Institute of Materia Medica, School of Pharmacy, Fourth Military Medical University Xi'an, 710032, China ; The Cultivation Project of Collaborative Innovation Center for Chinese Medicine in QinBa Mountains Xi'an 710032, China.
Am J Transl Res. 2015 Jan 15;7(1):1-14. eCollection 2015.
There are currently 34 genera and 410 species of toads in the world. The medicinal parts of toads mainly include their venom, skin, and clothing. The toad's venom and skin possess the same chemical components, mainly the toad venom lactone class, and their pharmacological effects primarily include the maintenance of strong heart, antitumor, antivirus, anti-infection, and analgesic effects. So far, the produces from the medicinal raw materials of the toad are widely used clinically around the world, especially in China, Japan, and South Korea. About 50 varieties of medicines are used in the clinical treatment of various complicated diseases in China, such as "Liushen pills" which was popular in the whole world. Toads are mainly used in treating malignant tumors (e.g., liver cancer, gastric cancer, esophageal cancer, colon cancer, cervical cancer, among others), and some major diseases such as hepatitis B. Despite the therapeutic effects of toad-derived medicines on human health, there is insufficient research and development of toad-derived medicines by leading drug companies. In order to harness the beneficial effects of the resources of the toad species, it is the responsibility of global pharmaceutical researchers to develop and generate economically feasible toad-derived therapeutic products, while promoting maximum protection to the resources of the toad species.
目前，全世界有 34 属 410 种蟾蜍。蟾蜍的药用部位主要包括其毒液、皮和衣。蟾蜍的毒液和皮具有相同的化学成分，主要是蟾蜍毒素内酯类，其药理作用主要包括强心、抗肿瘤、抗病毒、抗感染和镇痛作用。到目前为止，从蟾蜍药用原料中提取的产品在全世界，特别是在中国、日本和韩国，被广泛应用于临床。中国约有 50 种药物用于治疗各种复杂疾病，如风靡全球的“六神丸”。蟾蜍主要用于治疗恶性肿瘤（如肝癌、胃癌、食管癌、结肠癌、宫颈癌等）和乙型肝炎等一些重大疾病。尽管蟾蜍衍生药物对人类健康有治疗作用，但领先的制药公司对蟾蜍衍生药物的研发不足。为了利用蟾蜍物种资源的有益作用，开发和生产经济可行的蟾蜍衍生治疗产品，同时对蟾蜍物种资源进行最大程度的保护，是全球制药研究人员的责任。
