New mode of data-intelligence fusion research on clinical “toxic” Chinese medicines: The proposal of evidence-based Chinese medicine toxicology

Hypertension is an important worldwide public -health challenge with high mortality and disability. Due to the limitations and concerns with current available hypertension treatments, many hypertensive patients, especially in Asia, have turned to Chinese medicine (CM). Although hypertension is not a CM term, physicians who practice CM in China attempt to treat the disease using CM principles. A variety of approaches for treating hypertension have been taken in CM. For seeking the best evidence of CM in making decisions for hypertensive patients, a number of clinical studies have been conducted in China, which has paved the evidence-based way. After literature searching and analyzing, it appeared that CM was effective for hypertension in clinical use, such as Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture, moxibustion, cupping, qigong, and Tai Chi. However, due to the poor quality of primary studies, clinical evidence is still weak. The potential benefits and safety of CM for hypertension still need to be confirmed in the future with well-designed RCTs of more persuasive primary endpoints and high-quality SRs. Evidence-based Chinese medicine for hypertension still has a long way to go.

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From Prejudice to Evidence: The Case of Rhizoma Coptidis in Singapore

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2014/871720 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 2014 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Chin Ee Ho ◽

You Li Goh ◽

Chang Zhang

Keyword(s):

Chinese Medicine ◽

Traditional Chinese Medicine ◽

G6pd Deficiency ◽

Neonatal Jaundice ◽

Therapeutic Effects ◽

Evidence Based ◽

Rhizoma Coptidis ◽

History Of ◽

Hepatoprotective Effects ◽

Glucose 6 Phosphate Dehydrogenase

Rhizoma Coptidis (RC), commonly known ashuanglian, is a herb frequently used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) prescriptions. Known to have “clearing damp-heat, quenching fire and counteracting poison” properties, it was widely used in the Chinese community in Singapore. Berberine, an alkaloid isolated from RC, is known to have a wide array of therapeutic effects including antimicrobial, antineoplastic, and hepatoprotective effects. In 1978, RC was implicated in causing neonatal jaundice (NNJ) and kernicterus in neonates suffering from glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, leading to the banning of RC and berberine in Singapore. More than three decades later, accumulating evidence-based studies pointing to the safety of RC for general public and better understanding of G6PD deficiency, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) in Singapore reviewed and lifted the prohibition on RC and berberine, turning a brand new chapter in the history of TCM in Singapore. This paper aims to review the safety of RC and berberine, using the prohibition of use and subsequent lifting of ban on RC and berberine in Singapore as an illustration to highlight the importance of evidence-based studies in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).

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Enhanced Evidence-Based Chinese Medicine Clinical Practice Guidelines in Hong Kong: A Study Protocol for Three Common Diseases

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2015/482706 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Nannan Shi ◽

Linda L. D. Zhong ◽

XueJie Han ◽

Tat Chi Ziea ◽

Bacon Ng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Clinical Practice ◽

Chinese Medicine ◽

Text Mining ◽

Cerebral Infarction ◽

Study Protocol ◽

Chronic Gastritis ◽

Clinical Practice Guidelines ◽

Practice Guidelines ◽

Evidence Based

We presented a study protocol of developing Chinese medicine clinical practice guidelines for three common diseases in Hong Kong, including insomnia, chronic gastritis, and cerebral infarction. This research project will be conducted in three phases. First phase is the preparation stage which consists of the establishment of steering committee and panel. Second phase involves 6 steps, which are searching and identifying evidence, text mining process, Delphi survey, synthesizing of data, consensus conference, and drafting guidelines. In this phase, text mining technique, evidence-based method, and formal consensus method are combined to get consolidated supporting data as the source of CM CPGs. The final phase comprised external reviews, dissemination, and updating. The outputs from this project will provide three CM CPGs for insomnia, chronic gastritis, and cerebral infarction for Hong Kong local use.

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Targeting Cancer Metabolism to Resensitize Chemotherapy: Potential Development of Cancer Chemosensitizers from Traditional Chinese Medicines

Cancers ◽

10.3390/cancers12020404 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 404 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Guo ◽

Tan ◽

Chen ◽

Wang ◽

Feng

Keyword(s):

Chinese Medicine ◽

Cancer Therapy ◽

Traditional Chinese Medicine ◽

Cancer Cells ◽

Metabolic Pathways ◽

Cancer Metabolism ◽

Metabolic Reprogramming ◽

Traditional Chinese Medicines ◽

Chinese Medicines ◽

Incidence And Mortality

Cancer is a common and complex disease with high incidence and mortality rates, which causes a severe public health problem worldwide. As one of the standard therapeutic approaches for cancer therapy, the prognosis and outcome of chemotherapy are still far from satisfactory due to the severe side effects and increasingly acquired resistance. The development of novel and effective treatment strategies to overcome chemoresistance is urgent for cancer therapy. Metabolic reprogramming is one of the hallmarks of cancer. Cancer cells could rewire metabolic pathways to facilitate tumorigenesis, tumor progression, and metastasis, as well as chemoresistance. The metabolic reprogramming may serve as a promising therapeutic strategy and rekindle the research enthusiasm for overcoming chemoresistance. This review focuses on emerging mechanisms underlying rewired metabolic pathways for cancer chemoresistance in terms of glucose and energy, lipid, amino acid, and nucleotide metabolisms, as well as other related metabolisms. In particular, we highlight the potential of traditional Chinese medicine as a chemosensitizer for cancer chemotherapy from the metabolic perspective. The perspectives of metabolic targeting to chemoresistance are also discussed. In conclusion, the elucidation of the underlying metabolic reprogramming mechanisms by which cancer cells develop chemoresistance and traditional Chinese medicines resensitize chemotherapy would provide us a new insight into developing promising therapeutics and scientific evidence for clinical use of traditional Chinese medicine as a chemosensitizer for cancer therapy.

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