Herbal Literature DB
How the literature is organised
The institute is compiling a record of the literature on medicinal plants, material by material. It is used in grant proposals and prior-work reviews, and entries will be published as they are completed.
The database is under construction. The timing and extent of publication will be announced once settled. A literature review on a specific material can be commissioned separately in the meantime.
What is recorded
| Field | Content |
|---|---|
| Material | Botanical name of the source plant, part used, common name (Korean, English, Japanese) |
| Traditional use | Source text, stated purpose, form of use |
| Composition | Principal constituents reported, candidate marker compounds, quantification method |
| Safety | History of dietary use, availability of toxicity data, reported adverse events, interactions |
| Functional evidence | Separated into in vitro, animal and human data; study design; sample size |
| Level of evidence | Graded: randomised controlled human trial > uncontrolled human > animal > cell > traditional record |
Why grade the evidence
Collecting the literature is not the hard part. The hard part is distinguishing how much weight each source carries. A compilation that lists a cell experiment beside a randomised controlled human trial as though they were equivalent obscures judgement rather than aiding it.
Commissioning a review
A review of prior work on a particular material or function can be commissioned as a standalone project. The search strategy, inclusion and exclusion criteria and evidence grading are documented in the deliverable.