Back to nature: Why science is looking to insects for new drugs
For thousands of years humans turned to nature to cure and soothe their ills. Modern science built on these ancient foundations and the “natural product discovery” programmes established by pharmaceutical companies provided us with medicines that could treat cancer, infections and more.
But discovering medicines found in nature is far from straightforward. It’s hard enough to gather sufficient numbers of the useful organism, whether that be a tree root or a venomous snake, and it’s even harder to isolate the exact medicinal compound and then produce it in large quantities.
Insects are full of useful compounds
Insects occupy every conceivable terrestrial and freshwater niche on Earth. Consequently, they have a bewildering array of interactions with other organisms, which has meant they’ve evolved an enormous variety of compounds to protect
themselves or for preying on others.
If we can shine a light on the darker recesses of nature’s medicine cabinet, exploring the useful chemistry of the most diverse animals on the planet, I believe we can make people think differently about the value of nature.
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Thank you so much.
The Amazon jungle is a medicine cabinet that pharma's does not want to explore, because it does not generate profits. Our planet is awash with natural remedies that have either been categorized as illegal narcotics or controlled substances. Imagine if everyone grew a pot plant in their back yard...this would deal with most common ailments today, as it did once before. The pharmas do not want us to have access to "free" medicine, as it does not create wealth for them!. We should all go back in time and learn to respect Mother Nature for all that she possess.
Yes,All the major pharmaceutical companies as well as many scientific researchers are currently conducting studies on exciting new drugs emerging from jungle plants and studying the indigenous plant knowledge and the specific plants used by native shamans and healers.