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. 2024 Sep;22(5):533-544.
doi: 10.1016/j.joim.2024.06.005. Epub 2024 Jun 25.

Scientific guidelines for preclinical research on potentised preparations manufactured according to current pharmacopoeias-the PrePoP guidelines

Alexander L Tournier  1 , Leoni V Bonamin  2 , Susann Buchheim-Schmidt  3 , Steven Cartwright  4 , Christoph Dombrowsky  5 , Paul Doesburg  6 , Carla Holandino  7 , Maria Olga Kokornaczyk  8 , Everine B van de Kraats  9 , Jesús Antonio López-Carvallo  10 , Papiya Nandy  11 , José Manuel Mazón-Suástegui  12 , Fateme Mirzajani  13 , Bernard Poitevin  14 , Claudia Scherr  15 , Karin Thieves  16 , Sandra Würtenberger  17 , Stephan Baumgartner  18
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Free article

Scientific guidelines for preclinical research on potentised preparations manufactured according to current pharmacopoeias-the PrePoP guidelines

Alexander L Tournier et al. J Integr Med. 2024 Sep.
Free article

Abstract

Objective: Pharmacopoeias regulate the manufacture of potentised pharmaceutical preparations used in different branches of complementary and integrative medicine. The physicochemical properties and biological activity of these preparations are often investigated in preclinical research, yet no guidelines for experimental research currently exist in this area. The present PrePoP guidelines aim to provide recommendations to promote high-quality, statistically sound, and reproducible preclinical research on potentised preparations.

Methods: Input was gathered from researchers nominated by the relevant scientific societies using a simplified Delphi consensus approach covering the most relevant aspects of basic research methodology in the field including appropriate controls, sample preparation and handling, and statistics. After three rounds of feedback, a consensus was finally reached on the most important aspects and considerations for conducting high-quality research on potentised preparations.

Results: We present a series of recommendations on a range of topics including experimental controls, system stability, blinding and randomisation, environmental influences, and procedures for the preparation of potentised samples and controls, and we address some specific challenges of this research field.

Conclusion: This expert consensus process resulted in a robust set of methodological guidelines for research on potentised preparations and provides a valuable framework that will inform and improve the quality of subsequent research in this emerging field.

Please cite this article as: Tournier AL, Bonamin LV, Buchheim-Schmidt S, Cartwright S, Dombrowsky C, Doesburg P, Holandino C, Kokornaczyk MO, van de Kraats EB, López-Carvallo JA, Nandy P, Mazón-Suástegui JM, Mirzajani F, Poitevin B, Scherr C, Thieves K, Würtenberger S, Baumgartner S. Scientific guidelines for preclinical research on potentised preparations manufactured according to current pharmacopoeias-the PrePoP guidelines. J Integr Med. 2024; 22(5): 533-544.

Keywords: Basic research; Complementary and integrative medicine; Fundamental research; Potentisation; Potentised preparations; Research guidelines.

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