Mechanisms of Hepatotoxicity Induced by Toxic Chinese Herbal Medicinals and Compatibility-Based Detoxification Strategies from the Perspective of the "Liver Aversion to Acute Irritation" Theory
10.13288/j.11-2166/r.2026.05.005
- VernacularTitle:“肝苦急”视角下有毒中药肝损伤的发病机制与配伍减毒策略探析
- Author:
Xiang LI
1
;
Liuyang GUO
2
;
Zhichao YU
3
;
Xueping ZHOU
1
Author Information
1. The First Clinical Medical School，Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine，Nanjing，210023
2. School of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine，Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine
3. School of Chinese Medicine，Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
liver injury;
toxic Chinese herbal medicinals;
liver aversion to acute irritation;
combination of Chinese herbal medicinals;
toxicity reduction through herbal compatibility
- From:
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine
2026;67(5):487-491
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
This study establishes an integrated research paradigm based on traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） theory， guided by pathological characteristics， centered on formula compatibility principles， and supported by multidisciplinary technologies， to systematically analyze the mechanisms of hepatotoxicity induced by toxic Chinese herbal medicinals and strategies for reducing toxicity through compatibility. The findings revealed that the pathomechanism aligns closely with the "liver aversion to acute irritation" theory from Inner Canon of Yellow Emperor （《黄帝内经》）. The core pathology involves an imbalance between liver's form and function， which is characterized by malnourishment of liver form due to yin-blood depletion and dysfunction in ascending-dispersing and free-flowing activities， and closely linked to modern pathological mechanisms such as microcirculatory disturbances， oxidative stress， inflammatory response， metabolic disorder and gut-liver axis dysregulation. Based on this， a multi-layered compatibility strategy for toxicity reduction is put forward， which involves using sweet medicinals to alleviate urgency， balancing the liver form and its function， and pre-regulating other organs. This provides a theoretical basis for the safe application of toxic Chinese herbal medicinals.
