View | rao: science is the only way for traditional Chinese medicine research

Time: 2015-12-09

Source: caixin

Author: rao yi

Rao: "the intellectuals" editor in chief, a professor at Peking University

Today, the study of Chinese traditional medicine, the only scientific way, there are still different from scientific way? This is a problem. Related to this, today for the standard of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is the scientific standard, there are still different from scientific standards? Has also become a problem.

If you look at science, history, you can see: the study of Chinese traditional medicine is scientific research, the standard of Chinese traditional medicine must be scientific standards.

Modern medicine is derived from multiple regions

Multiple inheritance civilization of modern science

Our traditional Chinese medicine has a long history, but a lot of culture, a lot of people in the world, many countries and regions have been found in different degree in pharmaceutical related or invention. Influenced by the ancient Greek science and traditional western modern medicine and modern medicine, was born in China is sometimes mistakenly called western medicine, western medicine. Absorbed the so-called "western medicine" occurred in the process of human civilization achievements in many areas, not only is Europe.

In the aspect of antimalarial drugs, have become global quinine, not origin of the west, but originated from native Peru. They know the bark of the cinchona tree can treat malaria, with sugar water can reduce the bitter taste of the bark bark. In the 17th century missionaries will cinchona introduced to Europe for the treatment of malaria. After king Charles ii, the British more popular use.

In 1820, French scientists from cinchona tree extract monomer molecule quinine, it is a molecular cinchona bark of antimalarial. Quinine is chemical synthesis, can also be extracted from cinchona bark, once a long time to extract more economical than synthetic economically. After scientific also synthesized chloroquine, avoid some side effects of quinine.

However, there is no one called the quinine in Peru, or native American Indian medicine. In fact, this is just one example, there are many other examples such as vaccinia immune, etc., that modern medicine is inclusive, in under the guidance of the scientific spirit, with scientific method, according to the scientific standard, absorb the experience of all nations and regions all over the world, from the source of plant, animal, mineral, and so on to get effective drug treatment.

Have more facts prove that modern science is to absorb the achievements of the world, is not a western science, but the world of science. Although China's scientific tradition is quite weak, but also contribute to the world. China has also actively absorbing the world scientific, no one to the original number, content, sinochem, born in the difference in the world of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology.

Looking back at history: the road to the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine of antimalarial

The modern scientific research of Chinese traditional medicine, Japan will contribute in the 19th century. In hard environment problems we face at home and abroad, the Chinese people also devoted Chinese medicine with modern scientific research, as it is today known as the Nobel Prize winner, Mr Tu, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) modernization has been more than one hundred years of history.

From 1923 to 1925, kk Chen on physiology, a postdoctoral fellow in the United States had been home for two years, work in pharmacology of Peiping union medical college, where he studies respectively in 1924 and 1926 published two English papers and found the pharmacology and clinical application of ephedrine. Know the importance of traditional Chinese medicine ephedra from his uncle, the chemical composition of ephedra ephedrine chemically purified by Japanese, and he found pharmacological and clinical just an American PhD just young scientific workers, followed by ephedrine applied all over the world.

Ephedrine and its derivatives is likely to be sold all over the world's largest monomer chemical drugs to be obtained from the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), including a young man in beiping during China's general lack of scientific work. Kk Chen to work in China two years later, back to the United States to study for a medical doctor's degree, who speculate to drug company research and development department director, chairman of the American society for pharmacology and experimental therapy, honorary President of the international federation of pharmacological, be in one hundred years Chinese pharmacology workers of the world's highest academic standing for.

In the aspect of antimalarial drugs, our country pharmacologist Zhang Changshao professor from the pioneer of Chinese medicine extract chemical antimalarial molecules. Graduated from Shanghai college of medicine Zhang Changshao, received a doctor's degree from the department of pharmacology of studying in the UK London, after work in the United States. In the early 1940 s, prosperous Zhang Changshao leave environment of the United States, to return to the motherland in the war, in chongqing and Shanghai medical school of the Chinese central health research institute. He gave up his own nerve pharmacology research, to study China needed the antimalarial drugs. Because during the war, a large number of Chinese soldiers, Chinese civilians into the high incidence of malaria, and foreign forces are fighting malaria infections, are in urgent need of antimalarial drugs.

Dutch settlers various cinchona trees planted in the Indonesian island of Java, and 1930 s 97% of the world's total. After the Japanese occupation of Java, the home of the cinchona tree control by Japan, the Allies of antimalarial drugs in need but lost the antimalarial drugs raw material source, so the Allies very hope to find a new at that time does not depend on cinchona antimalarial drugs, the United States, Britain and China are studying new antimalarial drugs, just start nobody believe China will be a important discovery.

American not only scientific level is much higher than China, but local war does not occur, and China at that time, many scientists have difficulty in life, including southwest of some of the professor's wife put stall in the outside, Mr Subsidies income of teaching. Instead of glass tube, some scientists use bamboo tube, in which case would find antimalarial drugs may be near impossible.

Chinese and foreign, such as Vietnam, India) are circulated plants dichroa may treat malaria, dichroa also appears in antimalarial compound Chinese medicine. In other cases, that the scientific researchers have also made some research Zhou Tingchong Zhang Changshao led his students and technicians made a series of contributions, and with the chemist Zhao Cheng Gu and Gao Yisheng cooperation, successfully obtained from dichroa monomer molecule dichroa alkali and dichroa new alkali, and prove their antimalarial effect. From 1943 to 1948, they published a series of original papers, there is a lot of potential applications.

Kk Chen attention to drug research in China, and let the air force's nation fortune to the United States, for the pharmaceutical industry and university research, a chemist at the California institute of technology of two also separated by dichroa alkali, but later than Zhang Changshao, Zhao Cheng Gu. Although the overall in antimalarial drug research is cooperation of China and the United States, but actually, there is competition, and represented by Zhang Changshao leading scientists in China.

Dichroa alkali didn't get the reason is very simple, and the application because it has a very strong side effects of vomiting, this is a very strange flower, the side effects of dichroa is applied to just treat malaria parasites, and cause vomiting is applied to people, so the dichroa alkali role in malaria parasites and people at the same time a scientific phenomenon is very interesting. The posterity hope to separate the antimalarial action and vomiting side effects, but so far without success. But the process of from traditional Chinese medicine monomer of antimalarial molecules, including tu of Zhang Changshao model of junior Chinese scientists.

Zhang Changshao host pharmacology Shanghai first medical college for a long time, until 1967 have died in the cultural revolution. But Zhang Changshao and similar to a group of study in western scientists with him not only physically and also cultivate a group of scientists later. Tu teacher in Peking University school of medicine department of pharmacy of floor of cen, also after the study in the west to China for traditional Chinese medicine with modern scientific research.

In the mid - 1960 - s, China once again need antimalarial drugs. At that time, China and Vietnam to fight shoulder to shoulder the U.S. army, whether military, or Vietnam, and China's armed forces, the decline in effectiveness on the battlefield in Vietnam's largest factors not directly killed, wounded, but malaria, so both sides hope to find new antimalarial drugs.

Tu and her colleagues did a series of work on the basis of the predecessors, to determine the role of the ACTS against malaria, and purification for monomer molecule artemisinin, prove antimalarial effect of monomer molecules. In this series of work, tu without a doubt the most representative, she deserved to get this year's Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. Discovered artemisinin, known as antimalarial action later, there will be other chemists, biophysicist, including Shanghai, Shanghai YouJiSuo drugs, biophysics, Chinese academy of sciences, the researchers involved in different work, also is with modern science and advance the artemisinin drugs research and development.

In the 1970 s China has an important scientific discovery from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is the first affiliated hospital of Harbin medical university in regions Zhang Ting building Sir. In the early 1970 s, there is a village doctor, toad venom with arsenic and mercury in heilongjiang province as the compound treatment of all kinds of patients, including patients with infection, also including cancer patients, some of them seemed to have a therapeutic effect.

The first affiliated hospital of Harbin medical university of pharmacy tarun khanna pharmacist made a preparation, called carcinoma 1, containing arsenic, toad venom and mercury, incredibly have to cure cancer patients. But then the cancer drug abuse in the treatment of various kinds of cancer patients. How arsenic toxic, used as a drug is a difficult problem, the west and China have been used, but these people can't really call discoverer, because they do not have what disease is used to determine arsenic, carelessly may kill rather than cure, only the philosophy of "like cures like" principle is not enough.

Zhang Ting building is on the basis of other people to do a series of work, from 1973 to 1979 to determine arsenic monomer molecule to the treatment of acute arsenic trioxide young leukemia (APL), early 1990 s after speed throughout China, and then in the world to promote, saved the leukaemia person's life. As Zhang Changshao was the discoverer of the most representative dichroa alkali, tu was the discoverer of the artemisinin most representative, Zhang Ting building is undoubtedly determine the most important representative figure of arsenic cure of cancer.

To one hundred, the country has established the modern scientific research way of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), with modern chemical molecules, from traditional Chinese medicine with the modern pharmacology research the role of these molecules, succeed in practice, establish the scientific research of traditional Chinese medicine, to demonstrate the effectiveness of modern traditional Chinese medicine scientific research.

There may be a do not conform to the science of traditional Chinese medicine?

Genius like Albert Einstein can upset the Newtonian mechanics, but he did not overthrow of physics, but development, also proves the scientific spirit and scientific standards, the principle of science can be tested, including the test of some disciplines and theory were overthrown.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) if beyond science, that have appeared in our country need a lot of far more than Einstein, otherwise I'm afraid.

Traditional Chinese medicine compound, individualized, both reason, also have a problem. Modern science, including the modern medicine and pharmacy, can completely inclusion compound, whole and individual, and the actual also have solid work.

Modern medicine (the so-called "western medicine", "western medicine") does not rule out using compound, cancer cells to anticancer drugs fell, also with increase white blood cell medicine at the same time, reduce the side effects of anti-cancer drugs. This is a lot of scientists, many pharmaceutical companies do a lot of animal and human proved after the experiment. But so far only two drugs, or a handful of medicine should be combined with the application.

Often of a number of herbs and traditional Chinese medicine compound, whether need so much, whether to have to compound? Dichroa, antimalarial compound artemisinin are found in ancient books, but the strict modern scientific research prove that they are separate, compound Chinese medicine for treating other taste is not required.

May have a few Chinese traditional medicine compound is right, but the vast majority of compound lack enough evidence. From the statistical reckoning: Chinese medicine compound is often their teens and 20 herbs, every medicine containing tens of thousands of chemical molecules inside; Who have enough information to prove a 23 herbs of compound inside must not lose 3, and required 20, is it possible to even lose 20, as long as 3?

Sure must be 23 herbs compound, how many patients as sample. And a compound requires a lot of people, the number of compound Chinese medicine in the book a lot, if calculated with how many people do this, I'm afraid the world ever can't born enough the number of samples. Besides, people are not generally of experimental animals, is also difficult to large-scale strict research, especially in scientific and lack of ancient China.

So you should not simply said, the test of practice of Chinese medicine is thousands of years as a result, there are a lot of the lack of strict inspection, not enough to prove its function. ACTS as an example, some ancient books of antimalarial medicine inside doesn't work, and some ancient books, if any, are often not clear prescription, or write a wrong method, for example, using the method of heating leads to artemisinin is inactive, impossible to treat malaria.

Modern Chinese medicine monomer molecule of isolation and purification of scientific research is not only if it is multiple chemical molecules play a role, also can find multiple molecules by modern science, to prove they can complement each other in the treatment of, or control of side effects. It can do in chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology, although the workload is bigger.

The so-called problem more individualized treatment in TCM. Modern medicine also hope individualized treatment, and did for a minority of patients with diseases that can be because of their different genes with different drugs, it is the modern major contribution to medical genetics and genomics, opened the road of personalised medicine or accurate medicine.

But modern medicine not because doctors and different individual therapy with different methods, the majority of doctors are in the same standard to diagnose and treat patients, of course, some very good doctor level, some particularly poor, but most of the doctor's standard is the same, does not set the standard for himself alone. In the traditional Chinese medicine, is a big problem, for the same disease, often the same patient, use of traditional Chinese medicine is different, I'm afraid not individualized, it's a matter of diagnosis and treatment criteria.

Some companies try to promote food safety according to different with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) to establish the so-called "western" standards. What needs to be specified, if not careful, may be a problem. No matter what drug, must need to have curative effect and safety of two basic standards, not out of the other standard curative effect and security Settings.

Scientific workers should be conscientious, solid traditional Chinese medicine with modern scientific research, launch a useful medicine for China and the world.

Science is the only way for traditional Chinese medicine research.