Abstract
Nature has been the source of life-changing and -saving medications for centuries. Aspirin, penicillin and morphine are prime examples of Nature׳s gifts to medicine. These discoveries catalyzed the field of natural product drug discovery which has mostly focused on plants. However, insects have more than twice the number of species and entomotherapy has been in practice for as long as and often in conjunction with medicinal plants and is an important alternative to modern medicine in many parts of the world. Herein, an overview of current traditional medicinal applications of insects and characterization of isolated biologically active molecules starting from approximately 2010 is presented. Insect natural products reviewed were isolated from ants, bees, wasps, beetles, cockroaches, termites, flies, true bugs, moths and more. Biological activities of these natural products from insects include antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 409-426 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| Journal | Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 1 2017 |
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All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics(all)
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Insects : an underrepresented resource for the discovery of biologically active natural products. / Seabrooks, Lauren; Hu, Longqin.
In: Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B, Vol. 7, No. 4, 01.07.2017, p. 409-426.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Insects
T2 - an underrepresented resource for the discovery of biologically active natural products
AU - Seabrooks, Lauren
AU - Hu, Longqin
PY - 2017/7/1
Y1 - 2017/7/1
N2 - Nature has been the source of life-changing and -saving medications for centuries. Aspirin, penicillin and morphine are prime examples of Nature׳s gifts to medicine. These discoveries catalyzed the field of natural product drug discovery which has mostly focused on plants. However, insects have more than twice the number of species and entomotherapy has been in practice for as long as and often in conjunction with medicinal plants and is an important alternative to modern medicine in many parts of the world. Herein, an overview of current traditional medicinal applications of insects and characterization of isolated biologically active molecules starting from approximately 2010 is presented. Insect natural products reviewed were isolated from ants, bees, wasps, beetles, cockroaches, termites, flies, true bugs, moths and more. Biological activities of these natural products from insects include antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects.
AB - Nature has been the source of life-changing and -saving medications for centuries. Aspirin, penicillin and morphine are prime examples of Nature׳s gifts to medicine. These discoveries catalyzed the field of natural product drug discovery which has mostly focused on plants. However, insects have more than twice the number of species and entomotherapy has been in practice for as long as and often in conjunction with medicinal plants and is an important alternative to modern medicine in many parts of the world. Herein, an overview of current traditional medicinal applications of insects and characterization of isolated biologically active molecules starting from approximately 2010 is presented. Insect natural products reviewed were isolated from ants, bees, wasps, beetles, cockroaches, termites, flies, true bugs, moths and more. Biological activities of these natural products from insects include antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85019734902&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85019734902&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.apsb.2017.05.001
DO - 10.1016/j.apsb.2017.05.001
M3 - Review article
VL - 7
SP - 409
EP - 426
JO - Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B
JF - Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B
SN - 2211-3835
IS - 4
ER -