Dr. Qihe Xu

Professional Overview

With 36 years of laboratory experience in China, the USA, and the UK, and a decade of clinical practice in China, Dr Xu leads a lab investigating the kidney’s innate defence mechanisms against acute and chronic kidney disease, bridging biomedical science with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

Research Directions

• TCM literature research: Cataloguing and analysing TCM collections of major UK institutions, to support TCM research, education and practice.
• TCM-inspired biological insights: Guided by TCM’s Zhengqi and Yangqi concepts, to elucidate renal defence and intracellular metabolic mechanisms and their dysregulation in kidney disease.
• TCM-inspired therapeutic development: Focusing on tonifying herbs and therapies targeting the vitamin A signalling pathway, to develop novel strategies for the prevention and treatment of kidney disease.
• TCM diagnostics and non-pharmacological therapies: Biomedical research and evidence-based integration into NHS clinical service and care.

Pioneering Research & Achievements

1. EU-Funded TCM Research (The FP7 GP-TCM Project, 2009–2012)

• As the Principal Investigator, conceptualised and successfully implemented this €1m EU Coordination Action dedicated to promoting EU-China collaboration and good practices in modernisation of TCM research, leading to 117 official reports to the European Commission, more than 50 academic publications on state of the art and good practice guidelines in TCM research, and an international collaboration network involving 24 countries, more than 100 institutions and corporations, and over 200 scientists.
• Led the conversion of the GP-TCM Consortium to the GP-TCM Research Association (an international society, a UK-based charity and an Interested Party of the Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products, European Medicines Agency).

2. TCM Theories-Inspired Research of Kidney Disease, Botanical Drugs & Vitamin A Signalling

• 26 years of TCM theories-inspired research (e.g., by the Healthy qi, Wei defensive qi and Yang qi concepts of TCM) on vitamin A’s role in kidney health, inflammation and fibrosis (scarring) (1999-present).
  • Related Publications: Retinoid Research by Xu Q (London)
• Two decades of expertise in studying botanical therapeutics, particularly focusing on antifibrotics, nephrotoxic botanicals and TCM tonyfying drugs (since 2006).
  • Qihe Xu’s Traditional & Herbal Medicine Publications (King’s College London)
• 10 years of experience in integrative medicine research and care, specialised in renal medicine at two leading hospitals in Beijing (1989-1999).
  • Qihe Xu’s Chinese publications (1989-1999)

3. Funding & Publications

• Grants from European Commission, National Institutes of Health, Royal Society, Innovation China UK, Kidney Research UK, British Heart Foundation, the Polycystic Kidney Disease Charity, National Natural Science Foundation of China, etc.
• Published in top journals (The Lancet, Science, Journal of American Society of Nephrology, Kidney International, Nephrology Dialysis and Transplantation, Phytomedicine, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, etc).

Honours & Distinctions

• Qihuang International Prize (2020, China Association of Chinese Medicine)
• Life Member, the GP-TCM Research Association
• Scholarship (1997) and Fellowship (1999-2001), International Society of Nephrology
• Courtesy Associate Fellowship, National Institutes of Health (2005-2006)
• Former leadership roles and honorary appointments:
  • Guest Professor, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine (2021-2024)
  • Guest Professor, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Affiliated Hospital and Sichuan Provincial TCM Hospital, Chengdu, China (2019-2022)
  • Newsletter Co-Editor (2008-2016), Editor-in-chief (2017-2020) and Consulting Editor (2020-2021), The GP-TCM Research Association Newsletters
  • Elected Academic Board Member (2012-2016), King’s College London.
  • President, Chinese Life Scientists Society in the UK (CLSS-UK, 2007-2009)
  • Vice-President, Academy of Life Sciences for Chinese in the UK (2008-2009)
  • Secretary-General, the Chinese Students & Scholars Association in the UK (2004)
  • Chairman, the Chinese Students & Scholars Association, University College London (2002-2003)

Key Leadership Roles

• Member of the Board of Directors (2012-2014, 2017-present) and Co-Chair of the Pharmacology & Toxicology Interest Group (since 2023), The GP-TCM Research Association, which is dedicated to promoting international collaboration and good practices in TCM research
• Council Member, International Society of Chinese Medicine, since 2019
• The UK Regional Coordinator, Consortium for Globalization of Chinese Medicine (since 2024) ―The Consortium aims at promoting modernisation of TCM so that it can better serve the needs of all peoples on the globe
• Deputy Editor-in-chief, World Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine (since 2019)
• Current Editorial Board Membership, Scientific Reports, Experimental Biology & Medicine, World Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Journal of Integrative Medicine, Integrative Medicine in Nephrology & Andrology, Digital Chinese Medicine, etc.
• Leadership & Committee Roles, World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies (WFCMS):
  • 2025–2030
    • Council Member, Specialty Committee of Chinese Materia Medica
  • 2022–2026
    • Vice Chairman, Specialty Committee of Research on Li Shizhen, Medical History & Related Applications
    • Standing Committee Member, Specialty Committee of TCM New Drug Development
  • 2017–2023
    • Standing Committee Member, Specialty Committee of Research on Safety of Clinical Usage of Drugs
  • 2015–2019
    • Vice Chairman, Geo-authentic Herb Multi-dimensional Evaluation Specialty Committee
    • Expert Member, Standard Approval Committee, The International Index for Chinese Medicine Systems
  • 2014–2018
    • Executive Council Member, Specialty Committee of TCM Pharmaceutical Analysis
    • Consultant Member, Post-Marketing Surveillance Committee
    • Executive Council Member, the TCM Qi-Blood Specialty Committee

Connect with Dr. Xu

• King’s College London Profile: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/qihe-xu-1
• Research Collaborations: Open to academic and industrial partnerships in clinical and basic research on the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of kidney diseases, TCM modernisation and integrative medicine.