Jin Fu Kang Oral Liquid Inhibits Lymphatic Endothelial Cells Formation and Migration

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Jin Fu Kang (JFK), an oral liquid prescription of Chinese herbal drugs, has been clinically available for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Lymphangiogenesis is a primary event in the process of cancer development and metastasis, and the formation and migration of lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) play a key role in the lymphangiogenesis. To assess the activity of stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) and the coeffect of SDF-1 and vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C) on the formation and migration of LECs and clarify the inhibitory effects of JFK on the LECs, the LECs were differentiated from CD34+/VEGFR-3+endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), and JFK-containing serums were prepared from rats. SDF-1 and VEGF-C both induced the differentiation of CD34+/VEGFR-3+EPCs towards LECs and enhanced the LECs migration. Couse of SDF-1 and VEGF-C displayed an additive effect on the LECs formation but not on their migration. JFK inhibited the formation and migration of LECs, and the inhibitory effects were most probably via regulation of the SDF-1/CXCR4 and VEGF-C/VEGFR-3 axes. The current finding suggested that JFK might inhibit NSCLC through antilymphangiogenesis and also provided a potential to discover antilymphangiogenesis agents from natural resources.

Promoting Chinese Herbal Drugs through Regulatory Globalisation

This study explores the social dynamics in promoting traditional Chinese medicine (tcm) drugs by making them acceptable to biomedical markets. It investigates the Consortium for Globalization of Chinese Medicine (cgcm), an organisation based in Hong Kong in pursuit of advancing tcm, and traces the development of the herbal formula phy906, a Chinese herbal product intensively discussed at the cgcm that has been tested according to the us Food and Drug Administration’s regulation for approval. Departing from accounts on the organisation’s success that focus either on its scientific approach or its leader Yung-chi Cheng, this paper argues that it was the synergy between the cgcm and the pursuit of approval for phy906 that contributed to the regulatory globalisation of tcm. In this process, not only organisations like the cgcm are required to streamline efforts for producing globalised tcm; also researchers are needed who, with cultural commitment, seek for transforming tcm to meet biomedical indications.