Research teams from the University of Macau (UM) have established quality standards for a dozen Chinese medicinal plants for several publications, according to a statement from the university.
The statement underlined that the teams were led by State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine (SKL-QRCM) Director Wang Yitao and SKL-QRCM Deputy Director and Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences (ICMS) Distinguished Professor Li Shaoping. The statement added that the quality standards set for the medicinal plants were included in “authoritative publications” such as the United States Pharmacopeia (USP), European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) and Chinese Pharmacopoeia (ChP) to support Macau and other parts of the Greater Bay Area’s (GBA) health industry.
The statement quoted Wang as saying that the university has established a “world-leading platform for innovation in Chinese medicine research and development”. Moreover, the statement added that UM supports the local health industry and high-tech industries with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as an “initial focus”, discovering mechanisms for industry academia collaboration, and obtaining experience for “the commercialisation of other UM research outcomes”.
The statement said that UM has also established a “TCM research centre with China Resources, Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals, and the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences”, joining SKL-QRCM and ICMS to study and produce Chinese medicine.
UM has also established joint laboratories with United States Pharmacopoeia Convention (USPC), the European Pharmacopoeia Commission (Ph. Eur. Commission), and the Chinese National Institutes for Food and Drug Control to create standards for Chinese medicine while promoting its “the modernisation and internationalisation”, the statement added.
The statement quoted Li as saying that a pharmacopoeia is a “legally binding collection of standards and specifications for medicines considered a national standard for drugs and dietary supplements in the US and used in over 140 countries and regions”. Li also said that setting up quality standards for Chinese medicine is more difficult compared to western medicine due to being normally comprised of “hundreds of natural compounds”.
The statement also pointed out that UM’s research teams have made “impressive progress” in “forging business partnerships, nurturing talent, creating platforms for international cooperation”, as well as putting forth Chinese medicine’s “standardisation and internationalisation”.
This undated handout photo provided by the University of Macau (UM) yesterday shows State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine (SKL-QRCM) Director Prof. Wang Yitao posing for a photo.
This undated handout photo provided by the University of Macau (UM) yesterday shows SKL-QRCM Deputy Director and Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences (ICMS) Distinguished Professor Li Shaoping (2nd from left) posing for a photo with his team.
