Drug Development and Biocultural Diversity Conservation

National Tropical Botanical Garden, Kalaheo HI

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Broad Lonq-Term Goals and Objectives Undertake planning and coordination activities to create a full ICBG proposal that will undertake the following specific activities: Specific Aims To perform additional pre-clinical evaluations of Prostratin (for HIV/AIDS) and to discover and develop other bioactive agents of potential utility for local and international health priorities. The source of new bioactive agents or phytomedicine products will be terrestrial plants, micro-organisms and marine organisms found in of Samoa and Tonga. To create sustainable harvest programs for the harvesting of Homo/anthus nutans and develop this general capacity for the creation of local biodiversity based sustainable development of phytomedicines. To implement a highly integrated ethnomedical field research program in Samoa and Tonga that utilizes a sophisticated union of western trained medical doctors, traditional healers and ethnobotanists. To help conserve vanishing ethnomedical knowledge in these nations. To conduct inventories and collections of vascular plants and micro-organisms in these island nations where endemism of the regions flora is very high. To train and build capacity with local scientists and emerging scientific professionals. To undertake the collection of marine organisms in Samoa and Tonga and isolate compounds. Micro-organisms will also be isolated from these materials and screened for antinfective activity. To screen plant extracts and compounds derived from terrestrial and marine environments for anti-infective, CNS, anti-cancer, cardiovascular and phytomedicine applications.