The Academic Symposium and Heritage Exchange Conference on Mr. Zhang Shichen’s 61-Year Journey in Traditional Chinese Medicine was recently held in Beijing. Zhang Shichen is the Chief Scientist of the China Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Head of the Expert Group on TCM Decoction Pieces under the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Medicines and Health Products, and a former professor at the Beijing College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (now Beijing University of Chinese Medicine).

“Traditional Chinese medicine consists solely of processed herbal slices; all ingredients entering a prescription are in this form. Once the raw herbs undergo processing, their nature and flavor, meridian tropism, principal functions and indications, as well as methods of use and dosage, are all embodied in the processed slices. The very essence of TCM lies in syndrome differentiation and individualized treatment, and the fundamental basis of TCM medicine is the processing of these herbal slices,” said Zhang Shichen. Taking Coptis chinensis as an example: if the pattern involves organ–viscera differentiation, raw Coptis is used; if there is excess heat in the liver and gallbladder, it is stir-fried with pig bile—adding bitterness to bitterness and cold to cold; if the heat is due to deficiency in the liver and gallbladder, it is stir-fried with vinegar; if the upper burner is overheated, it is stir-fried with wine; if the middle burner is hot, it is stir-fried with ginger juice; and if the lower burner is hot, it is stir-fried with salt water or with mirabilite and Coptis. Depending on whether the pattern is determined by the meridians and viscera, qi and blood, or the three burners, one single Coptis can yield nine distinct formulations; add Coptis charred, and you have ten.

As chief editor and associate editor, Zhang Shichen has participated in the unified compilation of the nationally standardized textbook “Chinese Herbal Processing” for higher education institutions and the self-study examination textbook “Guangming Chinese Materia Medica” for the national Chinese materia medica examination; he has also prepared specimens of more than 400 types of traditionally processed Chinese medicinal slices, significantly enriching the teaching materials for Chinese herbal processing. Drawing on the principle of “different applications of raw and processed herbs” as stated in the “Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica” and on his extensive clinical experience, he has come to appreciate that the key to determining the therapeutic properties of Chinese medicines lies in their processing, thereby firmly establishing the foundational and pivotal role of Chinese herbal processing within the discipline of Chinese materia medica.

Zhang Shichen established the Sub-committee on Processing of Chinese Medicinal Materials under the Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine to advance teaching and research, and founded the Professional Committee on Processed Chinese Herbal Pieces of the China Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine to support the processed herbal-piece industry. In doing so, he not only laid the foundation for the academic development of the science of processing Chinese medicinal materials but also pioneered a favorable situation in which academic leadership fosters the healthy development of the industry.

During his tenure at the Drug Administration Bureau of the National Health Ministry, Zhang Shichen forged ahead through trial and error, gained a deep understanding of industry dynamics, spearheaded GMP implementation, and secured the statutory status of processed Chinese medicinal materials. He advocated a “three-step” strategy for advancing the standardization of these materials: first, in 1997, he proposed modular management of processed Chinese medicinal materials, emphasizing the need for unified standardization and the establishment of nationwide uniform standards; second, he lobbied for statutory recognition, culminating in the 2010 edition of the Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China, which explicitly stipulated that “all substances used in medicine are processed Chinese medicinal materials,” thereby defining the properties of Chinese medicinal materials—such as their nature, flavor, meridian tropism, functions, indications, and methods of use and dosage—as inherent attributes of processed materials; this firmly established processed Chinese medicinal materials as prescription drugs in TCM clinical practice. The third step was to secure inclusion of processed Chinese medicinal materials in the National Essential Medicines List issued in 2009, ensuring that TCM clinicians could rely on these materials when formulating prescriptions based on syndrome differentiation and individualized treatment, thus providing a solid foundation for the survival and development of the processed Chinese medicinal materials industry.

Based on a comprehensive strategic vision for the traditional Chinese medicine industry, Zhang Shichen proposed the systematic concept of “industrial herbal slices.” He defines industrial herbal slices as finished pharmaceutical preparations—prescription drugs that are directly suitable for formulation production—obtained by processing crude medicinal materials through proprietary processing techniques and then manufacturing them in accordance with the specification standards for industrial raw-material input used in formulation development. Industrial herbal slices are grounded in the prescription-drug criteria stipulated in the Pharmacopoeia; they retain the traditional attributes of crude-medicine processing while also being tailored to the practical production processes of specific formulation types.

In the field of innovative traditional Chinese medicines, Zhang Shichen dared to break with conventional practices and, with the support of experts, expedited the approval process for “Arsenic Trioxide Injection,” which had previously been rejected, thereby paving the way for the development of the first effective new drug for the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia. In terms of standardized management of special drugs, Zhang Shichen established a confidential review channel, under which specially formulated traditional Chinese patent medicines could be submitted directly to the Drug Administration Bureau of the Ministry of Health for approval, thus laying a solid foundation for the rise and development of China’s specialized therapeutic agents.

During his tenure at the Pharmaceutical Administration Bureau of the National Health Ministry, Zhang Shichen spearheaded the selection of more than 4,000 proprietary Chinese medicinal preparations from over 9,000 varieties nationwide. Following rigorous medical and pharmaceutical reviews, the “Ministerial Standards for Proprietary Chinese Medicinal Preparations (Volumes 1–20)” were promulgated, marking the completion of a six-year comprehensive overhaul of the proprietary Chinese medicine sector. He also led the development of ministerial standards for Tibetan, Uygur, and Mongolian medicines—three ethnic-minority medicinal systems—thereby advancing the historic inclusion of ethnic-minority medicines in China’s national ministerial standard-setting framework for the first time.

Zhang Shichen Master Inheritance Studio at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine and Professor Dong Ling of the same institution presented a report on Professor Zhang Shichen’s career in traditional Chinese medicine and his scholarly thought. Yu Wenming, Director of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, stated that it is highly meaningful to systematically organize, summarize, and expound upon Professor Zhang Shichen’s significant contributions to the TCM industry and the academic ideas he has developed in the field of Chinese materia medica, thereby inheriting and carrying forward his spirit of scholarship.