More than 3.1 million plant specimens were collected in the fourth national survey of Chinese materia medica (CMM) resources, and 207 new species were discovered by the end of 2024, according to China's National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Around 65 percent of the newly discovered species have potential medicinal properties, the administration said.
"We conducted specialized surveys and artificial cultivation studies on these newly discovered species with potential medicinal properties. We identified the distribution range and population size of their wild resources, laying a foundation for the conservation, development, and utilization of these new resources," said Zhang Xiaobo, deputy director of the National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences.
Since 2011, the fourth national survey on CMM resources has comprehensively identified the types and distribution of 18,817 varieties of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) drug materials, laying a solid foundation for the conservation and sustainable utilization of TCM resources.
Other three previous national surveys of CMM were conducted from 1960 to 1962, 1969 to 1973 and 1983 to 1987.
207 new species found in 4th national survey on CMM resources
