ABSTRACT
The general situation of the approved and concluded projects of National Natural Science Foundation of China in the field of processing Chinese Materia Medica in recent five years has been reviewed. The progresses and achievements of some projects have been summarized in accordance with research area such as the processing principle, the processing technology, quality evaluation, toxicity and safety evaluation, etc. The researchers and project support units of the funded projects have been analyzed, and the problems of the applications have been also summarized.
Subject(s)
Biomedical Research/economics , Chemistry, Pharmaceutical/economics , Financing, Organized/economics , Financing, Organized/organization & administration , Materia Medica/economics , Medicine, Chinese Traditional/economics , Biomedical Research/organization & administration , Chemistry, Pharmaceutical/organization & administration , China , HumansSubject(s)
Biomedical Research/organization & administration , Databases as Topic , Homeopathy/organization & administration , Information Dissemination/methods , Double-Blind Method , History, 20th Century , History, 21st Century , Homeopathy/history , Humans , Randomized Controlled Trials as TopicABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to analyse global research and development (R&D) strategies for traditional medicine (TM) and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) across the world to learn from previous and on-going activities. METHODS: 52 representatives within CAMbrella nominated 43 key international stakeholders (individuals and organisations) and 15 of these were prioritised. Information from policy documents including mission statements, R&D strategies and R&D activities were collected in combination with personal interviews. Data were analysed using the principles of content analysis. RESULTS: Key stakeholders vary greatly in terms of capacity, mission and funding source (private/public). They ranged from only providing research funding to having a comprehensive R&D and communication agenda. A common shift in R&D strategy was noted; whereas 10 years ago research focused mainly on exploring efficacy and mechanisms, today the majority of stakeholders emphasise the importance of a broad spectrum of research, including methodologies exploring context, safety and comparative effectiveness. CONCLUSION: The scarce public investment in this field in Europe stands in stark contrast to the large investments found in Australia, Asia and North America. There is an emerging global trend supporting a broad research repertoire, including qualitative and comparative effectiveness research. This trend should be considered by the EU given the experience and the substantial research funding committed by the included stakeholders. To facilitate international collaborative efforts and minimise the risk of investment failure, we recommend the formation of a centralised EU CAM research centre fostering a broad CAM R&D agenda with the responsibility for implementing the relevant findings of CAMbrella.