Traditional Chinese Medicine Against Fibrotic Diseases： A Review
10.13422/j.cnki.syfjx.20231837
- VernacularTitle:中医药治疗纤维化疾病的研究进展
- Author:
Jing YANG
1
;
Ying LI
1
;
Li ZENG
1
;
Fengru ZHAO
1
Author Information
1. Chengdu Fifth People's Hospital/The Affiliated Fifth People's Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine， Chengdu 611130， China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
traditional Chinese medicine;
fibrosis;
conventional theory;
molecular mechanism
- From:
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae
2024;30(3):270-278
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Fibrosis can occur in diverse tissue and organs and is the common outcome as multiple chronic diseases progress. It is characterized by over-activation of fibroblasts and excessive deposition of extracellular matrix. Targeting transforming growth factor-β （TGF-β）， a classical signaling molecule in fibrosis， is currently a routine strategy for drug therapy of this disease. The use of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） in the treatment of fibrotic diseases has been supported by mature theories. The theories emphasize that the internally-accumulated pathogens and mixed deficiency-excess underlie the shared pathology of fibrotic diseases. Qi stagnation， blood stasis， phlegm turbidity， and mass accumulation are key pathological factors. "Yin suppression by Yang" is the core thought for treatment with TCM of the disease. Pharmacological investigations reveal the scientific nature of TCM in treating fibrotic diseases， namely multilevelled and multitargeted. In other words， it refers to networked regulation of signaling activities of fibrosis-related molecules such as TGF-β/Drosophila protein homolog （Smad）， phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase （PI3K）/protein kinase B （Akt）， Hedgehog， Wnt/β-catenin， and inflammatory cytokines， so as to inhibit fibroblast function and provide a promising insight into novel anti-fibrotic drug. This paper summarized the conventional understanding of fibrotic disease treatment with TCM and its mechanism of action by reviewing ancient literature and modern research reports， which offers an idea for follow-up research in this field.
