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  • Text on traditional Chinese medicine.
  • Text on traditional Chinese medicine.
  • Yao Shang, Chinese sage, wearing traditional costume and holding a medicine container (?). Watercolour, China, 18--.
  • Yao Wang, Chinese god of healing also known as the 'King of Medicine', wearing traditional costume and holding a medicine container (?). Watercolour, China, 18--.
  • Rehmannia angulata (Oliv.)Hemsl. Scrophulariaceae Chinese foxglove. Distribution: China. Named for Joseph Rehmann ((1753-1831) German physician (Stearn, 1994) who emigrated to St Petersburg and became the personal physician to Tsar Nicholas 1. Rehmannia glutinosa is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for arthritis. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Rodgersia aesculifolia Batalin Saxifraginaceae Chestnut-leaved Rodgersia. Herbaceous perennial. Distribution: Northern China. Named for Rear Admiral John Rodgers (1812-1882), American naval officer who commanded the Pacific expedition 1852-1856 when the genus was first discovered. Used as a Traditional Chinese Medicine for rheumatism, bronchitis, dysentery, asthma, and gastritis. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Senecio pulcher Hook.&Arn. Asteraceae Distribution: South America. It has not attracted attention as a medicinal or toxic plant but members of the genus Senecio contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids that are toxic to the liver and may cause liver cancer. A traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) product, Qianbai Biyan Pian, contains Senecio scandens which contains the unsaturated pyrrolizidine alkaloids, senecionine and seneciphylline. This is now a banned drug. (Safety of Herbal Medicinal Products, July 2002, Medicines Control Agency). Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Senecio pulcher Hook.&Arn. Asteraceae Distribution: South America. It has not attracted attention as a medicinal or toxic plant but members of the genus Senecio contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids that are toxic to the liver and may cause liver cancer. A traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) product, Qianbai Biyan Pian, contains Senecio scandens which contains the unsaturated pyrrolizidine alkaloids, senecionine and seneciphylline. This is now a banned drug. (Safety of Herbal Medicinal Products, July 2002, Medicines Control Agency). Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi Lamiaceae. Baikal skullcap. Distribution: China. There are several hundred species of Scutellaria, also known as skull caps, so correct identification is important - in particular from Scutellaria lateriflora an American species known as Blue skullcap. The latter is used as an abortifacient and to expel placenta by the Cherokee and for cleaning the throat by the Iroquois (Austin, 2004). Much vaunted as a treatment for rabies with unlikely statistics (1,400 cases cured by one doctor alone). Also as ‘antispasmodic, nervine, [for] chorea, convulsions, tetanus, tremors, delirium tremens, [and as a] diaphoretic and diuretic'. Toxicity symptoms include mental confusion, stupor, headache, vertigo, photophobia, dilated pupils, difficulty in micturition, bradycardia, tremulousness and languor, followed by wakefulness and restlessness (Milspaugh, 1974). Hutchens (1991) reported that it reduces sexual desire and was used for almost every nervous illness. Scutellaria baicalensis contains baicalin, baicalein and wogonin (European Medicines Agency, September 2010). It is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for treating inflammation, cancer, bacterial and viral infections of the lungs and gut and is one of the '50 Chinese herbs' in the lists of some authors. Scutellaria lateriflora (combined with Verbena officinalis, Passiflora incarnata and the seed of Avena sativa (oats) is licensed for use in Britain as a herbal medicine for temporary relief of mild symptoms of stress such as mild anxiety and to aid sleep, based upon traditional use only. Scutellaria baicalensis is not licensed for use in the UK (UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)). Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Mahonia japonica DC. Berberidaceae. Evergreen shrub. Distribution: China, although long cultivated in Japan. Listed as an ingredient in Traditional Chinese Medicines. No European or modern medicinal use. Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • Epimedium pubescens Maxim. Berberidaceae. Horny (sic) Goat Weed. Distribution: China. Marketed as an aphrodisiac, with the ability to act like sildenafil and for osteoporosis. Side effects reported include dizziness, dry mouth, vomiting and cardiac irregularity. It is not listed in Wiart (2006) or Wichtl (1994). Its reputation began, apparently, when a Chinese farmer observed increased sexual activity in his goats after they had been eating Epimedium. Given the enormous profits made by medicines such as sildenafil, it is indicative of its therapeutic value that it has not been taken up by a pharmaceutical company. Poor absorption from the gut and lack of information on toxicity may be responsible. It is not licensed for sale in the UK as a Traditional Herbal Remedy (Traditional Herbal Medicines Registration, January 2013) and has not been assessed or approved by the European Medicines Agency's Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC). Photographed in the Medicinal Garden of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
  • La médicine chez les Chinois / par le captaine P. Dabry ; ouvrage cor. et précédé d'une préface par M. J. Léon Soubeiran.
  • Die chinesische Medizin zu Beginn des xx. Jahrhunderts und ihr historischer Entwicklungsgang / von Fr. Hübotter.
  • History of Chinese medicine : being a chronicle of medical happenings in China from ancient times to the present period / by K. Chimin Wong and Wu Lien-Teh.
  • [Leaflet advertising Sunrider Foods from The Nutri Centre, Park Crescent, London and John Morley, Harley Street, London].
  • [Leaflet advertising Sunrider Foods from The Nutri Centre, Park Crescent, London and John Morley, Harley Street, London].
  • [Leaflet advertising Sunrider Foods from The Nutri Centre, Park Crescent, London and John Morley, Harley Street, London].
  • [Leaflet advertising Sunrider Foods from The Nutri Centre, Park Crescent, London and John Morley, Harley Street, London].
  • Shen nung, chinese deity of medicine.
  • Watercolour of Shen Nung, Chinese deity of Medicine etc.
  • Pollen grain, common morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea)
  • Chaenomeles x superba 'Issai White'
  • First edition of Bencao Gangmu; Chinese, 1590
  • Onychium japonicum 'Dali'
  • C9 Chinese obstetrics text, C19 re-edition, Woodblock print
  • Aucuba japonica 'Rosannie'
  • Chinese Materia Medica illustration, Ming: Red cockerel
  • Chinese Materia Medica illustration, Ming: Dragon bone
  • Chinese Materia Medica illustration, Ming: Oenanthe javanica
  • Chinese Materia Medica illustration, Ming: Damupi plant