Lewis was intrigued by the results of an analysis of the plants collected by the team - plants being used by indigenous people to treat specific diseases, but not necessarily tuberculosis. We would expect that in targeted medicinal plants we would find approximately 50 percent or higher activity. The results just surprised us. Lewis presented his research at the 14th Annual Meeting of the Society for Economic Botany, held June 20 to 23 at the University of South Carolina. The research is supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
Tuberculosis remains a very serious health problem in the U.S. and worldwide.
WHO estimates that one third of the world s population is infected with M. tuberculosis. TB was once considered to be eradicated in the U.S. by aggressive use of antibiotics and isolation of patients. But in recent years, the disease has cropped up again, particularly among the homeless and drug users. The development of certain drug resistant strains of tuberculosis combined with the spread of the HIV virus can account for the recent comeback of this deadly disease. Exposure to TB in the remote parts of the Upper Amazon has been minimal, and the native tribes, including the Aguaruna, have little experience with the disease, making the discovery of the inhibitory plant samples even more significant.