Modern natural products drug discovery and its relevance to biodiversity conservation.
Natural products continue to provide a diverse and unique source of bioactive lead compounds for drug discovery, but maintaining their continued eminence as source compounds is challenging in the face of the changing face of the pharmaceutical industry and the changing nature of biodiversity prospecting brought about by the Convention on Biological Diversity. This review provides an overview of some of these challenges and suggests ways in which they can be addressed so that natural products research can remain a viable and productive route to drug discovery. Results from International Cooperative Biodiversity Groups (ICBGs) working in Madagascar, Panama, and Suriname are used as examples of what can be achieved when biodiversity conservation is linked to drug discovery.
Department of Chemistry, M/C 0212, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States. dkingston@vt.edu
David G I
DG
Kingston
D044822:Biodiversity; D001688:Biological Products / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D055808:Drug Discovery; D004345:Drug Industry; D008270:Madagascar; D015394:Molecular Structure; D010176:Panama; D013532:Suriname
D001688:Biological Products