Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an indispensable part of the world health and medical system, and plays an important role in treatment, prevention and health care. These TCM produce a large amount of Chinese medicine herbal residues (CHMRs) during the application process, most of which are the residues after decoction or extraction of botanical medicines. These CMHRs contain a large number of unused components, which can be used in medical, breeding, planting, materials and other industries. Considering the practical application requirements, this paper mainly introduces the low-cost treatment methods of CHMRs, including extraction of active ingredients, cultivation of edible fungi and manufacture of feed. These methods not only have low upfront investment, but also have some income in the future. Furthermore, other methods are brie y introduced. In conclusion, this paper can provide reference for people who need to deal with CMHRs, and contribute to the sustainable development of TCM.
Cordycepin is a bioactive compound extracted from Cordyceps militaris. As a natural antibiotic, cordycepin has a wide variety of pharmacological effects. Unfortunately, this highly effective natural antibiotic is proved to undergo rapid deamination by adenosine deaminase (ADA) in vivo and, as a consequence, its half‐life is shortened and bioavailability is decreased. Therefore, it is of critical importance to work out ways to slow down the deamination so as to increase its bioavailability and efficacy. This study reviews recent researches on a series of aspects of cordycepin such as the bioactive molecule's pharmacological action, metabolism and transformation as well as the underlying mechanism, pharmacokinetics and, particularly, the methods for reducing the degradation to improve the bioavailability and efficacy. It is drawn that there are three methods that can be applied to improve the bioavailability and efficacy: to co‐administrate an ADA inhibitor and cordycepin, to develop more effective derivatives via structural modification, and to apply new drug delivery systems. The new knowledge can help optimize the application of the highly potent natural antibiotic‐cordycepin and develop novel therapeutic strategies.
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an indispensable part of the world health and medical system, and plays an important role in treatment, prevention and health care. These TCM produce a large amount of Chinese medicine herbal residues (CHMRs) during the application process, most of which are the residues after decoction or extraction of botanical medicines. These CMHRs contain a large number of unused components, which can be used in medical, breeding, planting, materials and other industries. Considering the practical application requirements, this paper mainly introduces the low-cost treatment methods of CHMRs, including extraction of active ingredients, cultivation of edible fungi and manufacture of feed. These methods not only have low upfront investment, but also have some income in the future. Furthermore, other methods are briefly introduced. In conclusion, this paper can provide reference for people who need to deal with CMHRs, and contribute to the sustainable development of TCM.
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