Danshen, the dried root of Salvia miltiorrhiza, has been widely used in China and, to a lesser extent, in Japan, the United States, and other European countries for the treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. In China, the specific clinical use is angina pectoris, hyperlipidemia, and acute ischemic stroke. The current review covers its traditional uses, chemical constituents, pharmacological activities, pharmacokinetics, clinical applications, and potential herb-drug interactions based on information obtained in both the English and Chinese literature. Although numerous clinical trials have demonstrated that certain Danshen products in China are effective and safe for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, most of these lack sufficient quality. Therefore, large randomized clinical trials and further scientific research to determine its mechanism of actions will be necessary to ensure the safety, effectiveness, and better understanding of its action.

A review with 54 references covers all aspects of hawthorn, the genus Crataegus, including its traditional uses, chemical constituents, pharmacological activities, and clinical effects. Although the effectiveness of hawthorn on the treatment of cardiovascular diseases has received extensive attention worldwide, further scientific research on various areas such as pharmacokinetics, mechanism of actions will be necessary to ensure its safe and effective usage.

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Radix Puerariae has been traditionally used for the treatment of diarrhea, acute dysentery, deafness and cardiovascular diseases. Yege (Gegen or Radix Puerariae lobatae), the dried root of Pueraria lobata (Wild.) Ohwi, has been widely used in China and, to a lesser extent, in Japan, Korea, and the United States. Although they have been classified into different categories in Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Yege is often used interchangeably in practice with Fenge (Radix Puerariae thomsonii), which is the dried root of Pueraria thomsonii Benth. Among various commercially available products of Radix Puerariae, injection of puerarin, the major isoflavone from Radix Puerariae, has been most widely used as a vasodilator for the treatment of angina and myocardial infarction. Considering the extensive clinical usage and recent alert of fatal herb-drug interaction of Radix Puerariae, the current review is proposed to cover its traditional applications, pharmacological activities, pharmacokinetics, clinical efficacy, and potential herb-drug interactions aiming to fill in the information gaps of this herb for frontline practitioners. Although various small, poorly designed clinical trials have demonstrated the safety, efficacy, and significant clinical benefits of Radix Puerariae, prospective randomized controlled clinical trials are needed to further establish its effective and safe use.

Food effect, also known as food-drug interactions, is a common phenomenon associated with orally administered medications and can be defined as changes in absorption rate or absorption extent. The mechanisms of food effect and their consequences can involve multiple factors, including human post-prandial physiology, properties of the drug, and how the drug is administered. Therefore, it is essential to have a thorough understanding of these mechanisms when recommending whether a specific drug should be taken with or without food. Food-drug interactions can be clinically relevant, especially when they must be avoided to prevent undesirable effects or exploited to optimize medication therapy. This review conducts a literature search that examined studies on food effect. We summarized the literature and identified and discussed common food effect mechanisms. Furthermore, we highlighted drugs that have a clinically significant food effect and discussed the corresponding mechanisms. In addition, this review analyzes the effects of high-fat food or standard meals on the oral drug absorption rate and absorption extent for 229 drugs based on the Biopharmaceutics Drug Disposition Classification System and demonstrates an association between Biopharmaceutics Drug Disposition Classification System class and food effect.