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Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review

Depression is a major mental disorder, and is currently recognized as the second-leading cause of disability worldwide. However, the therapeutic effect of antidepressants remains unsatisfactory. For centuries, Chinese herbal formulas (CHFs) have been widely used in the treatment of depression, achie...

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Autores principales: Feng, Dan-dan, Tang, Tao, Lin, Xiang-ping, Yang, Zhao-yu, Yang, Shu, Xia, Zi-an, Wang, Yun, Zheng, Piao, Wang, Yang, Zhang, Chun-hu
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Dove Medical Press 2016
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5036551/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27703356
http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S114560
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author Feng, Dan-dan
Tang, Tao
Lin, Xiang-ping
Yang, Zhao-yu
Yang, Shu
Xia, Zi-an
Wang, Yun
Zheng, Piao
Wang, Yang
Zhang, Chun-hu
author_facet Feng, Dan-dan
Tang, Tao
Lin, Xiang-ping
Yang, Zhao-yu
Yang, Shu
Xia, Zi-an
Wang, Yun
Zheng, Piao
Wang, Yang
Zhang, Chun-hu
author_sort Feng, Dan-dan
collection PubMed
description Depression is a major mental disorder, and is currently recognized as the second-leading cause of disability worldwide. However, the therapeutic effect of antidepressants remains unsatisfactory. For centuries, Chinese herbal formulas (CHFs) have been widely used in the treatment of depression, achieving better therapeutic effects than placebo and having fewer side effects than conventional antidepressants. Here, we review the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology studies of nine common CHFs: “banxia houpo” decoction, “chaihu shugansan”, “ganmaidazao” decoction, “kaixinsan”, “shuganjieyu” capsules, “sinisan”, “wuling” capsules, “xiaoyaosan”, and “yueju”. Eight clinical trials and seven meta-analyses have supported the theory that CHFs are effective treatments for depression, decreasing Hamilton Depression Scale scores and showing few adverse effects. Evidence from 75 preclinical studies has also elucidated the multitarget and multipathway mechanisms underlying the antidepressant effect of the nine CHFs. Decoctions, capsules, and pills all showed antidepressant effects, ranked in descending order of efficacy. According to traditional Chinese medicine theory, these CHFs have flexible compatibility and mainly act by soothing the liver and relieving depression. This review highlights the effective treatment choices and candidate compounds for patients, practitioners, and researchers in the field of traditional Chinese medicine. In summary, the current evidence supports the efficacy of CHFs in the treatment of depression, but additional large-scale randomized controlled clinical trials and sophisticated pharmacology studies should be performed.
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spelling pubmed-50365512016-10-04 Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review Feng, Dan-dan Tang, Tao Lin, Xiang-ping Yang, Zhao-yu Yang, Shu Xia, Zi-an Wang, Yun Zheng, Piao Wang, Yang Zhang, Chun-hu Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat Review Depression is a major mental disorder, and is currently recognized as the second-leading cause of disability worldwide. However, the therapeutic effect of antidepressants remains unsatisfactory. For centuries, Chinese herbal formulas (CHFs) have been widely used in the treatment of depression, achieving better therapeutic effects than placebo and having fewer side effects than conventional antidepressants. Here, we review the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology studies of nine common CHFs: “banxia houpo” decoction, “chaihu shugansan”, “ganmaidazao” decoction, “kaixinsan”, “shuganjieyu” capsules, “sinisan”, “wuling” capsules, “xiaoyaosan”, and “yueju”. Eight clinical trials and seven meta-analyses have supported the theory that CHFs are effective treatments for depression, decreasing Hamilton Depression Scale scores and showing few adverse effects. Evidence from 75 preclinical studies has also elucidated the multitarget and multipathway mechanisms underlying the antidepressant effect of the nine CHFs. Decoctions, capsules, and pills all showed antidepressant effects, ranked in descending order of efficacy. According to traditional Chinese medicine theory, these CHFs have flexible compatibility and mainly act by soothing the liver and relieving depression. This review highlights the effective treatment choices and candidate compounds for patients, practitioners, and researchers in the field of traditional Chinese medicine. In summary, the current evidence supports the efficacy of CHFs in the treatment of depression, but additional large-scale randomized controlled clinical trials and sophisticated pharmacology studies should be performed. Dove Medical Press 2016-09-20 /pmc/articles/PMC5036551/ /pubmed/27703356 http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S114560 Text en © 2016 Feng et al. This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/). By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed.
spellingShingle Review
Feng, Dan-dan
Tang, Tao
Lin, Xiang-ping
Yang, Zhao-yu
Yang, Shu
Xia, Zi-an
Wang, Yun
Zheng, Piao
Wang, Yang
Zhang, Chun-hu
Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
title Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
title_full Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
title_fullStr Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
title_full_unstemmed Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
title_short Nine traditional Chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
title_sort nine traditional chinese herbal formulas for the treatment of depression: an ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacology review
topic Review
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5036551/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27703356
http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S114560
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