title: Application of proteomics in research on traditional Chinese medicine.
abstract: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a widely used complementary alternative medicine approach. Although many aspects of its effectiveness have been approved clinically, rigorous scientific techniques are highly required to translate the promises from TCM into powerful modern therapies. In this respect, proteomics is useful because of its ability to unveil the underlying target proteins and/or protein biomarkers.
  
  
  
  In this review, we summarize the recent interplay between proteomics and research on TCM, ranging from exploration of the medicinal materials to the biological basis of TCM concepts, and from pathological studies to pharmacological investigations. We show that proteomic analyses provide preliminary biological evidence of the promises in TCM, and the integration of proteomics with other omics and bioinformatics offers a comprehensive methodology to address the complications of TCM. Expert commentary: Currently, only limited information can be obtained regarding TCM issues and thus more work is required to resolve the ambiguity. As such, more collaborations between proteomics and other techniques (other omics, network pharmacology, etc.) are essential for deciphering the underlying biological basis in TCM topics.
authors.affiliation: a College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin , PR China.
authors.forename: Tongchuan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Suo
authors.affiliation: a College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin , PR China.
authors.forename: Haixia
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: a College of Pharmaceutical Engineering of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin , PR China.|b Tianjin Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine , Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin , PR China.
authors.forename: Zheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers; D019295:Computational Biology; D023281:Genomics; D006801:Humans; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends*; D020543:Proteome / Q000235:genetics*; D040901:Proteomics
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D020543:Proteome
keywords: Proteomics; TCM syndrome; acupuncture; differentially expressed protein; herbal medicine; system biology; traditional Chinese medicine