson, Jane Frawley, Jon Adams and David Sibbritt

Danggui Buxue Tang, a simple Chinese formula containing Astragali Radix and Angelicae Sinensis Radix, stimulates the expressions of neurotrophic factors in cultured SH-SY5Y cells

Danggui Buxue Tang (DBT), a phytoestrogen-enriched Chinese herbal formula, serves as dietary supplement in stimulating the “Blood” functions of menopausal women. In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) theory, “Blo...

Authors: Amy G. W. Gong, Huai Y. Wang, Tina T. X. Dong, Karl W. K. Tsim and Y. Z. Zheng

A network pharmacology-based strategy deciphers the underlying molecular mechanisms of Qixuehe Capsule in the treatment of menstrual disorders

QiXueHe Capsule (QXHC) is a Chinese patent drug that is extensively used for the treatment of menstrual disorders. However, its underlying pharmacological mechanisms have not been fully elucidated.

Authors: Yanqiong Zhang, Xia Mao, Jing Su, Ya Geng, Rui Guo, Shihuan Tang, Junfang Li, Xuefeng Xiao, Haiyu Xu and Hongjun Yang

Temporal divergence of changes in pain and pain-free grip strength after manual acupuncture or electroacupuncture: an experimental study in people with lateral epicondylalgia

The objective of this study was to examine, in individuals with lateral epicondylalgia (LE), the acute time course of acupuncture-induced hypoalgesia and change in pain-free grip strength (PFGS).

Authors: Jaewon Jeon, Erin Bussin and Alex Scott

Cupping therapy versus acupuncture for pain-related conditions: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials and trial sequential analysis

Both cupping therapy and acupuncture have been used in China for a long time, and their target indications are pain-related conditions. There is no systematic review comparing the effectiveness of these two th...

Authors: Ya-Jing Zhang, Hui-Juan Cao, Xin-Lin Li, Xiao-Ying Yang, Bao-Yong Lai, Guo-Yang Yang and Jian-Ping Liu

Anticancer activities and mechanisms of heat-clearing and detoxicating traditional Chinese herbal medicine

In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) theory, pathogenic heat and toxins, which are akin to the inflammatory factors, are the causes of cancer and could promote its virulent development. Therefore, heat-cleari...

Authors: Yulin Zhang, Yeer Liang and Chengwei He

A research on syndrome element differentiation based on phenomenology and mathematical method

As an empirical medical system independent of conventional Western medicine (CWM), over thousands of years, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has established its own unique method of diagnosis and treatment. ...

Authors: Enliang Yan, Jialin Song, Chaonan Liu and Wenxue Hong

High-throughput sequencing technology reveals that continuous cropping of American ginseng results in changes in the microbial community in arable soil

American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) is renowned worldwide for its eutherapeutic effects. The replantation of American ginseng usually fails due to problems associated with continuous cropping. An imbalance ...

Authors: Linlin Dong, Jiang Xu, Lianjuan Zhang, Juan Yang, Baosheng Liao, Xiwen Li and Shilin Chen

Relationship between Chinese medicine dietary patterns and the incidence of breast cancer in Chinese women in Hong Kong: a retrospective cross-sectional survey

This retrospective cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the relationship between Chinese medicine (CM) dietary patterns (hot, neutral, and cold) and the incidence of breast cancer among Chinese women in Hon...

Authors: Xiao Zheng, Jianping Chen, Ting Xie, Zhiyu Xia, Wings Tjing Yung Loo, Lixing Lao, JieShu You, Jie Yang, Kamchuen Tsui, Feizhi Mo and Fei Gao

A simple method for HPLC retention time prediction: linear calibration using two reference substances

Analysis of related substances in pharmaceutical chemicals and multi-components in traditional Chinese medicines needs bulk of reference substances to identify the chromatographic peaks accurately. But the ref...

Authors: Lei Sun, Hong-yu Jin, Run-tao Tian, Ming-juan Wang, Li-na Liu, Liu-ping Ye, Tian-tian Zuo and Shuang-cheng Ma

Chemical constituents from a Gynostemma laxum and their antioxidant and neuroprotective activities

A few bioactivities of constituents from Gynostemma laxum, which has been collected in Vietnam, have been reported until now. There is no report about the effects of constituents from G. laxum although the nucle...

Authors: Ji Yeon Seo, Sang Kyum Kim, Phi Hung Nguyen, Ju Yong Lee, Pham Ha Thanh Tung, Sang Hyun Sung and Won Keun Oh

Rapid identification of growth years and profiling of bioactive ingredients in Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus (Huangqi) roots from Hunyuan, Shanxi

The content of medicinal bioactive constituents in huangqi is affected by plant age. In this study, we devised a quick and convenient method for determining the age of huangqi, which was cultivated in Hunyuan Cou...

Authors: Hua-Sheng Peng, Jun Wang, He-Ting Zhang, Hai-Yan Duan, Xiao-Mei Xie, Ling Zhang, Ming-En Cheng and Dai-yin Peng

Jiangtang decoction ameliorate diabetic nephropathy through the regulation of PI3K/Akt-mediated NF-κB pathways in KK-Ay mice

Jiangtang decoction (JTD) is a China patented drug which contains Euphorbia humifusa Willd, Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge, Astragalus mongholicus Bunge, Anemarrhena asphodeloides Bunge, and Coptis chinensis Franch. F...

Authors: Jin-Ni Hong, Wei-Wei Li, Lin-Lin Wang, Hao Guo, Yong Jiang, Yun-Jia Gao, Peng-Fei Tu and Xue-Mei Wang

Metabolomics approach reveals annual metabolic variation in roots of Cyathula officinalis Kuan based on gas chromatography–mass spectrum

Herbal quality is strongly influenced by harvest time. It is therefore one of crucial factors that should be well respected by herbal producers when optimizing cultivation techniques, so that to obtain herbal ...

Authors: Kai Tong, Zhao-ling Li, Xu Sun, Shen Yan, Mei-jie Jiang, Meng-sheng Deng, Ji Chen, Jing-wei Li and Meng-liang Tian

Identification of anti-HBV activities in Paeonia suffruticosa Andr. using GRP78 as a drug target on Herbochip^®

Herbochip^® technology is a high throughput drug screening platform in a reverse screening manner, in which potential chemical leads in herbal extracts are immobilized and drug target proteins can be used as probe...

Authors: Iao-Fai Lam, Min Huang, Margaret Dah-Tysr Chang, Pei-Wun Yao, Yu-Ting Chou, Sim-Kun Ng, Ying-Lin Tsai, Yu-Chang Lin, Yun-feng Zhang, Xiao-yuan Yang and Yiu-Kay Lai