Chinese researchers are contriving a grandiose drive to modernize traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) by initiating a Herbalome Project.

The new initiation was suggested by a group of researchers, including CHEN Kaixian from the CAS Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, YANG Shengli from the CAS Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics and ZHANG Boli from Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine at a recent session of the Eastern Forum of Science and Technology, which is jointly initiated by the Shanghai Municipality, CAS and the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

When putting into practice, the initiative will exert a major influence for a considerably long time on the future development of medical sciences, just like the Human Genome Program, assured Prof. LIANG Xinmiao,  an analytic chemist from the CAS Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics and co-chair of the meeting.

Herbalome Project is proposed to comprehensively reveal the composition, structure and function of TCM, and construct a library of herb substance resources.

It is to elucidate the multi-components and multi-target comprehensive regulation mechanism of TCM and assure its scientific nature.

With an objective of developing novel theory about application of TCM, researchers will establish a systematic Chinese intellectual property protection system of TCM and provide technical and resource support for the innovation and manufacture of grand TCM products. It draws a relatively feasible roadmap for modernization of TCM with important science significant and social effects.