Discussion

Although plants, as well as other organisms, have been a source of leads for developing medicinal drugs against a diverse array of diseases, the use of such natural compounds is still being discussed. Plant species have gone extinct or are endangered as a result of habitat loss and excessive harvesting of these species. Additionally, the screening of plants for medically active substances as well as the synthesis of these substances are often difficult, time-consuming, and not necessarily economically viable processes. Another aspect that could be discussed is that there are a wide range of microorganisms that are similarly screened for anticancer metabolites. As the number of these species exceed those of plants, and numerous medically active compounds have been extracted from those, it could be argued that the importance of plants is discussable.

 

However, especially oncology has profited from using secondary metabolites for the development of cancer treatments, such as Taxol®. As we have seen from the history of discovering this chemotherapy agent, the overuse of such species can have significant implications for the species itself, the environment as well as economy, politics and science. With greater understanding of the consequences of the exploitation of a single species, different methods of extraction and synthesis were promoted.

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During the last years, an increase in the surveillance of threatened species and the discovery of new species can be observed. This certainly helps to raise awareness about the biodiversity crisis and the importance to act. Additionally, new methods of synthesis were developed, such as lab-based cultivation of endophytic fungi that produce selected secondary metabolites for medical purposes or production of these compounds by genetically engineered plant cell cultures. This alleviates the pressure that currently lies on a large number of plant species to a certain extent. However, it should be acknowledged that there are still several ways in which the human species affects its biotic and abiotic environment. The complex network of the changes we exert involves feedback loops, that will in turn affect us. Whether the goal should be to preserve nature for its own inherent value might be in the eye of the beholder, but that the effects of our actions will lead back to affect our societies is undoubted.