Chinese Medicine Development – The Way Ahead

1. Chinese Medicine Development – The Way Ahead Prof. Liang LIU The School of Chinese Medicine Hong Kong Baptist University

2. 1. The characteristics of Chinese medicine

3. 1. The characteristics of Chinese medicine • An unique medical system in traditional Chinese culture setting • Owing to its unique medical philosophy, concepts and theories that can be used effectively to guide the clinical practice that makes different from conventional medicine and other traditional medicines in the world • Having a comprehensive medical system with the associated theoretical and practical strategies, methods, and medications in disease treatment and health maintenance • Combined treatment by applying medications and non-medicated methods in practice • Well-documented therapeutic theories, methods, medications and literatures

4. 1. The characteristics of Chinese medicine • The major advantages and strategies of Chinese medicine in treating diseases • A holistic approach to life (holistic medicine) and treating the whole person rather than just the symptoms and focus of disease • Non-damaging diagnostic method • Multiple targets treatment by using multiple chemicals contained in the prescribed herbs or herbal formula, which fits treatment of the refractory and complicated diseases with complicated pathological changes and conditions in multiple molecules, tissues and organs • Natural medications and non-medicated treatments with relatively minor side effects for patients

5. 1. The characteristics of Chinese medicine • Weakness and difficulties of Chinese medicine that need to be intensively investigated and overcome • Description and presentation of the theoretical system using traditional medical terminologies built on ancient Chinese culture, which is difficult in understanding for its counterpart of conventional Western medicine • Lacking in objective laboratory data for support of diagnosis and treatment, and too much dependence on the subjective individual experiences of the practitioner instead • Lacking in standardization, i.e., the unified criteria and standards of diagnosis and pattern-recognition, and of evaluation of therapeutic efficacy as well as medication quality

6. 1. The characteristics of Chinese medicine • Weakness and difficulties of Chinese medicine that need to be intensively investigated and overcome • Variation of treatments such as herbal resources, quality consistency of materia medica and products • Complexity in chemistry of the complex herbal prescriptions and products, and in biological and pharmacological actions of the treatment • Lacking in sufficient exploration and elucidation of the action mechanisms of intervention, as well as the side effects and the corresponding treatments

7. 2. Chinese medicine – a complicated medical system needs to be investigated by using multidisciplinary theories, methods and technologies

8. 2. Chinese medicine – a complicated medical system needs to be investigated by using multidisciplinary theories, methods and technologies • Examples: • Clinical diagnosis of pattern-recognition: symptoms analysis using clinical epidemiology principles and methods, and analysis and demonstration of profiling of the “patterns” (證候) in biomarkers, proteomics and metabolics of patients, by which a modern standardized diagnostic system could be established

9. 2. Chinese medicine – a complicated medical system needs to be investigated by using multidisciplinary theories, methods and technologies • Examples: • Enhancement of quality practice: setting up a scientific evidence-based evaluation system for the therapeutic principles, methods and interventions; establishment of a standardized technical platform for ensurance of the quality and consistency of the raw materials of herbs, the herbal formulae and their productions; educating and upgrading the professions and personnels intensively

10. 2. Chinese medicine – a complicated medical system needs to be investigated by using multidisciplinary theories, methods and technologies • Examples: • Elucidation of the scientific foundation of treatment: investigating the effective drug substances, fractions and compounds in the herbal medications; demonstrating the action molecular targets as well as the active behaviour and characteristics of the treatment

11. 3. Signficant advancement of Chinese medicine

12. 3. Significant advancement of Chinese medicine • Implementation of policies and regulations in more countries and regions • Development of educational academic programmes in institutions and universities for training new generation of practioners and upgrading the existing professionals • Standardization of the clinical pattern-recognition and diagnosis and treatment protocols using methods of clinical epidemiology and biostatistics, and evidence-based medicine principles

13. 3. Significant advancement of Chinese medicine • Innovation and development of investigation strategies and technical methods and platform for quality control and standardization of Chinese materia medica and their preparatory products by using multidisciplinary advanced technologies in phytochemistry, analytical chemistry, pharmacology and pharmacokinetics and so on

14. 3. Significant advancement of Chinese medicine • Screening and isolation of bioactive fractions and compounds from Chinese medicinal herbs and their herbal formulae so as to identify the effective components and ingredients from them as well as to find potential candidates of agents for further studies

15. 3. Significant advancement of Chinese medicine • Exploration and elucidation of the scientific foundations, action characteristics and mechanisms, and targeting pathways and molecules of the therapeutics of Chinese medicine as well as acupuncture treatment by using combined methods of biology, biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, and assays of functional genomics, proteomics and melabolomics

16. 3. Significant advancement of Chinese medicine • Multidisciplinary advanced technologies and methods have been employed in the R&D of products from Chinese medicine, and many candidates both of the single compounds and the herbal formulae preparations show potentials of application as therapeutic agents

17. 4. The way forward in modernization of traditional Chinese medicine

18. 4. The way forward in modernization of traditional Chinese medicine Description and explanation of the theories using common scientific languages Implementation of SOP and quality control standards of Chinese materia medica and herbal medications Standardization of the diagnostic pattern-recognition, the treatment protocols, and the interventions Modernization of traditional Chinese medicine Elucidation of mechanisms of the diagnostic pattern-recognition and the corresponding treatment protocols and therapeutics Identification of the bioactive fractions and compounds of the herbal medications as well as their effective mechanisms and targets Intensive evaluation of the therapeutic values, the efficacies and the safety of TCM treatment

19. Conclusion

20. Conclusion • Traditional Chinese Medicine • is a valuable and unique medical system for mankind, demonstrating supplementary and synergistic effects for the conventional medicine; • intensive research using multidisciplinary and advanced methods and technologies is needed; • standardization and quality control of the diagnostic methods, treatment protocols and interventions are most important;

21. Conclusion • Traditional Chinese Medicine • elucidation of the molecular mechanisms of the therapeutic principles and interventions is crucial for the acceptance of Chinese medicine worldwide and for its becoming part of conventional medicine and modern sciences; • systematic evaluation of the values, efficacies and safety of treatments should be intensively conducted; • it will become of the cornerstones of the future medicine in the world.

22. Let’s join hands and step up with our efforts for the bright future of Chinese Medicine !

23. I declarethe 2006 World Congress on Chinese Medicine closed. Thank You!