The active ingredients components of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) can naturally create supramolecular structures like nanoparticles and micelles with well-defined functions through a dynamic assembly mechanism driven by noncovalent bonding interactions. In recent years, numerous studies have found that the supramolecular self-assemblies of TCM, which are also known as Chinese medicine supramolecules (CMS), exhibit better efficacy, higher bioavailability, and synergistic effects. In vivo fate analysis is a roadblock to revealing the active mechanisms of CMS. This review focuses on the in vivo dynamic biological fate of herbal self-assemblies and systematically elucidates their delivery characteristics in absorption barrier penetration, biofilm transport, and tissue-specific distribution. Meanwhile, this review summarizes the progress in applying cutting-edge detection techniques for tracking supramolecular behavior in vivo, including fluorescent labeling, isotope tracing, and multimodal imaging. By summarizing the existing research results, we aim to construct a systematic research framework for the in vivo behaviors of Chinese medicine self-assemblies and explore feasible analysis paths for Chinese medicine formulations.
| 科 Family | 属数 Number of genus | 种数 Number of species | 占总种数比例 Percentage of total species (%) | 属 Genus | 种数 Number of species | 占总种数比例 Percentage of total species (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 鹅膏菌科Amanitaceae | 2 | 11 | 5.26 | 鹅膏菌属 Amanita | 10 | 4.78 |
| 小菇科 Mycenaceae | 2 | 12 | 5.74 | 丝盖伞属 Inocybe | 5 | 2.39 |
| 多孔菌科 Polyporaceae | 8 | 14 | 6.70 | 蜡蘑属 Laccaria | 5 | 2.39 |
| 红菇科 Russulaceae | 3 | 23 | 11.00 | 小皮伞属 Marasmius | 6 | 2.87 |
| 小菇属 Mycena | 11 | 5.26 | ||||
| 光柄菇属 Pluteus | 5 | 2.39 | ||||
| 红菇属 Russula | 17 | 8.13 | ||||
| 栓菌属 Trametes | 5 | 2.39 |