Review of Active Components and Pharmacological Effect and Prediction of Quality Markers of Xihuang Pills

Abstract:

Xihuang pills are a classic Chinese patent medicine following the theoretical principle of combining eliminating pathogen with reinforcing healthy qi in both local areas and the whole body， with the effects of clearing heat， detoxifying， alleviating edema， and dissipating mass. This medicine is traditionally used for treating carbuncle， furuncle， multiple abscess， carcinoma of breast， phlegm nodule， scrofula， lung abscess， and intestine abscess caused by fire depression， phlegm stasis， and heat toxin stagnation. It is used for treating malignant tumors， breast hyperplasia， herpes zoster， lymphadenitis， pelvic inflammatory disease， mastitis， vocal cord leukoplakia， and acne in modern medicine. Xihuang pills are now included in the 2020 edition of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. The use of high-quality medicinal materials and modern technology enables full retaining of the active components in the medicinal materials. The chemical components in this medicine mainly include amino acids， terpenoids， fatty acids， fatty acid esters， phenols， bile acids， bile pigments， and volatile oils. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that a variety of active components such as bilirubin， bile acid， boswellic acid， and volatile oil in Xihuang pills interact with each other to exert anti-tumor， anti-breast hyperplasia， immunomodulatory， anti-inflammatory， and neuroendocrine-regulating effect. This paper reviews the research progress in the active components and pharmacological effects of Xihuang pills and predicts the quality markers （Q-markers） of this medicine according to the transmission， traceability， specificity， efficacy， measurability， and compound compatibility in the concept of Q-marker. It is suggested that bilirubin， bile acid， taurine， muskone， 11-carbonyl-β-boswellic acid， β-boswellic acid， 3-acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid， octyl acetate， β-elemene， and myrrhone can be used as Q-markers of Xihuang pills， which can provide a basis for research on the material basis and the quality control of Xihuang pills.