Analytical and biomedical applications of nanomaterials in Chinese herbal medicines research

Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) have been widely used to treat disease in China. However, their unstable quality, vague active compounds and ambiguous effects in vivo make most people suspicious of them. Therefore, it is promising to develop strategies for assuring the quality, discovering active compounds, monitoring the in-vivo biological process, and improving the efficacy of CHMs. Combining novel nanomaterials with multiple analytical and imaging modalities becomes a rising solution to these problems. In this review, analytical and biomedical applications of nanomaterials in CHMs field with an emphasize on their merits are highlighted, including hazardous substances detection, screening and quantification of active compounds, the toxicity and pharmacological evaluation, the optimization of therapeutic efficacy and the component enrichment. There is no doubt that the application of nanomaterials in CHMs provides researchers new guidelines and it has long-term prospects if some shortcomings are overcome.