Significance of endangered and threatened plant natural products in the control of human disease

 

http://www.pnas.org/content/110/42/16832.abstract?sid=aef05491-5cb3-4671-a07e-3e2da6141005

1. Mohamed Ali Ibrahim^a,^b,^c,
2. MinKyun Na^d,
3. Joonseok Oh^a,
4. Raymond F. Schinazi^e,^f,
5. Tami R. McBrayer^g,
6. Tony Whitaker^g,
7. Robert J. Doerksen^b,^h,
8. David J. Newmanⁱ,
9. Louis G. Zachos^j, and
10. Mark T. Hamann^a,^k,¹

1. Departments of ^aPharmacognosy,
2. ^hMedicinal Chemistry,
3. ^jGeology and Geological Engineering,
4. ^bNational Center for Natural Products Research, and
5. ^kDepartments of Pharmacology, Chemistry, and Biochemistry, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677;
6. ^cDepartment of Chemistry of Natural Compounds, National Research Center, Dokki 12622, Cairo, Egypt;
7. ^dCollege of Pharmacy, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 305-764, Republic of Korea;
8. ^eCenter for AIDS Research, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322;
9. ^fVeterans Affairs, Decatur, GA 30033;
10. ^gRFS Pharma, LLC, Tucker, GA 30084; and
11. ⁱNatural Products Branch, US National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 21702

1. Edited by Jerrold Meinwald, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and approved August 28, 2013 (received for review June 17, 2013)

Significance

In this report we describe a group of highly complex glycosides active against hepatitis C virus and a separate group of natural products active against established targets for the control of diabetes mellitus. These complex metabolites were found in the rare plant Diplostephium rhododendroides Hieron. from the mountains of Ecuador. This report illustrates the human health significance of protecting rare and endangered plants for the control of new and emerging diseases. The extinction of this particular plant would have taken with it promising opportunities to develop unique treatments for the control of two modern-day disease challenges. The genus Diplostephium is represented by several plant species with a history of use in traditional medicine in Central and South America.