Precision medicine, based on personalized medicine, is to provide personalized and precise prediction, prevention, diagnosis and treatment by genomic, proteomic, metabolomic and other omics technologies and big data analysis techniques. Guided by the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) theory, we may use the technologies and methods of precision medicine to analyze and mine the TCM "Four Diagnosis" information, to get better understanding of TCM ZHENG. Then we can make accurate ZHENG classification, diagnosis and carry out ZHENG based treatment. Precision medical treatment in TCM focuses on individual diagnosis and treatment in the views of system, like disease process and individual integrity with emphasis on main elements and primary contradictions in the system. The study of accurate diagnosis and treatment based on disease ZHENG is of great importance in TCM.
Accurate Diagnosis of ZHENGZHENG, also called TCM syndrome or TCM pattern, is an integral and essential part of TCM theory [1]. A TCM ZHENG, in essence, is a characteristic profile of all clinical manifestations collected by "Four Diagnosis" (observing, listening, asking and feeling), which can be identified by a TCM practitioner. Effective clinical treatments rely on the successful differentiation of a specific ZHENG [2]. Accurate diagnosis is the basis of proper medical treatment. Objective and accurate identification of ZHENG is the premise of effective TCM treatment. The objectification of ZHENG and its essence discovery has always been the focus of TCM research. Accurate diagnosis of disease ZHENG is to objectively collect and analyze the clinical symptoms and signs with the application of system biology, bioinformatics and big data mining technologies etc. Then we may discover the biological material basis and biomarkers of ZHENG and make molecular classification of the phenotypes to explain its development and evolution mechanisms objectively and accurately.Recently, some new technologies and methods such as the System Omics Approach were introduced in ZHENG research, which significantly facilitate the accurate diagnosis of ZHENG [2]. Previous studies have investigated ZHENG classification and biomarkers in chronic hepatitis B and liver cirrhosis, and have found that IL-10-819-C/T loci associated with the deficiency syndrome in hepatitis B caused cirrhosis [3]. Both miR-583 and miR-662 were able to distinguish the Liver and gallbladder damp heat syndrome from liver and kidney yin deficiency syndrome in patients with hepatitis B [4]. Additionally, the expression levels of PNP, AQP7 and PSMD2 were important to distinguish the damp heat syndrome from liver depression and spleen deficiency syndrome in hepatitis B caused cirrhosis [5]. These studies have provided the evidences for further study of ZHENG objectification to make accurate diagnosis of TCM.
Accurate TCM TreatmentAccurate TCM treatment is the individualized treatment using herbal medicine or acupuncture and moxibustion based on the accurate identification of ZHENG types, which depends on th...