中医药是中华民族在几千年的生产实践中不断积累而形成的一种卓越的医学体系,具有完整的中医理论和丰富的诊疗经验,但其宏观、抽象和复杂等特性使得中医药学很难被国际主流医学界所理解和接受。人体系统生物学从整体出发,用"组学"手段研究由人的细胞和共生微生物细胞共同构成的人体这一"超级生物体"的生理病理现象,与中医药基于整体观的理念和方法论不谋而合,为中医药学与国际主流医学界之间搭起了一座沟通的桥梁,有可能为中医药现代化研究提供一个契机。因此,本文在总结人体系统生物学的研究内容、方法、技术特点与优势,及其在疾病、健康、中医药等复杂系统研究中应用情况的基础上,提出以人体系统生物学为理论框架、基于功能元基因组学的中医药现代化研究策略,有望为中医药研究打开一扇新的大门。

Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) is a medical system with its own theoretical framework focusing on functions at the whole-body level.TCM has accumulated abundant clinical experiences.However,TCM approaches are empirical and the signs it reads can not be communicated in molecular language with modern medicine.Whole-body systems biology regards human body as a "superorganism",which is consisted of cells of both human and symbiotic microorganisms.Taking advantage of "-omic" technologies,biological information in urine,fecal and blood samples can be profiled as emergent functions of the complex human system for the understanding of its dynamics in disease and health.This top-down systems biology emphasizes the function of gut microbiota in human health.The whole-body systems biology not only assesses human health with molecular-based methods,but also has the holistic approach as TCM.Thus,this method can be served as a bridge between TCM and the western medical science.This paper summarized concepts,methodologies,clinical application and advantage of whole-body systems biology.Hence,functional metagenomics has been proposed as a new research strategy for the modernization of TCM.

国家自然科学基金重点项目(30730005):肠道微生物群落的结构动力学与功能解析研究,负责人:赵立平;科学技术部国家科技支撑计划项目(2006BAI11B08):中医药与系统生物学国际合作研究,负责人:赵立平;科学技术部国家科技重大专项(2009ZX10004-601):病毒性肝炎证候生物学基础研究平台的建立,负责人:胡义杨。