The purpose of the Center will be to verify the effects of traditional eastern herbs, many of which are now becoming popular in the United States. In an article in Legacy, Winter 1,999-2,000, a newsletter for UC hospitals, it is stated that one out of three Americans use herbal products of some kind but not even one out of 3,000 scientific studies address non-traditional therapies.
Liao is an expert on androgens, male hormones. He is particularly interested in agents to block the effects of testosterone on the prostate gland. As a result he has studied epigallocatechins or EGCGs from green tea. EGCGs, induced significant shrinkage when injected into both human prostate and breast tumors that had been implanted into rats. He is interested in ginseng and has isolated several active ginsenosides from American ginseng. In the Legacy article, Dr. Liao said, researchers in the Tang Center will not simply target specific herbs or diseases. Instead, we will see where our basic research on different aspects of herbal medicine leads us. Chun-Su Yuan, MD, PhD and Assistant Professor in Anesthesiology & Critical Care has also been appointed to the Tang Center.
Funding for the Center and the Professorship, has come in the form of a $5 million gift from the Tang Family Foundation and the Tang Foundation for the Research of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Both foundations were founded by businessman Cyrus Tang, whose company Tang Industries, Inc includes industrial, pharmaceutical, furniture and real estate holdings. He is also on the board of directors for AK Steel, a major U.S. steel producer.