Critical success factors for acceptance of multi-herbal Chinese medicine in Europe

Chinese medicine is one of the treasures of Chinese intellectual contributions to mankind. The characteristics that distinguish Chinese medicine from conventional Western medicine find its roots in the philosophical(Daoism)concepts of organizing principles to understand the body, health and disease. Key for worldwide acceptance of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) is the ability to provide scientific evidence in combination with a quality control system based on the bioactive ingredients. Plant quality in relationship to a bioactivity approach is described that is comprised of a variety of novel approaches based on Systems Biology to tackle these issues. Modern scientific technology tools are now available to accomplish standardization of TCM products in order to achieve a high level of efficacy and safety, enhancing the introduction into the international markets. The complexity of the many ingredients and the aspect of synergistic bioactivities in TCM, limited the analysis for quality control so far only to the major components for each herb and did not provide evidence for a direct relationship with bioactive components. The systems Biology approach, a multi dimensional chemical and pharmacological approach enables linking of the complex metabolic profile of herbs with biological effects and is therefore a key for quality control of TCM material medica, while providing simultaneous scientific evidence for the underlying efficacy and worldwide acceptance of TCM products.Furthermore, a concept of a business gateway comprising several key steps to unlock the business potential of TCM on Western markets will be presented, including the role of European pharmacopeia as well as community monographs of the European Medicinal Agency.