Current Biotechnology ›› 2026, Vol. 16 ›› Issue (2): 288-298.DOI: 10.19586/j.2095-2341.2025.0119

• Reviews • Previous Articles    

Research Progress on Traditional Chinese Medicine Hippocampus and Strategic Considerations for the Modernization

Wenxuan LIU1(), Bowen HAN2, Wenlong MA3, Jiahao ZHAO4, Hongshu SUI2, Yinqing LI1()   

  1. 1.School of Pharmacy,Changchun University of Chinese Medicine,Changchun 130117,China
    2.College of Clinical and Basic Medicine,Shandong First Medical University,Jinan 250117,China
    3.College of Pharmocy,Shandong First Medical University,Jinan 250117,China
    4.College of Biomedical Sciences,Shandong First Medical University,Jinan 250117,China
  • Received:2025-09-05 Accepted:2025-10-11 Online:2026-03-25 Published:2026-04-27
  • Contact: Yinqing LI

Abstract:

Hippocampus, a valuable traditional marine Chinese medicinal herb in China, possesses therapeutic effects such as warming the kidney and tonifying yang, resolving masses, and reducing swelling. Studies have shown that Hippocampus contains various bioactive components including amino acids, peptides, steroids, fatty acids, and trace elements, and exhibits pharmacological activities such as sex hormone-like effects, antioxidant, anti-tumor, and anti-fatigue properties, thereby having wide applications in clinical treatment and healthcare fields. Due to overfishing and ecological destruction, wild Hippocampus resources have been depleted. All species are listed in the National Key Protected Wildlife List and Appendix Ⅱ of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), with their commercial trade strictly restricted. Artificial cultivation has become the key to addressing the resource dilemma; however, most maturely cultivated species have not yet been included in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. The Pharmacopoeia lacks sufficient standards for species identification and quality control of Hippocampus, leading to chaotic market origins and circulation of counterfeit products, which restricts the legitimate utilization of cultivated varieties. This review systematically summarized the current status of Hippocampus resources, their chemical components, pharmacological effects, quality standards, and progress in product transformation, analyzed the potential and bottlenecks of non-Pharmacopoeia cultivated varieties, and proposed targeted development strategies to promote the sustainable utilization of Hippocampus resources and the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine.

Key words: Hippocampus, marine traditional Chinese medicine, industry status

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