22
2
biosynthesis in microorganisms is so difficult, expensive or inefficient that the active
compound is still extracted from the original plant source, i.e. quinine from the Cinchona
bark. Till today, many prescription drugs (approved or in clinical trials) and even more
over-the-counter medications are based on plant extracts (Newman and Cragg 2007).
Moreover, worldwide more people depend on traditional herbal medicine than on pharmaceutical drugs making plant-derived secondary metabolites an important issue in the
global health system. Consequently, several secondary metabolites are found on the
WHO List of Essential Medicines (. Table 2.1).
The long-time advantages of herbal medicine are amazing and often underappreciated.
For many plants that are used in natural medicine, the active ingredient and/or exact
mode of action is not yet discovered. In several cases, it remains unclear, whether the
. Table 2.1 Several plant secondary metabolites or direct derivatives are listed in the WHO List of
Essential Medicine. Compounds covered in 7 Chaps. 3 and 4 are marked in bold (7 http://www.
who.int/medicines/publications/essentialmedicines/en/)
Compound
Core or
complementary
Function
Plant origin (sole or
exemplary)
Artesunate/
dihydroartemisinin #1
Core
Antimalarial medicines
Artemisia annua
Atropine
Core
Sedation, antidote,
mydriatics
Atropa belladonna
Caffeine citrate
Core
Treatment of neonates
Coffea arabica
Codeine
Core
Local anaesthetic
Papaver somniferum
Digoxin
Core
Antiarrhythmic medicine
Digitalis
Docetaxel
#2
Complementary
Cytotoxic and adjuvant
medicines
Taxus brevifolia
Ephedrine
Complementary
Local anaesthetic
Ephedra
Hyoscine butylbromide #3
Core
Palliative care
Solanaceae (div.)
Morphine
Core
Preoperative medication
and sedation
Papaver somniferum
Paclitaxel
Complementary
Cytotoxic and adjuvant
medicines
Taxus brevifolia
Quinine
Core
Antimalarial medicines
Cinchona (div.)
Salicylic acid
Core
Skin differentiation and
proliferation
Salix alba
Scopolamine
Core
Palliative care
Solanaceae (div.)
Vinblastine
Complementary
Cytotoxic and adjuvant
medicines
Catharanthus roseus
Semisynthetic derivatives of
#1 artemisinin, #2 paclitaxel and #3 scopolamine
Chapter 2 · Historical and Current Perspective
2
biosynthesis in microorganisms is so difficult, expensive or inefficient that the active
compound is still extracted from the original plant source, i.e. quinine from the Cinchona
bark. Till today, many prescription drugs (approved or in clinical trials) and even more
over-the-counter medications are based on plant extracts (Newman and Cragg 2007).
Moreover, worldwide more people depend on traditional herbal medicine than on pharmaceutical drugs making plant-derived secondary metabolites an important issue in the
global health system. Consequently, several secondary metabolites are found on the
WHO List of Essential Medicines (. Table 2.1).
The long-time advantages of herbal medicine are amazing and often underappreciated.
For many plants that are used in natural medicine, the active ingredient and/or exact
mode of action is not yet discovered. In several cases, it remains unclear, whether the
. Table 2.1 Several plant secondary metabolites or direct derivatives are listed in the WHO List of
Essential Medicine. Compounds covered in 7 Chaps. 3 and 4 are marked in bold (7 http://www.
who.int/medicines/publications/essentialmedicines/en/)
Compound
Core or
complementary
Function
Plant origin (sole or
exemplary)
Artesunate/
dihydroartemisinin #1
Core
Antimalarial medicines
Artemisia annua
Atropine
Core
Sedation, antidote,
mydriatics
Atropa belladonna
Caffeine citrate
Core
Treatment of neonates
Coffea arabica
Codeine
Core
Local anaesthetic
Papaver somniferum
Digoxin
Core
Antiarrhythmic medicine
Digitalis
Docetaxel
#2
Complementary
Cytotoxic and adjuvant
medicines
Taxus brevifolia
Ephedrine
Complementary
Local anaesthetic
Ephedra
Hyoscine butylbromide #3
Core
Palliative care
Solanaceae (div.)
Morphine
Core
Preoperative medication
and sedation
Papaver somniferum
Paclitaxel
Complementary
Cytotoxic and adjuvant
medicines
Taxus brevifolia
Quinine
Core
Antimalarial medicines
Cinchona (div.)
Salicylic acid
Core
Skin differentiation and
proliferation
Salix alba
Scopolamine
Core
Palliative care
Solanaceae (div.)
Vinblastine
Complementary
Cytotoxic and adjuvant
medicines
Catharanthus roseus
Semisynthetic derivatives of
#1 artemisinin, #2 paclitaxel and #3 scopolamine
Chapter 2 · Historical and Current Perspective