Half of future medicines are at risk of extinction

Weather of Arabia - With the advancement of technology and scientific research in the field of medicine and pharmacy, many expect that we will have a promising future for the pharmaceutical industry. However, there are great challenges facing this field, including the risk of the extinction of half of future medicines. The question here is, is this a possible future scenario? What are the reasons behind it? We'll explore that in this article.

Losing half of future medications

Scientists warned of the risk of losing up to half of her future medications ; Because many plant species are threatened with extinction, it is estimated that nearly half of all flowering plant species are threatened with extinction, with a total of more than 100,000 species. While about 77% of species that have not yet been discovered by science are believed to be at risk.

In some cases, extinctions of these species occur between the time they were first discovered and the time they were documented, and it takes on average about 16 years . The main reason behind these extinctions is the loss of the natural habitats of these species, as a result of deforestation or the construction of dams that flood areas of rivers and waterways.

Matilda Brown, a conservation analyst at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, the London borough of Richmond, noted that climate change “poses an increasingly serious threat,” but she shows that measuring this threat is much more difficult.

Brown, who is among the researchers who published a new report titled The State of the World's Plants and Fungi , stressed the need to treat all new plant species as if they are threatened unless proven otherwise. She explained:

“We're looking at more than 100,000 species that are threatened with extinction, and that's more than the number of species of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, and all vertebrates we have combined.”

She concluded her speech by saying:

“When we take into account that nine out of ten of our medicines are based on plants, what we might be at risk of is losing half of our future medicines. So, this is not just a big number if you are a plant, it is a huge impact that could affect humanity in a big way.” .

The growing threat to biodiversity

Many newly discovered species are in danger of extinction ; Because of their presence in limited areas or because of the great human influence in those areas, there are areas that we cannot reach to discover new plant species to help us in scientific research, which they called dark spots, which are found in areas such as the Amazon, India, China, tropical Southeast Asia, and some areas. Middle East, due to challenges related to conflicts, difficult terrain and lack of funding, which makes the task of botanists difficult.

More than 200 scientists from 102 different institutions in 30 countries have prepared a comprehensive report entitled Q, which includes the International Checklist of Vascular Plants, the most complete record of known species, with more than 350,000 names . With regard to fungi, Approximately 155,000 species , with an estimated 2.5 million species, demonstrate the significant gap in our understanding of these important organisms.

Professor Ravel Govaerts, who spent 35 years collecting this data, points out that seeing all the types of plants existing on Earth was the dream of the scientist Charles Darwin , which he tried to achieve. These lists require constant updating, as about 2,500 new types of plants are officially described annually. , with the exception of fungi, which remain one of the least understood groups in the natural world.

Experts in the study of fungi confirm that there are about 2.5 million species of them, but a very small percentage of them have been recorded so far, and scientists believe that the use of DNA analysis techniques and molecular data can help speed up the process of classifying these organisms, making them better understood and protected.

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, scientists have described 10,200 new species of fungi and more than 8,600 species of plants, thanks to precautionary measures that have given them more time to work on examples that have been collected, but not yet classified. .

The academics hope that the growing interest in these plants and fungi will lead to them being considered an essential element in future environmental protection plans, especially within the framework of commitments to protect 30% of the planet by 2030 , and they stress the need to pay attention to the importance of these organisms alongside animals when making future decisions.

Also know:

How does climate change threaten olive trees?

The smallest flowering plant on Earth may become food and a source of oxygen for astronauts

Sources:

aawsat

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