Abstract
Advances in systems biology, particularly based on the omics approaches, have resulted in a paradigm shift in both traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and the gut microbiome research. In line with this paradigm shift, the importance of TCM and gut microbiome in healthcare, as well as their interplay, has become clearer. Firstly, we briefly summarize the current status of three topics in this review: microbiome, TCM, and relationship of TCM and microbiome. Second, we focused on TCM's therapeutic effects and gut microbiome's mediation roles, including the relationships among diet, gut microbiome, and health care. Third, we have summarized some databases and tools to help understand the impact of TCM and gut microbiome on diagnosis and treatment at the molecular level. Finally, we introduce the effects of gut microbiome on TCM and host health, with two case studies, one on the metabolic effect of gut microbiome on TCM, and another on cancer treatment. In summary, we have reviewed the current status of the two components of healthcare: TCM and gut microbiome, as well as their concert effects. It is quite clear that as the holobiont, the maintenance of the health status of human would depend heavily on TCM, gut microbiome, and their combined effects.
Highlights
With the rapid advancement of research in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and gut microbiome, studies involving both fields have significantly accelerated around the world
Previous studies have proven that TCM is conductive to maintain the homeostasis of the intestinal flora (Chang et al, 2015; Zhou et al, 2016), and the gut microbiome could exert pharmacological effects of the TCM on host (Park et al, 2006), which render TCM a potential new drug in the western markets
We summarize the current status of microbiome, TCM, relationship of TCM and microbiome, as well as the therapeutic effects of TCM and gut microbiome's mediation roles
Summary
With the rapid advancement of research in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and gut microbiome, studies involving both fields have significantly accelerated around the world. TCM and gut microbiome are closely related to human health. The microbiome is a novel research field related to human health, bioenergy, agriculture, and the environment. It has recently emerged as a crucial factor in human physiology and disease. Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., called “Gan-Cao” in China, as a health-preserving and therapeutic agent, it has been widely utilized for more than 2,000 years. It is one of the most broadly used ingredients in TCM preparations in China, exerting a wide range of pharmacological efficacies. Previous studies have shown that Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. has a variety of pharmacological effects, including antitumor (Shibata et al, 1991), antiviral (Nakashima et al, 1987), and anti-inflammatory effects (Kimura et al, 1988)
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