Research progress on self-assembly supramolecules of traditional Chinese medicine

During the decoction process of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), not only do chemical bonds interact, but non-covalent interactions also occur. In recent years, studies have discovered the presence of aggregates connected by non-covalent bonds in TCM decoctions, collectively referred to as supramolecules of traditional Chinese medicine (STCM). This review summarizes the literature on STCM, discussing research methods, formation mechanisms, and research significance from four perspectives: individual components, single herbs, medicinal pairs and compound prescriptions. The aim is to provide a reference for future research on STCM. Due to the complexity and diversity of TCM components, the research on the formation mechanism of STCM in compound formulas, drug pairs and single herb decoction liquids is not perfect, which is also a key and difficult point in future STCM research. The perspective of self-assembled supramolecular chemistry provides a new idea for the study of the pharmacodynamic material basis of TCM, and pushes the research in the field of TCM to a new height.