Many of today’s powerful medicines come from plants — morphine from opium poppy, paclitaxel from yew trees, and quinine from cinchona bark. Yet, as modern medicine turns toward synthetic and lab-made drugs, natural sources are often overlooked.
With new tools like biotechnology and molecular modeling, scientists can now study plant compounds more precisely than ever. These discoveries could lead to safer, more effective versions of natural medicines. Still, questions remain about sustainability, quality control, and the balance between traditional wisdom and modern science.
Are we moving too far away from nature in our search for new drugs? Or could the next breakthrough medicine already be growing in the wild?
MBH/AB