In Loving Memory of Dr. Mingzhen Li, M.D.

Dr. Mingzhen Li, beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, respected physician, professor, and medical researcher, passed away peacefully in her sleep at 3:30 p.m. on September 17, 2026, in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was 96 years old.

Dr. Li was born on February 2, 1930, in Wuhan, Hubei, China. Her life was deeply devoted to medicine, learning, and service to others. In 1955, she graduated from Zhongnan Tongji Medical College with her future husband and lifelong companion, Dr. Youhua Hu, a distinguished surgeon. They were medical school classmates who went on to work and teach together at their medical school, sharing a lifelong commitment to medicine and education. Dr. Hu passed away in Indiana in 2010.

A Physician Devoted to Her Patients

Dr. Li was a distinguished physician whose greatest concern was always the well-being of her patients. She worked in obstetrics and gynecology and in integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine, developing particular expertise in infertility, difficult gynecological conditions, infectious diseases, and complex medical problems.

She was known for combining traditional Chinese medical approaches with modern medicine in the care of patients whose conditions were often difficult to treat. In the treatment of infertility, she developed extensive clinical experience. In selected cases of ectopic pregnancy, she explored traditional Chinese medicine approaches that could avoid surgery. She also conducted clinical work and research involving traditional Chinese medicine approaches to acute abdominal infections.

For Dr. Li, medicine was never simply a profession. It was a responsibility. She believed that when a patient was suffering, physicians should continue searching for ways to help.

Her compassion and medical expertise earned her deep respect from patients, colleagues, and students. She was described by China Chinese Medicine Newsas a “modern-day female Bian Que, distinguished for both virtue and medical excellence.” Bian Que was a legendary physician of ancient China, and the comparison reflected both Dr. Li’s medical accomplishments and her integrity as a physician.

A Pioneer in Integrated Medical Research

Dr. Li was not only a clinician but also a dedicated scholar and leader in research on the integration of traditional Chinese and Western medicine. She led a research team at an institute devoted to integrated medicine, working with many graduate students to investigate the scientific basis of the traditional Chinese medical principle of qingre jiedu, or “clearing heat and detoxifying.” Her research explored mechanisms relevant to infectious disease, inflammation, endotoxin injury, and the protection of cells, tissues, and organs.

A major focus of her research was ReDuQing (热毒清). At the time, research centered primarily on ReDuQing injection. Her team studied not only its clinical effects, including its traditional “clearing heat” and anti-inflammatory applications, but also its mechanisms of action from a modern experimental perspective. Their work examined antibacterial, antiviral, anti-endotoxin, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects, as well as effects related to immune-cell activity and the protection of cellular and organ structure and function.

Her research received numerous national, provincial, and municipal scientific awards, including:

• 1990 National Education Commission Science and Technology Progress Award, Second Prize, for research into the scientific basis of the traditional Chinese medicine method of clearing heat and detoxifying, including experimental studies of ReDuQing against endotoxin and its protective effects on lysosomes and mitochondria;
• 1994 Hubei Provincial Department of Health Science and Technology Progress Award, Third Prize, for experimental research on the mechanisms of Xijiao Dihuang Decoction in treating the traditional Chinese medicine “heat entering the blood level” pattern;
• 1996 Hubei Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award, Third Prize, and Wuhan Science and Technology Progress Award, Second Prize, for research establishing an experimental animal model of the “nutrient-blood level” pattern of febrile disease induced by endotoxin;
• 1997 Hubei Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award, Second Prize, and Wuhan Science and Technology Progress Award, Second Prize, for research into the mechanisms of ReDuQing injection against endotoxin;
• 2008 China Association of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Science and Technology Award, First Prize, for basic applied research on the anti-infective mechanisms of the traditional Chinese medicine method of clearing heat and detoxifying.\

Because the development and clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine injections presented significant challenges, research related to ReDuQing later contributed to the development of the oral formulation Jinye Baidu Granules (金叶败毒颗粒), which received a national new traditional Chinese medicine drug certificate and subsequently became used clinically, particularly for upper respiratory tract infections.

These achievements reflected years of work by Dr. Li and her research colleagues and students. More importantly, they reflected her lifelong effort to connect traditional medical knowledge with rigorous scientific research in order to help more patients.

A Teacher Whose Influence Continued Through Her Students

Dr. Li was also a devoted teacher and mentor. She passed on not only clinical knowledge and research skills, but also a philosophy of medicine grounded in compassion and service. Among her students are physicians and researchers who went on to become professors, doctoral advisors, institute directors, and senior physicians. Even decades later, they continued to remember her with deep affection and respect. One of her students expressed what perhaps best captures the meaning of her life:

“Teacher Li spent her entire life showing us that a truly great physician is not measured by how many awards one receives, but by how many people in need one has helped.”

Those words may describe her legacy more completely than any title or award.

Dr. Li lived by the principle: “博爱济众，一生善良” — “Love broadly, serve and help others, and live a life of kindness.” She believed that the ultimate purpose of medicine was not personal recognition, but relieving suffering and helping those who needed help.

A Life of Service Beyond Retirement

Dr. Li retired in 2000 and later moved to the United States, making her home in Indianapolis with her daughter, Peiyi Hu, a family physician.

Retirement did not end her desire to serve others. In Indianapolis, she continued to give health and medical lectures to members of the Chinese community as well as people from other backgrounds, sharing her knowledge and helping others whenever she could.

She also loved life outside of medicine. She sang Peking Opera and was invited to perform on stage on several occasions. She enjoyed playing mahjong and organized games with friends in her senior community, believing that keeping the mind active was an important part of staying healthy and engaged.

Those who knew her remember her as kind, generous, strong, and tolerant, always willing to help the people around her.

Her Most Precious Role: Mother

To the medical community, Dr. Li was a physician and scholar. To her students, she was a respected teacher and mentor. But to her children, she was first and foremost their mother.

She is survived by her daughter, Peiyi Hu, a family physician in the United States; her son, Peiming Hu; her grandson, Tian Mi (Tom Mi), an emergency medicine physician, and his wife, Sri Nimmagadda, a family physician; and her great-granddaughters, Maithri Mi and Madhuri Ila Mi.

The life she shared with her husband, Dr. Youhua Hu, became part of the family's enduring legacy of medicine, compassion, responsibility, and service.

A Life Like a Candle

Dr. Li was described as a “modern-day female Bian Que, distinguished for both virtue and medical excellence.”

But to those who loved her, she was more than any title or award. She was a woman, a mother, a wife, a physician, a teacher, a scholar, and a friend. She devoted her life to helping others. She lived by the principle of “博爱济众” — loving broadly and helping those in need. 

Through her medical knowledge, she relieved suffering; through her teaching, she passed knowledge to another generation; and through her kindness, she brought warmth to the people around her.

She was like a burning candle, giving warmth and light to the world around her throughout her long life. When the flame quietly went out, it left behind a fragrance that will linger. Her life has ended, but the light she gave to the world will continue through her family, her students, her patients, and all those whose lives she touched.

博爱济众，一生善良。

May she rest in peace.

Memorial Gathering will be on Saturday, September 26, 2026, from 2:00–3:00 p.m., with a memorial service from 3:00-5:00pm at Flanner Buchanan-Oaklawn Memorial Gardens (Conner Suite) - 9700 Allisonville Rd., Indianapolis, IN 46250.

A flower-adorned casket and a portrait of Dr. Li will be present for family and friends who wish to pay their respects. Dr. Li's body will not be present.

李鸣真医生讣告

李鸣真（Mingzhen Li, M.D.），敬爱的母亲、慈爱的祖母与曾祖母，备受尊敬的医生、教授和医学研究者，于2026年9月17日下午3时30分在睡梦中安详辞世，享年96岁。

李鸣真医生1930年2月2日出生于湖北武汉，一生与医学结下了深厚而持久的缘分。

1955年，她与后来成为终身伴侣的胡佑华医生共同毕业于中南同济医学院。两位同窗毕业后留校从医、任教，携手走过半个多世纪的医学人生。胡佑华医生是著名外科专家，于2010年在美国印第安纳州辞世。

一生从医，以仁心济世

李鸣真医生长期从事妇产科及中西医结合医学工作，在不孕不育、妇科疑难病症及感染性疾病等领域积累了深厚而独到的临床经验。

她始终将病人的疾苦放在心上，善于将中医理论与现代医学实践融会贯通，探索复杂疑难疾病的诊疗方法。在不孕不育治疗方面，她积累了丰富经验；在部分宫外孕病例中，她探索运用中医药治疗，帮助患者避免手术；对于急性腹腔感染等疾病，她也进行了富有价值的中药治疗研究。

她尤其关注病情复杂、治疗困难的患者。在她看来，医学不仅是一门专业，更是一份责任；只要还有帮助病人的可能，就值得不断探索、不断实践。

正因如此，她深受患者、同事和学生敬重，被誉为“德医双馨的当代女扁鹊”。这一赞誉所表彰的，不仅是她精湛的医术，更是她高尚的医德。

从临床走向科研

作为临床医生，李鸣真始终关注医学发展的前沿；作为学者，她则致力于推动中西医结合医学研究的发展。

她曾带领研究团队，与众多研究生共同开展科研工作，将传统中医“清热解毒”理论与现代实验医学相结合，系统研究感染性疾病、炎症反应、内毒素损伤以及细胞与组织保护机制等重要课题。

她的重要研究成果之一，是围绕中药制剂热毒清（ReDuQing）开展的一系列研究。团队不仅验证其临床上的清热、抗炎作用，还从现代实验医学角度深入探讨其抑菌、抗病毒、抗内毒素、抗炎抗氧化，以及增强免疫功能、保护组织器官等方面的作用机制。

她的科研工作曾荣获多项国家、省、市级科技奖励，其中包括：

• 1990年国家教委科技进步二等奖：《中医清热解毒法实质的部分研究——热毒清抗内毒素和保护溶酶体、线粒体的实验研究》；
• 1994年湖北省卫生厅科技进步三等奖：《犀角地黄汤治疗温病血分证机理的实验研究》；
• 1996年湖北省科技进步三等奖、武汉市科技进步二等奖：《内毒素诱发家兔弥散性血管内凝血复制温病营血分证模型的研究》；
• 1997年湖北省科技进步二等奖、武汉市科技进步二等奖：《热毒清注射液抗内毒素有关机理的研究》；
• 2008年中国中西医结合科技奖一等奖：《清热解毒法抗感染的应用基础研究》。

后来，相关研究进一步推动了口服剂型金叶败毒颗粒（Jinye Baidu Granules）的研制，并获得国家中药新药证书，用于上呼吸道感染等疾病的临床治疗。

这些成果凝结着她和团队多年的心血，也体现了她一生追求的学术理想：让传统医学的智慧经由严谨科学研究造福更多患者。

桃李芬芳，薪火相传

作为教师和导师，李鸣真不仅培养了一批医学研究者，更将自己的临床经验、科研精神和做人原则传授给一代又一代学生。

她的学生中，有人后来成为教授、博士生导师、中西医结合研究所所长及知名主任医师。多年以后，他们仍深深怀念这位老师。

一位学生曾这样评价她：

“李老师用她的一生告诉我们，真正的名医不在于获得多少奖项，而在于帮助了多少需要帮助的人。”

或许，这句话比任何荣誉与头衔都更能概括她一生的价值。

她始终秉持着“博爱济众，一生善良”的信念，相信医学真正的意义，不在于个人获得多少荣誉，而在于能够为更多饱受病痛的人带来希望与帮助。

退休之后，依然心系他人

2000年退休后，李鸣真随女儿胡培怡定居美国印第安纳波利斯。

离开工作岗位后，她依然关心医学事业和社区居民的健康。她经常为华人及其他社区居民举办健康讲座、普及医疗知识，并尽己所能帮助和指导有需要的人。

她的一生不只属于医院、研究所和课堂，也属于丰富而充实的生活。

她热爱京剧，曾多次受邀登台演出；她喜爱麻将，经常组织老年公寓的朋友们一起切磋交流。在她看来，麻将不仅是娱乐，更是保持思维活力、增进友谊、享受生活的一种方式。

认识她的人都会记得她的善良、宽厚与坚强。她对病人耐心，对学生负责，对朋友真诚，对家人充满深情。

她最珍贵的身份：母亲

在医学界，她是一位卓越的医生和学者；在学生心中，她是一位令人敬爱的老师；而对于她的孩子们来说，她首先是一位母亲。

她身后留下挚爱的家人：女儿胡培怡（Peiyi Hu），美国执业家庭科医生；儿子胡培明（Peiming Hu）；外孙米天（Tian Mi / Tom Mi），美国急诊科医生；外孙媳Sri Nimmagadda，家庭科医生；以及两位深爱她的曾外孙女Maithri Mi和Madhuri Ila Mi。

她与胡佑华医生共同走过的医学人生，也成为这个家庭最珍贵的精神财富。医学、仁爱、责任与服务他人的信念，在后辈身上得以传承和延续。

一生如烛，光耀人间

人们曾以“德医双馨的当代女扁鹊”赞誉李鸣真医生。

然而，对于深爱她的家人而言，她不仅是享有盛誉的医生和学者，也不仅是那些写在证书上的成就与荣誉。

她是一位母亲、一位妻子、一位医生、一位老师、一位朋友，更是一位始终愿意为他人伸出援手的好人。

她秉承“博爱济众”的信念，以医术救治病患，以学识培育后学，以善良温暖他人。

她如一支燃烧的蜡烛，用毕生的光和热照亮周围的世界；当烛火悄然熄灭，那份温暖与芬芳却长久留存于人们心中。

她的生命虽然落下帷幕，但她给予世界的光芒不会消失。

她留下的，不仅是学术成果和荣誉奖项，更是无数曾受她救治的病人、受她教导的学生、深爱她的家人，以及所有因认识她而感受到温暖的人们。

博爱济众，一生善良。

愿妈妈安息。