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TCM for flu receives FDA approval for clinical tests
(Xinhua) Updated: 2015-12-25 14:01

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This file photo taken on April 8, 2015 shows a box of Lianhuaqingwen capsule.[Photo/IC]

SHIJIAZHUANG - A listed Chinese herbal medicine maker on Thursday said its compound flu formula has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical tests.

The decision has paved the way for Chinese herbal medicine to enter the U.S. market.

The Shenzhen-listed Yiling Pharmaceutical said that its wholly owned subsidiary in the U.S. received the approval for trials for its Lianhuaqingwen capsule, a compound herbal medicine for treating the common cold and influenza virus.

Chinese therapists have adopted prescriptions from ancient records on herbal medicine and used modern research on viruses and bacteria in developing the medicine.

The Western medical circle has long questioned the efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicine due to the complex herbal ingredients and pharmacology of traditional Chinese medicine.

When the influenza type A H1N1 virus broke out in 2009, nine Chinese hospitals that participated in international exchanges for treating the epidemic used the medicine in clinical treatment, which tested its efficacy and safety. The hospitals' records of using the drug during the epidemic have been recognized by the World Health Organization.

The Chinese medicine has shown effectiveness in treating flu symptoms including fever, nasal congestion, cough and muscle soreness in clinical tests.

As one of the top-selling anti-influenza drugs in China, the capsule is available in 120,00 pharmacies around China and is also available in Hungary, Canada and Indonesia.

The company based in Shijiazhuang, capital of north China's Hebei Province, said getting an FDA certificate would further enhance the herbal medicine's standing in the international market.




 
China Exclusive: TCM makers welcome state support
Source: Xinhua 2016-02-18 02:09:25

NANCHANG, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) producers welcomed industry support policies unveiled at an executive meeting of the State Council, China's cabinet, on Sunday.

Pharmaceutical executives said the policies will bring development opportunities and hoped that local authorities will roll out more tangible measures.

More traditional medicines will be added to the national list of essential drugs, said a statement issued after the executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang.

More resources and policies will support the development of traditional medicine, the statement said, including conservation of ancient medical texts.

The pharmaceutical industry is encouraged to use modern technology in researching traditional medicine, while hospitals and researchers are encouraged to try traditional therapies in treating complex chronic diseases.

The policies gave a strong boost to pharmaceutical companies in terms of new medicine development, said Zhu Zhaoyun, R&D director at Yunnan Baiyao Group Co.

The pharmaceutical firms are boosting innovation to meet consumer demand in an increasingly competitive market.

Zhong Hongguang, chairman of Jiangzhong Group, said the company is developing new health care products and boosting research to develop better treatment for common diseases.

The TCM industry, however, faces development challenges, industry insiders warned.

Xu Daofu, director of the general office at Jiangxi provincial TCM hospital, acknowledged that the industry lacks high-level talent. TCM treatment demands a lot of knowledge and clinical experience, he added.

In the coming years, local authorities should carry out more tangible measures to support the industry, Xu said.

Liu Hongyu, Party chief of the Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said more work needs to be done to help explore effective treatments from ancient TCM records.

Tu Youyou's Nobel Prize win for the discovery of artemisinin, a TCM-based drug widely used to fight malaria, has served as a boon to the industry, said Zhu.

"TCM is a great treasure house. Combined with modern technology, it could benefit more people," Zhu said.
 
Chinese exercises may improve cardiovascular health | Science Codex
Posted By News On March 9, 2016 - 9:30pm

DALLAS, March 9, 2016 --Traditional Chinese exercises such as Tai Chi may improve the health and well-being of those living with heart disease, high blood pressure or stroke, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

"Traditional Chinese exercises are a low-risk, promising intervention that could be helpful in improving quality of life in patients with cardiovascular diseases -- the leading cause of disability and death in the world," said Yu Liu, Ph.D., study co-author, and dean of the School of Kinesiology, at Shanghai University of Sport in China. "But the physical and psychological benefits to these patients of this increasingly popular form of exercise must be determined based on scientific evidence."

Chen Pei-Jie, Ph.D., the study's lead author and president of Shanghai University of Sport in China and his team reviewed 35 studies, including 2,249 participants from 10 countries.

They found, among participants with cardiovascular disease, Chinese exercises helped reduce systolic blood pressure (the top number) by more than 9.12 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) by more than 5 mm Hg on average.

They also found small, but statistically significant drops in the levels of bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein) and triglycerides. Chinese exercises also seemed to improve quality of life and reduce depression in patients with cardiovascular disease. However, traditional Chinese exercises did not significantly improve participant's heart rate, aerobic fitness level or scores on a general health questionnaire.

The review only analyzed studies which randomly assigned participants to groups performing traditional Chinese exercises (most commonly Tai Chi, Qigong and Baduanjin), engaging in another form of exercise or making no change in activity level.

note that although their review provided a good overview of the impact of traditional Chinese exercises on cardiovascular risk factors, several limitations: inclusion criteria varied across studies; participants were followed for a year or less; traditional Chinese exercises take many different forms and most results were evaluated by study leaders who knew which group participants had been assigned to, potentially biasing results.

Liu and his team have been studying the benefits of traditional Chinese exercises on a range of diseases for more than 5 years. They plan to conduct new randomized controlled trials to confirm the effect of different types of traditional Chinese exercises on chronic diseases.

Source: American Heart Association
 
Good idea to survey and catalgue these valuable TCM resources.

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China to unroll national survey of TCM resources
By Chen Xia
China.org.cn, July 5, 2016

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Traditional Chinese medicine [File photo]


China is to unroll the fourth national survey of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) resources to ensure a better development of the industry, said a senior health official on Sunday.

With the public need for TCM therapies growing, the number of medicine resources has decreased and people have turned to the cultivated ones. However, due to a lack of standards, the cultivated TCM resources are sometimes less effective or even unsafe for human use, said Wang Guoqiang, director of the State Administration of TCM, at a TCM seminar held in Kunming, Yunnan Province in southwest China.

There is a pressing need to protect TCM resources, Wang said. “I’ve heard people saying that medicine quality will spell doom for the TCM industry, which I must admit, is no exaggeration,” he said.

The survey has been piloted in 922 counties in 31 provinces in China since 2011. According to its official website, it will draw a clear picture of the variety, distribution, storage and growth trends of TCM resources, including herbs, animals, minerals and synthetic materials.

TCM includes a range of traditional medical practices originating in China. It includes such treatments as herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage (tuina), exercise (qigong) and dietary therapy.

Although well accepted in the mainstream of medical care throughout East Asia, TCM is considered an alternative medical system in much of the western world and has been a source of controversy. A milestone in the recognition of TCM came when Chinese pharmaceutical chemist Tu Youyou won a Nobel Prize in 2015 for her discovery of Artemisinin, a medicinal herb, to help treat malaria.
 
Europe's 1st Traditional Chinese Medicine museum opens
Xinhua, July 25, 2016

The first museum in Europe devoted to the ancient art of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has opened here, with a series of joyful artistic events.

The inauguration came a little more than one year after the opening of the Confucius Institute, which was established in March 2015 by the educational authorities in China and San Marino in a bid to boost bilateral cooperation.

Both local residents and Chinese officials enjoyed the event on Friday.

People were invited to peruse attentively medicines, medical tools, and traditional healing herbs exhibited at the upper level of the Confucius Institute headquarters where the museum has been established.

Some visitors marveled at different medical herbs and the samples of ancient medical tools that were put on display.

Luis Alberto Gregoroni from San Marino told Xinhua, "I enjoy it because I like Traditional Chinese Medicine, as well as Western herbal medicine, and especially as preventive treatment."

Such healing arts, with their natural ingredients and remedies, would be most useful for detoxifying the body, so as to make it more easily receptive to any other kind of treatments, the man explained.

"I believe that, in our globalized world, we do need a chance to learn and exchange information about one another's original habits and ancient traditions," Gregoroni added.

The Confucius Institute, which is managed by both San Marino University and Beijing City University, was meant to offer teaching and educational exchanges in Chinese language and culture, and Traditional Chinese Medicine, since its inception.

The official launch of the museum marked a highly relevant moment, officials at the ceremony explained.

"This is a crucial step for us," San Marino Secretary of State for Education Giuseppe Morganti said.

"The TCM is extraordinarily relevant to the health and wellness of the humanity, and we believe this result will be followed by other countries," Morganti added.

The one in San Marino is the first TCM museum established in Europe, although this ancient healing art has long made its way and gained popularity in the western countries.

Combined with the Confucius Institute's dedicated courses, the new museum would play a crucial role in further promoting the transmission of the TCM knowledge, Luo Ping, Educational Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in Italy and San Marino, said at the ceremony.

Traditional Chinese Medicine leader Tong Ren Tang, founded in 1669, sponsored the museum and provided all the materials.

Friday's opening ceremony was accompanied by the presence of several Italian and Chinese artists, who offered music and opera shows.
 
This supervision is necessary to regulate TCM. The sooner the better!

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China considers enhanced supervision of TCM
2016-08-29 11:28 | Xinhua Editor: Mo Hong'e

China' s top legislature is reading a draft law on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) on Monday, which calls for stronger management of the industry.

The draft, now in its second reading, was submitted to the bimonthly session of the National People' s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, which runs from Monday to Saturday.

Under the revised draft, pharmaceutical companies and TCM dealers must keep records of their purchases.

It also stresses stricter management of farms used in TCM herb cultivation, better environmental protection for regions growing herbs, enhanced safety during processing and improved research on TCM theories and techniques.

The draft also contains a general principle stipulating that China supports TCM studies, encourages innovation in TCM and promotes the application of such skills.

A new chapter on TCM studies was added to the revised draft.

The initial draft was first read in a bimonthly session in December 2015.
 
Making TCM acceptable abroad
2016-08-29 08:56 | China Daily Editor: Xu Shanshan

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A pharmacist processes a traditional Chinese medicine at a Beijing Tongrentang Group Co Ltd's factory in Beijing. (Photo/China Daily)

Beijing Tongrentang Group ratchets up its overseas play through branches, M&A, R&D and training courses

Beijing Tongrentang Group Co Ltd, the world's largest producer of traditional Chinese medicine, plans to increase investment outside China and open at least 200 overseas branches in the next five years.

"We will establish localized factories in mature overseas markets, open TCM clinics and healthcare centers," said Ding Yongling, vice-president of Tongrentang.

The company has already set up 115 retail terminals, TCM clinics and healthcare centers in 25 countries and regions by June-end, and treated over 30 million patients.

It employs nearly 900 staff overseas, 90 percent of them locals.

"Our goal is to enter Europe and the United States, but the plan is very difficult to execute. The biggest challenge is how we could break products' access barriers, said Ding.

Founded in 1669, Tongrentang was appointed to provide medicines for the royal pharmacy of the imperial palace of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) for eight generations of Qing emperors spanning 188 years, according to its official website.

Tongrentang began overseas expansion in 1993 when it opened a retail pharmacy in Hong Kong.

In 2003, it rolled out its Southeast Asia network. In 2006, it established the first overseas production and R&D base in Tai Po Industrial Park of Hong Kong, covering an area of 11,700 square meters

It got listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange in 2013 and raised HK$699 million ($90 million). The 347-year-old Tongrentang began to expand into Europe and U.S. mainstream markets outside the boundary of the drug market.

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Beijing Tongrentang Group Co Ltd's employees prepare traditional Chinese medicine for their customers at a Tongrentang pharmacy in Chengdu, Sichuan province. The Chinese TCM company plans to broaden its overseas business by opening at least 200 branches over the next five years. (Photo/China Daily)

Last year, it forayed into the Netherlands and New Zealand through acquisitions. It bought out a local TCM enterprise in New Zealand, which now has seven retail stores.

It also established an R&D company in Switzerland and opened a TCM clinic in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic.

Ding said TCM is yet to receive legal recognition as a mainstream system of medicine worldwide. TCM products are generally recognized as food additives and dietary supplements and allowed entry into Europe and U.S. markets.

"With regard to this issue, we have set up teams to analyze policies in different countries," said Ding, adding they have explored a development method in overseas markets, covering products, retail stores, medical treatment and culture.

It now has three core businesses: modern pharmacy, retail business and health services. Its production line has passed the GMP (good manufacturing practice) test in Hong Kong, Japan and Australia.

"In the past, Westerners had little knowledge about TCM, but now, we teach about TCM culture and history by holding lectures and offering healthcare services," Ding said.

China's cabinet, the State Council, issued a guideline in February on developing TCM during the 2016-30 period. According to the plan, the output of the TCM industry will account for 30 percent of the nation's overall pharmaceutical industry.

The country has intensified efforts to expand TCM outside the country, pushing for the ancient discipline to be accepted worldwide.

Ding said there are both opportunities and challenges for Tongrentang now. "We have policy support from the central government, but TCM is still difficult to enter Europe and U.S. markets as a medicine."

Tongrentang has a plan to have a presence across the industry chain overseas and aims to build up an international and specialized TCM group, integrating planting (of herbs and saplings), procurement, R&D, manufacturing, sales, service, culture and education.

It is expanding its marketing channels, trying to connect different industries by an online-to-offline or O2O model to publicize the charm of the brand.

Last October, it launched a cross-border e-commerce platform to provide healthcare products and services for global consumers.

Ding said, "We will further export TCM products to more countries and regions, and introduce excellent overseas resources to China."

In March, Canada's Factors Group of Nutritional Companies Inc, a manufacturer of branded natural health products, signed a licensing agreement with Tongrentang to distribute its flagship Natural Factors brand in China.

"We will strengthen cooperation with overseas research institutes to come up with new products which cater to the taste of local people. Moreover, we will also cooperate with overseas universities to promote the TCM education to cultivate local TCM talents."

Huang Ting, a pharmaceutical industry analyst from Sinolink Securities, said Tongrentang, as a time-honored TCM brand, enjoys a large space in the non-medicine business field. "Its brand equity, pharmaceutical technology and exclusive varieties cannot be replicated easily. I am bullish on its long-term development."
 
Westerners embrace Chinese treatments
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Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor Ke Songxuan shows herbal remedies available at the Asante Academy of Chinese Medicine. (Photo/provided to China Daily)

A growing number of health-conscious Britons are seeking ancient Chinese remedies and treatments, leading to a sharp rise in Traditional Chinese Medicine clinics.

While there were only a few hundred such clinics in the UK in the late 1980s, their number has mushroomed to more than 3,000 registered with the sector's self-governing bodies.

According to Peter Ren, director of the Everwell Group that runs 10 TCM clinics in London, most patients today are Westerners.

"Even in Chinatown where we have six shops, only a quarter of patients are Chinese," Ren said.

Chinese herbal remedies entered the spotlight in the UK around 1993 when David Atherton, a consultant dermatologist at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, became interested when several of his young eczema patients showed positive results after treatment in Chinatown.

Atherton ran a study that purportedly showed the herbal remedy worked better than a placebo. The study received huge media attention.

"Before, almost 100 percent of our patients were Chinese," Ren said. "Suddenly, there was a big demand for Chinese medicine from Westerners."

Acupuncture has also been growing in popularity and was added to the government's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines in 2009 as a treatment option for lower-back pain and headaches.

Acupuncture provided

An estimated 4 million acupuncture sessions were provided in 2009 in the UK, with about one-third administered under the National Health Service, according to the British Acupuncture Council.

Today, acupuncture is an option used by most NHS general practices, as well as the majority of UK pain clinics and hospices.

Ke Songxuan, a TCM doctor who moved to the UK in the 1980s, runs the Asante Academy for Chinese Medicine, which collaborates with three hospitals in London-North Middlesex, Whittington and the Royal Free.

"For the NHS, we provide diagnosis, acupuncture and sometimes tui na (massage therapy), but not Chinese herbs because this still has some way to go to convince the government," said Ke.

Of the 20-50 public and private patients who visit the academy in North London each day, almost all are Westerners, said Ke. More than half are women and most are affluent and middle aged.

"In England, most people want to go back to the basics, to more natural remedies," Ke said.

But the rise of TCM has been criticized by some in the medical community, who argue there is a lack of scientific evidence that treatments work.

In March, the institute removed acupuncture from its guidelines for lower-back pain, stating there was "not enough evidence to show that it is more effective than sham treatment".

Hitchcock said the council is trying to work with the institute to change its perspective.

"Western thinking has been dominated by using the randomized control basis for directly comparing A against B," he said. "Traditional Eastern science does not use a comparative A versus B approach. It tends to use a 'how well does this make the patient feel' approach-to Western thinking it seems more anecdotal."
 
Xinhua Insight: Traditional Chinese medicine goes global
Source: Xinhua 2016-09-06 21:41:00

GUANGZHOU, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- Once eyed with suspicion for not being scientific enough, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) might just be about to take over the world.

As part of a new health drive, Chinese authorities are stepping up research into TCM and are encouraging scientists to look for its next magic cure.

The game changer for TCM was undoubtedly the discovery of artemisinin, an active comund of sweet wormwood, which landed China a Nobel Prize last year, and is now widely used in anti-malarial drugs throughout the world.

"China will encourage originality in TCM and explore the market value of existing research," said Yan Shujiang, deputy director of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, at a TCM conference in Guangdong Province Monday.

"We are looking to make more technological achievements such as the discovery of artemisinin, a leading cure for malaria."

Tu Youyou, the Chinese researcher who discovered artemisinin, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine last year. She was the first Chinese national to win a Nobel Prize in science, and the award significantly raised public and academic interest in TCM.

"The present time is a golden age for TCM to develop and prosper," said Yan.

The TCM industry is now valued at over 786 billion yuan (about 121 billion U.S. dollars), almost 30 times larger than 20 years ago, and one-third of the total medicine industry in China.

Chinese researchers publish 3,000 scientific papers every year, which deepen research into the different herbs, substances, and working mechanics of TCM, said Zhang Boli, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

TCM is steadily building up its own roster of wonder drugs: alongside artemisinin used for malaria, epimedium (horny goat weed) is used to fight cancer, rhizoma curculiginis has proved useful in treating depression, and tripterine is effective in treating lung cancer, according to TCM researchers at the conference.

Berberine, a popular medicine used by the Chinese to treat diarrhea, can work well treating metabolic diseases such as diabetes, hyperlipidemia, high blood pressure and fatty liver disease, doctors said.

As authorities in China try to modernize TCM and push it onto the world stage, TCM will play a bigger role and could impact the lives of millions, scholars said.

A MORE PRECISE APPROACH

Harald zur Hausen, a Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine, believes that TCM can be useful in treating certain types of cancer, but said doctors have to first carefully identify specific substances within the herbs prior to treatment.

TCM has had its fair share of problems over the years. As it is based on a holistic and non-quantitative approach, it has faced challenges in stating the precise composition of certain drugs, maintaining stable effects and demonstrating clearly how it works.

"A type of herb that grows in western China works differently from that in the east. Quality control is a major challenge," said Chen Kaixian, a member of Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Researchers said TCM needs to enhance its precision and converge with western medicine.

"Bringing together western medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine - that is, the leveraging of our collective expertise, rather than seeing the two approaches as being in competition - is where the potential for enormous impact lies," said Bernhard Schwartlander, China representative of the World Health Organization.

"Chinese traditional medicine has come a long way, and probably the day will soon come where there will be no traditional Chinese medicine and there will be no western medicine," said Aaron Ciechanover, an Israeli biologist who won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS

Establishing an internationally recognized standard is also key for the industrialization of TCM, scholars said.

"Both Japan and Korea are trying to use their own standards for TCM to replace the prevalent standard. So you see there is a whole lot of competition there," said Chen Kaixian.

An international standard for TCM will legitimatize the use of the medicine all over the world.

China is improving its own national standards. A new national survey of TCM herbs will be carried out across the country soon, said Zhang Boli.

TCM researchers have also stepped up the studying of ancient recipes and promoting intellectual property rights, he said.

"I would be quite optimistic that traditional Chinese medicine will play a more significant role in other parts of the world in the future," said Harald zur Hausen.
 
Study shows how Chinese medicine kills cancer cells
Thursday, 8 September 2016
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Researchers at the University of Adelaide have shown how a complex mix of plant compounds derived from ancient clinical practice in China – a Traditional Chinese Medicine – works to kill cancer cells.

Compound kushen injection (CKI) is approved for use in China to treat various cancer tumours, usually as an adjunct to western chemotherapy – but how it works has not been known.

This study, published in the journal Oncotarget, is one of the first to characterise the molecular action of a Traditional Chinese Medicine rather than breaking it down to its constituent parts.

“Most Traditional Chinese Medicine are based on hundreds or thousands of years of experience with their use in China,” says study leader, Professor David Adelson, Director of the Zhendong Australia – China Centre for the Molecular Basis of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

“There is often plenty of evidence that these medicines have a therapeutic benefit, but there isn’t the understanding of how or why.

“If we broke down and tested the components of many Traditional Chinese Medicines, we would find that individual compounds don’t have much activity on their own. It’s the combination of compounds which can be effective, and potentially means few side-effects as well.

“This is one of the first studies to show the molecular mode of action of a complex mixture of plant-based compounds – in this case extracts from the roots of two medicinal herbs, Kushen and Baituling – by applying what’s known as a systems biology approach. This is a way of analysing complex biological systems that attempts to take into account all measurable aspects of the system rather than focussing on a single variable.”

The Zhendong Australia China Centre for Molecular Traditional Chinese Medicine was established at the University of Adelaide in 2012 in a collaboration with the China-based Shanxi College of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Zhendong Pharmaceutical Company.

The Centre was established with a donation by the Zhendong Pharmaceutical Company, with the aim of understanding how Traditional Chinese Medicine works, and the long-term aim of possible integration into western medicine.

The researchers used high-throughput next generation sequencing technologies to identify genes and biological pathways targeted by CKI when applied to breast cancer cells grown in the laboratory.

“We showed that the patterns of gene expression triggered by CKI affect the same pathways as western chemotherapy but by acting on different genes in the same pathways,” says Professor Adelson.

“These genes regulate the cell cycle of division and death, and it seems that CKI alters the way the cell cycle is regulated to push cancer cells down the cell death pathway, therefore killing the cells.”

Professor Adelson says this technique could be used to analyse the molecular mechanisms of other Traditional Chinese Medicines, potentially opening their way for use in western medicine.



http://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news87624.html

Reference

Qu, Cui, Harata-Lee et al. Identification of candidate anti-cancer molecular mechanisms of compound kushen injection using functional genomics, Oncotarget, September 1, 2016
 
Guizhou plans $76b health projects on TCM advantage
2016-12-10 12:38 | China Daily | Editor: Huang Mingrui

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Villagers plant bletilla in Anlong county, Guizhou province. (Photo/zgqxn.com)

China's southwestern Guizhou province plans to invest 524.8 billion yuan ($76.3 billion) in supporting 320 health projects by 2018, a latest endeavor to further boost the healthcare industry, said a local government official.

The output of the healthcare sector in the province is projected to reach 400 billion yuan in 2020, accounting for 10 percent of the province's GDP, according to Zhang Ping, deputy director of the Guizhou Provincial Development and Reform Commission.

Zhang said: "Guizhou is suitable for growing herbs, plants and trees used in traditional Chinese medicine or TCM. They provide a foundation for health-related businesses."

Some 5.47 million mu (364,666 hectares) in Guizhou are under cultivation that help produce 1.81 million metric tons of herbal medicine annually. This has been attracting the attention of pharmaceutical enterprises, Zhang said.

For instance, Changchun-based Xiuzheng Pharmaceutical Group is planning to invest 1 billion yuan in its Guizhou unit over the next five years, said Xiu Laigui, its president. It aims to build an industry supply chain covering medicine, logistics, food and healthcare products.

"Thanks to good natural environment, the place can grow high-quality herbs. Big data infrastructure here also supports the health industry," Xiu said.

Huang Qianjuan, president of Guizhou Qianlong Biopharmaceutical Co Ltd, a high-tech medical company, said she found the southwestern province offered many opportunities for her startup. "We prefer Guizhou for its good geographical location and good environment for startups... When a new high-speed train is unveiled, it will be easier for us to collect more pathology data for analysis," Huang said.


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Guizhou is China's poorest province.
Fantastic that the government is helping this province.

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Standardization, quality control key to global growth of TCM
By Liang Fei Source:Global Times Published: 2016/12/8 22:28:40

Experts urged to provide convincing proof of effectiveness

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Pharmacists dispense traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) at a TCM pharmacy
in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province on January 6. Photo: CFP


Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is gaining recognition around the world as an increasing number of TCM researchers win global awards, but still it is not widely accepted in the international medical system and standardization is key for wider acceptance, experts told the Global Times Thursday.

In October 2015, Chinese medical scientist Tu Youyou won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discovering qinghaosu (artemisinin), used to treat malaria. In 2012, hematologists Wang Zhenyi and Chen Zhu were awarded the Seventh Annual Szent-Gyorgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research for combining the Western medicine ATRA and the TCM compound arsenic trioxide to treat acute promyelocytic leukemia.

Besides progress in the academic realm, people overseas are also getting to know more about TCM. This summer, TCM drew the world's attention when Olympics gold medal winner Michael Phelps was reported to be using cupping to relieve tension in his muscles.

People have started to believe that medical science should also focus on maintaining health instead of merely treating diseases, which has boosted the demand for TCM globally, said Zhang Boli, director of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences.

TCM now has a presence in as many as 183 countries and regions. A total of 103 countries and regions have approved the use of acupuncture and moxibustion and 18 of them have included these treatments in their medical insurance provisions, according to a TCM white paper released by the State Council Information Office on Tuesday.

And some TCMs have been registered in countries such as Russia, Cuba, Vietnam, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, it said.

However, despite this progress, TCM is still not widely accepted in the international system of medical science and medicines.

"Although institutions in Europe and the US have started to study TCM… it is still not considered a mainstream method of treatment by Western medical science," Zhang told the Global Times, adding that TCM is only popular in some countries in Southeast Asia.

Zhang said that the Chinese TCM sector should provide convincing proof about the effectiveness of TCM and standardize TCM production in line with modern scientific practices.

Liu Changxiao, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that compared with TCM, treatments like acupuncture and cupping are easier to find acceptance abroad. But overseas drug authorities still have concerns on the quality of TCM, for problems such as excessive heavy metal or pesticide residue, he told the Global Times.

He added that quality control and standardization of TCM components' cultivation and production are key for further overseas recognition.

Domestically, the sector is growing rapidly under government support. To date, 60,000 TCM and ethnic minority medical drugs have been approved, and 2,088 pharmaceutical enterprises that have been approved by the Good Manufacturing Practice of Medical Products are manufacturing Chinese patent medicines, according to the white paper.

The output of the TCM pharmaceutical industry was 786.6 billion yuan ($114.36 billion) in 2015, accounting for 28.55 percent of the total generated by the country's pharmaceutical sector, the white paper said.


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Hope to see TCM used more widely.
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Voted top Chinese cultural symbol overseas, TCM brings economic growth
Source:Globaltimes.cn | Published: 2016/12/20 10:40:02

A recently released survey ranks Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as the top cultural symbol associated with China among people overseas.

According to the 4th Global Survey Report of China' Image (2015) by the Center for International Communication Studies, the majority of respondents chose TCM as most representing Chinese culture, followed by martial arts, cuisine, Confucianism and natural beauty.

TCM is also a growing market, making up about one-third of China’s pharmaceutical industry in 2015.


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China adopts law on traditional medicine
(Xinhua) 09:48, December 26, 2016

China's top legislature on Sunday adopted a law on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) to give TCM a bigger role in the medical system.

The Law on Traditional Chinese Medicine was approved at the end of a seven-day session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee which concluded on Sunday afternoon.

Huang Wei, deputy director of the NPC Standing Committee commission for legislative affairs, said the law, which will go into effect on July 1, 2017, is a significant step in the development of TCM. It is key to reform of medical and health sectors and the drive toward a "Healthy China."

According to the new law, county-level governments and above must set up TCM institutions in public-funded general hospitals and mother and child care centers. Private investment will be encouraged in these institutions.

All TCM practitioners must pass tests. Apprentices and previously unlicensed specialists with considerable medical experience may only begin practice when they have recommendations from at least two qualified practitioners and pass relevant tests.

With a history of more than 2,000 years, TCM is seen by many as a national treasure in China for its unique theories and practices, such as herbal medicine, acupuncture, massage and dietetics.

This is especially the case since Tu Youyou won the 2015 Nobel Prize for her work using artemisinin to treat malaria.

But there is also considerable skepticism of TCM in the face of Western medicine, particularly over the former's training and funding, and an aversion to using modern clinical tests. Animal-rights activists have also raised questions.

To this end, the new law said China puts TCM and Western medicine on equal footing in China,with better training for TCM professionals, with TCM and Western medicine learn from each other and complementing each other.

The state will support TCM research and development and protect TCM intellectual property.

Special protection will be given to TCM formulas that are considered state secrets, it said.

Use of technology and expansion of TCM in dealing with emergency public health incidents and diseases prevention and control should increase.

The state will protect medical resources including protection and breeding of rare or endangered wildlife, the law said.

The law went on to pledge enhanced supervision of raw TCM materials, banning the use of toxic pesticides.

International exchanges and cooperation on TCM should expand.

According to the World Health Organization, 103 member states have approved the practice of acupuncture and moxibustion, 29 have statutes on traditional medicine, and 18 have included acupuncture and moxibustion in medical insurance provisions.

"The new law on traditional Chinese medicine will improve global TCM influence, and give a boost to China's soft power," Huang said.
 

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