Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has a history that can be dated back to several thousand years ago. The extant earliest medical book is Huangdi Neijing (Canon of Internal Medicine, 770 BC~221 BC), and the earliest pharmacy monograph is Shengnong Bencao Jing (Shengnong Materia Medica, AD25~AD220). The most influential pharmacy monograph is the Bencao Gangmu (Compendium of Materia Medica, AD1368~AD1644). There were also many other far-reaching influencial monographs, which become the main and the most important derived resources of modern China pharmacopoeia for TCM. In this paper, we try to introduce some representative medicine and pharmacy works of ancient China, and elaborate the origin, development and improvement process of modern China pharmacopoeia, which may have referential significance for traditional and natural drugs. China Pharmacopoeia and TCM still have to face many problems in authenticity discrimination, action mechanism, and adverse reaction, etc. The improvement of China Pharmacopoeia still has room for progress with the solutions of modern analytical methods to the problems. The start-up and development of Herbalomics project will be helpful to further improve the China Pharmacopoeia, especially Chinese patented medicine and compound prescription.
Curcuma phaeocaulis Val. has been used as a health food in China for a long time. This research aimed to isolate and identify its active compounds with protective effects against hydrogen peroxide-induced PC12 cell death. 70% ethanol extracts of C. phaeocaulis were re-extracted and three fractions of water, petroleum ether and ethyl acetate were obtained. Three diphenylheptane compounds from the ethyl acetate fraction were identified for the first time from C. phaeocaulis, and compound III was considered to be a new structure. All of the three compounds displayed certain protective effects against toxicity in PC12 cells. For all concentrations, compound III displayed a more significant protective effect than ethanol extracts, the ethyl acetate fraction, and the other two compounds. At a concentration of 50 μg mL(-1), the survival rate of damaged PC-12 cells treated with compound III reached 84.7%. Diphenylheptanes were concluded to be the main compounds responsible for the health effects of C. phaeocaulis.
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