An Introduction to Chinese Herbal Medicine.

Mark Wright, An Introduction to Chinese Herbal Medicine, first ed., Greenbank Publications, Edinburgh, ISBN 0-9547334-0-1, 2004 (536pp., $125.00, Hard cover).

Thousands of years' practice of Chinese Traditional Medicine has produced rich knowledge of natural products. This is evidenced by a number of milestone books that started as early as the 1st century to document the cultivation, identification and medicinal use of thousands of plants. "Ben Cao Gang Mu" authored by Dr. Li Shi-zhen in the 16th century is a classic on the subject and is still cited today. However, it is intimidating even for a Chinese medical student to read the original book, let alone an interested western reader. An introductory book will provide a much needed bridge.

"An introduction to Chinese herbal medicine" is written with such a purpose in mind. The book is divided into three parts: Introduction, Monographs, and Reference materials. Even before the beginning of these main sections, readers are surprisingly treated with a very educational and historical lesson on the Piyin and Wade-Giles systems. It is a well-written short introduction that rivals even an English version of a Chinese language book. Perhaps the students learning the Chinese as a second language can take notes from the section.

The book then starts with a historical perspective of the origin and practice of Chinese medicine and medicinal plants. Again, it is an exceptionally well-structured and informative section. Not only are the roots of Chinese medicine explained based on available archeological data and written records, the author also painstakingly puts ancient Chinese medicine in the context of early Eurasian medicine. The section is full of historical artifacts and the influence of 20th century politics on Chinese medicine, as exemplified by Chairman Mao's declaration, "Chinese medicine is a great treasure-house! We must make all efforts to uncover it and raise its standards!", and the origin of the now-widely used term "Chinese Traditional Medicine (TCM)". Next, the book gives an overview of the basic concepts of Chinese herbal medicine and TCM, as it goes through Qi, Meridians, Yin and Yang, and finally the Five Elements. These concepts are essential for the understanding of Chinese herbal medicine, since herbs are an inseparable part of TCM. In many ways, TCM is defined by a systematic and clever use of multiple herbs for various medical problems. The botany, phytochemistry, and pharmacokinetics sections follow and provide a comprehensive introduction to each subject that aims to prepare a reader in these areas.

Only after some 250 pages of informative introduction on the aforementioned subjects, does the author bring out monographs of 26 umbellifers that are selected from "Ben Cao Gang Mu" based on their wide and long traditional use. These monographs are arranged into different subheadings for easy reading. In keeping with the strength of the book, readers are blessed with a wealth of well-researched information on historic background and "classical Chinese medical lore". Origins of names were also well explained. Other sections include botanical and habitat descriptions, cultivation and harvest, information on the uses and even phytochemistry and biomedical data. While the evidence for traditional use and others are well referenced, source for biomedical and phytochemical claims are not often given. Perhaps the most notable missing is some of the most recent studies to elucidate potential mechanisms underlying the effectiveness of some of these plants. To the author's defense, only limited information has been published so far, and this is only an introductory book. However, even at this level, inclusion of available findings from pharmacological studies would have enhanced the readers' appreciation of these medicinal plants. With the aid of databases such as NAPRALERT or even PubMed, such a task can be easily carried out. These plants are used and tested through centuries of live-and-die experience. Only recently have molecular mechanisms begun to be identified.

The last part of the book contains reference materials. This section will become useful for those curious readers who want to go beyond this introductory book. As expected, a long list of reference materials is included in the form of appendices. Appendix 4 includes many more umbellifers.

It is obvious that the author is well vested in Chinese language and history; however, sometime the author is too caught up with the original meaning of some Chinese characters, and fails to interject culture and social context.

"Who should read the book?" The book is designed to attract people at all levels. People not specialized in chemistry, medicine or botany will find the book particularly useful. A new graduate student in the botanical field will also benefit from the rich introductory materials. In summary, this is an introductory book that lives up to its claim.

Z. Jim Wang

Department of Biopharmaceutical Sciences, Program for Collaborative Research in the Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, MC865, Chicago, IL 60612, USA

E-mail address: [e-mail]

Norman R. Farnsworth

Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, Program for Collaborative Research in the Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, MC877, Chicago, IL 60612, USA

E-mail address: [e-mail]