Medicines are often used to cure, prevent, reduce or diagnose illnesses. With the many advances in medicines, doctors are better able to help heal the

Medicines are often used to cure, prevent, reduce or diagnose illnesses. With the many advances in medicines, doctors are better able to help heal the sick and save lives. For many centuries, plants have been used as traditional remedies and today these powerhouses are used by scientists on an even wider scale to cure many diseases. Let’s dive into some plants that are used in life-saving medicines. You just might be familiar with some of these.    1. Podophyllum Peltatum and Etoposide The plant, Podophyllum peltatum was first used by the Native Americans as an antiparasitic and purgative and by the Penobscot people to treat cancer. A Swiss pharmacologist, Hartmann Stahelin and his team discovered that an extract from the Podophyllum Peltatum called etoposide can be used to make antitumor medication. This plant has antimitotic, anticancer and immunostimulant effects. The medication prevents the cells of the tumor from dividing. Today, etoposide is used to treat a range of cancers. 2. The Calabar Bean and Physostigmine The calabar bean, Physotigma venenosum, is a plant which contains a potent component called physostigmine. Douglas Argyll Robertson was the first to use calabar bean extract for medicine for the eyes. It was also used by Ludwig Laqueur in 1867 to successfully treat his glaucoma. The extract of the calabar bean affects signals between muscles and nerves. Today, it is used clinically to manage the pressure in the eye of glaucoma patients and to contract the pupil of the eye. Recently, physostigmine is used in the treatment of Alzheimer’s. 3. The Pacific Yew Tree and Paclitaxel The Pacific yew tree is indigenous to the Pacific NorthWest. The discovery that extracts from the bark of the tree was poisonous to tumor cells was made by Dr. Monroe Wall and Mansukh Wani. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) funded research on the use of the Pacific yew tree to treat cancer. Pactitaxel, with the trade name Taxol, prevents cancer cells from growing and dividing through mitosis, thus destroying the tumor cells. It is used to treat lung, breast and ovarian cancer.  The naturally-sourced medicine is widely used and has led to the survival of many patients. Research continues to see whether this compound can be used in the treatment of other cancers. 4. Foxglove and Digoxin The chemical compounds derived from foxglove are used in the manufacturing of a prescription medicine called digoxin. It is used to treat irregular heartbeat and heart failure and the buildup of fluid in the body. It is said that in 1775, a patient got better after being severely ill with a heart condition when he took a herbal remedy from a gypsy. Dr. William Withering found that foxglove, a plant, was the main ingredient and after much testing, found that the dried powdered leaves were most effective. Digoxin is not widely used today with the emergence of more modern medicines. 5. Madagascar Periwinkle and Vinblastine and Vincristine Since ancient Rome, Madagascar periwinkle has been used for medicinal purposes such as a home remedy to cure dysentery. The Madagascar periwinkle produces two alkaloids- vinblastine and vincristine which are used today in chemotherapy for the treatment of cancer. The anticancer properties of vincristine are used to increase the survival rate of childhood leukemia and vinblastine is used to treat Hodgkin’s Disease.

Plants That Led to Amazing Life-Saving Medicines

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