中药归经的概念源自《黄帝内经》，是中医药理论的重要组成部分。药物所治病证的经络和脏腑归属为中药归经理论的临床依据，而药物的五味特性是中药归经的理论依据，二者互参构成了中药的归经理论。随着现代科学的不断发展，近年来，众多研究从药物化学、药代动力学等角度进行的体内、体外实验研究，证实一些中药的有效成分分布与其归经一致，其临床治疗作用也与其归经的效用内涵一致，验证了中药归经理论的科学性。在临床实际应用中，归经理论作为重要的中医药理论，对于临床根据辩证辨病结果组方、选药有着重要的指导意义。此外，对于精确地选用适宜的药味和炮制规格，归经等中医药传统认识也是重要的理论依据。

The concept of channel tropism of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is derived from Huang Di Nei Jing, and is now an important part of the TCM theory. The meridians and viscera affiliations of diseases treated by TCM drugs are the clinical bases of the TCM channel tropism theory. And the five-flavor characteristics of TCM drugs are the theoretical bases of the TCM channel tropism theory. Therefore, the mutual reference of both of them constitutes the TCM channel tropism theory. Recently, with the continuous development of modern sciences, many in vivo and in vitro experimental studies from the perspectives of medicinal chemistry and pharmacokinetics have confirmed that the distribution of active ingredients in some TCM herbs was consistent with their channel tropism, and the effects of the herbs were also consistent with their channel tropism, which verified the scientific nature of the TCM channel tropism theory. In clinical practice, the channel tropism theory, as an important theory for TCM, has important guiding significance for the clinical prescription and selection of drugs based on results of syndrome differentiation and disease differentiation. In addition, for the accurate selection of appropriate flavours of drugs and processing specifications, the channel tropism theory and other TCM knowledge are also important theoretical bases.