本文论述了发酵对中药活性成分、药理作用、毒副作用、药效、中药资源及发酵工艺对中药质量的影响。发酵过程中微生物发挥强大的分解转化能力，并能产生丰富的次生代谢产物，中药炮制采用微生物发酵法具有一般方法所无法比拟的优势，为中药的发展开辟新的研究领域。应用现代发酵技术，定向发酵中药，应成为中药发酵研究的方向。

TCM fermentation, as a Traditional Chinese Medicine processing method, has a splendid history. This paper introduces the fermentation influence on active ingredients, pharmacological functions, toxicity and side-effects, efficacy, Chinese medicinal resources, and quality of Chinese medicine. Microbes have a strong ability to decompose compounds, and generate rich secondary metabolites, which makes TCM fermentation incomparably advantageous. The application of modern fermentation technology and directed fermentation may be the developmental direction of TCM fermentation.

北京市教育委员会北京市重点实验室（JD100260652）：清热解毒中药有效成分发现的方法学研究，负责人：乔延江；科学技术部行业专项（XK100270569）：中药抗病毒有效物质基础研究，负责人：乔延江。