Ethnopharmacology

Ethnopharmacology is an interdisciplinary scientific exploration of biologically active agents traditionally employed or observed by man. Therefore, it is one of the scientific disciplines encompassing a diverse range of subjects. It links natural sciences research on medicinal, aromatic, and toxic plants with socio-cultural studies and has often been associated with the development of new drugs. Ethnopharmacology is far more than a science of the past using outmoded approaches. It still constitutes the scientific backbone for the development of active therapeutics based on traditional medicines of various ethnic groups. It has the ultimate aim of validating traditional preparations, either through the isolation of active substances or through various pharmacological findings. Many of the medicines relied on today, from aspirin to morphine to the anti-cancer drug, Taxol, were derived from plants. The cross-cultural study of medicines derived from naturally occurring substances like plants and fungi is known as ethnopharmacology.