Youngken • Botany and Medicine l49 



microbiological aspects of disease. To 1. The search for plant constitu- 



a great extent it has been based also ents.— Antibiotics.— It has been stated 



upon relationships between chemical that the most recent stimulus leading 



structure and pharmacological action, to the investigation of plants for bio- 



the so-called "molecular structure- logically active compounds began about 



activity" relationship. Out of this de- two decades ago in the early nineteen- 



velopment has come the age of chemo- thirties. It may be recalled that this 



therapy, the latter stimulated in the was the period when Flcmming, Florey 



late 19th century' by the contributions and Chain described the antibiotic 



of the German biologist Paul Ehrlich, properties of extracts from the blue- 



his "magic bullet" and antisyphilitic green mold Penicillium. From these 



arsenicals. The chemotherapeutic age obser\'ations came the antibiotic, cr\s- 



in medicine was given great exploita- talline penicillin. But lest we become 



tion in 1935 when the Nobel Prize win- too smug in our beliefs, it must be 



ner, Domagk, discovered the chemo- noted that molds were employed for 



therapy of prontosil, the forerunner of similar purposes by the Chinese thou- 



the synthetic sulfa drugs. sands of \ears ago. And several hundred 



years ago North American Indians are 



RE-INVESTIGATION OF PLANTS FOR kuown to havc employed both soil and 



MEDICINE rotting wood for the prevention of 



wound infections and for healing fes- 



With a modern advance in syn- tered cuts. Nevertheless, the penicillin 



thetic medicinal organic chemistn' discover)' was the forerunner of the 



there has developed recently a ver^^ modern antibiotic age and it undoubt- 



keen interest in the re-investigation of edly set the stage for a tremendous in- 



the constituents biosvnthesized bv Merest in the rc-investigation of lower 



plants and animals. Again botanv has and higher plants for new biologically 



become a tool of medicine through the active constituents. At least two hun- 



need to properly select plants for new dred antibiotics have been discovered 



drugs. Research in this phase has in- in living organisms since 1929. Yet, 



creased more during the last decade, thus far only about a dozen therapeu- 



because of success with the antibiotics tically useful antibiotic compounds 



and plant drugs such as Rauwolfia, have been successfully isolated from 



than at any time during the previous molds, bacteria, and soil actinomycetes, 



period of the 20th century. It has also all lower plants. Most of these have 



brought medical scientists into closer been procured since 1939 when Dubos 



contact with botanical experts in tax- isolated tyrothricin from the filtrates of 



onomv, anatomy, and plant biochem- cultures of Bacillus brevis; streptomy- 



istr\'. 'Such investigations have been cin was discovered from cultures of an 



prompted bv three general interests: 1. actinomycete in 1944, bacitracin m 



the search 'for plant constituents re- 1945, polymycin and Chloromycetin m 



sponsible for a biological activity; 2. the 1947, aureomycin in 1948, terramycin 



search for newer therapeutically active in 1950, and er\'thromycin in 1952. 



chemical derivatives of natural com- Vasodilators and antihypertensive 



pounds; and 3. the investigation of the agents.—SincQ glycer\'l trinitrate was 



biochemical and physiological role discovered by Sobrero in 1847 and 



played by plant and animal constitu- amyl nitrate was introduced to medical 



ents in the organisms producing them, practice by Guthrie about ten years 



The discussion that follows will deal later for the treatment of angina pec- 



with the first two of these interests. toris, nitrites and organic nitrates have 



