SCIENCE AND MEDICINE
Weeds, not jungle plants, are more likely to have medicinal value
t may be more exciting to plunge
I into the Amazon rainforest looking
for exotic medicinal plants, but hunt-
ing among the weeds found choking
vacant lots may be a better bet, a new
study finds. The reason is that
fast-growing weeds are more likely
than rainforest plants to rely on
chemical warfare to fight off plant-
eating animals and insects, say the
study’s authors, and thus are more
likely to produce compounds, such as
alkaloids, glycosides, and flavonoids,
that have pharmacological effects.
In the study, John Stepp of the
University of Georgia (Athens, GA,
USA) and Daniel Moerman of the
University of Michigan-Dearborn
(Dearborn, MI, USA) studied the
medicinal plant use of 208 residents
from six communities in the
highlands of Chiapas, Mexico, where
80% of the people speak no language
other than the Mayan language of
Tzeltal (J Ethnopharmacol 2001; 75:
19–23).
They found that over a 7 month
period the villagers collected 103
different plant species to treat a
variety of conditions, most of which
were respiratory and gastrointestinal
illnesses. 35 of the 105 plants were
Bacteriophage therapy offers new hope for streptococcal infections
B acteriophages can be used to
eradicate the carriage of patho-
genic group A streptococci without
destroying the normal microflora in
the mucosal membrane, according
to a study by Daniel Nelson and col-
leagues. (Proc Natl Acad Sci USA
2001; 7: 4107–12). “We believe that
for the first time since the advent of
antibiotics, we may have an alter-
native strategy to kill bacteria using
highly evolved enzymes that have
been developed by bacteriophages
to kill bacteria”, says Vincent
Fischetti, a lead investigator of the
study (Rockefeller Institute, New
York, USA).
Bacteriophages are viruses that
infect only bacteria. Each kind of
bacteria has a corresponding bacte-
riophage (or “phage”) that infects
it. In streptococci, the phage
replicates and the progeny phage
produce enzymes, which are used
to degrade the bacterial cell wall
(killing the micro-organism in the
process) so they can escape and
infect other nearby bacteria.
The researchers examined the
killing activity of one of these
938
For personal use only. Reproduce with permission from The Lancet Publishing Group.
weeds, a term used to describe
fast-growing species that thrive in
areas that have been disturbed by
human activities such as clearing land
Rights were not
granted to include this
image in electronic
media. Please refer to
the printed journal.
Panos Pictures
Who wants to buy some weed?
and trail making. This was nearly
twice the number that would be
predicted based on the percentage of
plant species in the area that are
classified as weeds (13%).
Stepp and Moernman also
analysed data collected on plants
used for medicinal purposes by the
native Americans of North America
and found that although weeds make
up only 9·6% of the plant species of
North America, they made up more
than 25% of the species used as
medicines by Native Americans.
Weeds are used as medicines for a
enzymes on group A streptococci
using a murine hydrolase, referred
to as lysin, from the streptococcal
bacteriophage C1.
The researchers believe the
enzyme acts on contact with
the bacteria. Within 5 s, 1 000 units
(10 ng) of enzyme were able to kill a
107 culture of group A streptococci
in vitro. Furthermore, when the
researchers orally treated nine
colonised rats with lysin (500 units),
they found the enzyme eliminated
group A streptocccoci 2 h after
treatment.
Since colonising streptococci are
generally exposed on human
mucosal epithelial surfaces in much
the same way as in mice, the inves-
tigators are confident they will see
the same results in human beings.
Pre-treating mice with lysin (250
units) prior to infection signifi-
cantly protects the mice from
colonisation compared with the
control mice with no lysin. In addi-
tion, unlike traditional antibiotics,
the researchers showed that giving
C1 phage lysin does not harm the
indigenous mucosal bacteria. “The
number of reasons, Stepp and
Moerman argue. First, they are near
at hand, growing in abundance where
land has been disturbed by agricul-
ture and building. Therefore, unlike
plants that grow deep in the jungle,
weeds are much easier to gather.
“Plants that take several days to find
and collect are not very beneficial
when one is sick”, they note. Second,
because they are close by, weeds can
also be put to use quickly while they
are still fresh and thus are more likely
to be potent.
But the most important reasons
why these plants are used as medi-
cines, they write, is that unlike slow-
growing, longer-lived plants, such as
trees, vines, and shrubs, which often
rely on the physical protection
provided by thick bark, woody stems,
and thick leaves, weeds tend to rely
on chemicals that poison or at least
discourage their predators. Weeds are
used because they have chemicals
that have real biological effects, Stepp
told The Lancet. “While abundance
and availability are important, the
reason for their use is that they are
often efficacious.”
Michael McCarthy
use of phage lytic enzymes offers a
safe alternative [to antibiotics]. It
may also be used to prevent the
spread of streptococci to classmates
and family members if the infected
individual is treated orally with the
enzyme”, Fischetti adds.
One area where the therapy could
be invaluable is in developing coun-
tries, say the authors, where “strep
throat” can lead to rheumatic
fever, a major cause of heart dis-
ease in childhood. The US army are
also interested in controlling strep-
tococcal infections among recruits.
The team plans to begin phase I
clinical trials on the streptococcal
enzyme. “We are also in the
process of developing enzymes for
pneumococci to control otitis
media in children and pneumonia
in the elderly, because the penu-
moccoci that cause these diseases
are carried in the nasopharynx
prior to infection. Lowering their
numbers in the nasopharynx, will
result in a major impact on these
diseases”, Fischetti concludes.
Pam Das
THE LANCET • Vol 357 • March 24, 2001