The pharmacology of extinction
Review published in Journal of ethnopharmacology (1992)
Abstract
It is impossible to predict what compounds of pharmacological interest may be present in an unexamined species. The extinction of such species may result, therefore, in the loss of therapeutically significant compounds. The fact that science will never know what has been lost does not lessen the significance of the loss. A number of species are discussed to exemplify the potential loss. Ginkgo biloba is an ancient plant, apparently saved from a natural extinction by human intervention. From this tree, the ginkgolides have been isolated. These are potent inhibitors of platelet activating factor and hold promise in the treatment of cerebral ischemia and brain edema. Two species, the tree Taxus brevifolia and the leech Hirudo medicinalis, are threatened as a result of human activity. Both have recently yielded complex compounds of therapeutic importance. The antitumor agent, taxol, is obtained from T. brevifolia and the thrombin inhibitor, hirudin, is found in H. medicinalis. Catharanthus roseus, source of the anticancer agents vincristine and vinblastine, although not threatened, derives from a largely unexamined but severely stressed ecosystem of some 5000 plant species. In other examples, ethnobotanical knowledge of certain plants may be lost while the species survive, as exemplified by the suppression of the Aztec ethnobotany of Mesoamerica by the invading Spanish. Finally, the fallacy of the 'snail darter syndrome', where species may be viewed as too insignificant to worry about, is exposed by consideration of the pharmacological activities of a sea hare (a shell-less marine mollusc) and various leeches.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Resumen
It is impossible to predict what compounds of pharmacological interest may be present in an unexamined species.
Por qué esto importa para la hirudoterapia
Esta revisión analiza cómo la extinción de especies puede conducir a la pérdida de compuestos de importancia terapéutica, citando múltiples ejemplos entre los que se incluyen Ginkgo biloba (gingkólidos), Taxus brevifolia (taxol), Catharanthus roseus (vincristina, vinblastina) y la sanguijuela Hirudo medicinalis (hirudina). Identifica a H. medicinalis como una especie amenazada por la actividad humana de la cual se ha obtenido la hirudina, un inhibidor de la trombina de importancia terapéutica, y referencia las actividades farmacológicas de diversas sanguijuelas como ejemplos adicionales. Para el ámbito de ASH, esto es relevante en la medida en que enmarca a las sanguijuelas medicinales como una fuente de compuestos bioactivos terapéuticos y subraya la importancia para la conservación de la biodiversidad de las sanguijuelas. La matización es que se trata de una revisión narrativa amplia más que de un estudio empírico, y no aporta datos originales sobre hirudoterapia ni sobre compuestos derivados de sanguijuela más allá de la hirudina.
Citación
Contexto clínico relacionado
Explore cómo esta investigación se conecta con la práctica clínica
Añadido a la biblioteca ASH: May 27, 2026 · Última actualización del sitio: 18 de junio de 2026