page_title: Secondary metabolite
section_title: Plant secondary metabolites in medicine
hierarchical_section_title: Secondary metabolite / Plant secondary metabolites in medicine
caption_attribution_description: pavot
context_page_description: Secondary metabolites also called Specialized Metabolites, secondary products or Natural Products are organic compounds produced by bacteria, fungi, or plants which are not directly involved in the normal growth, development, or reproduction of the organism. Unlike primary metabolites, absence of secondary metabolites does not result in immediate death, but rather in a long-term impairment of the organism's survivability, fecundity, or aesthetics, or perhaps in no significant change at all. Specific secondary metabolites are often restricted to a narrow set of species within a phylogenetic group. Secondary metabolites often play an important role in plant defense against herbivory and other interspecies defenses. Humans use secondary metabolites as medicines, flavourings, pigments, and recreational drugs.
  The term secondary metabolite was first coined by Albrecht Kossel, a 1910 Nobel Prize laureate for medicine and physiology in 1910. 30 years later a Polish botanist Friedrich Johann Franz Czapek described secondary metabolites as end products of nitrogen metabolism.
context_section_description: Many drugs used in modern medicine are derived from plant secondary metabolites.  
  The two most commonly known Terpenoids are Artemisinin and Taxol®. Artemisinin was widely used in Traditional Chinese medicine and later rediscovered as a powerful antimalarial by a Chinese scientist Tu Youyou. She was later awarded the Nobel Prize for the discovery in 2015. Currently, the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, has become resistant to artemisinin alone and the World Health Organization recommends its use with other antimalarial drugs for a successful therapy. Paclitaxel the active compound found in Taxol is a chemotherapy drug used to treat many forms of cancers including ovarian cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, Kaposi sarcoma, cervical cancer, and pancreatic cancer.  Taxol was first isolated in 1973 from barks of a coniferous tree, the Pacific Yew.
  Morphine and Codeine both belong to the class of alkaloids and are derived from Opium poppies. Morphine was discovered in 1804 by a German pharmacist Friedrich Sertürnert. It was the first active alkaloid extracted from the opium poppy. It is mostly known for its strong analgesic effects, however, morphine is also used to treat shortness of breath and treatment of addiction to stronger opiates such as heroin. Despite its positive effects on humans, morphine has very strong adverse effects, such as addiction, hormone imbalance or constipation. Due to its highly addictive nature morphine is a strictly controlled substance around the world, used only in very severe cases with some countries underusing it compared to the global average due the social stigma around it.
  Codeine, also an alkaloid derived from the opium poppy, is considered the most widely used drug in the world according to World Health Organization. It was first isolated in 1832 by a French chemist Pierre Jean Robiquet, also known for the discovery of caffeine and a widely used red dye alizarin. Primarily codeine is used to treat mild pain and relief coughing although in some cases it is used to treat diarrhea and some forms of Irritable bowel syndrome. Codeine has the strength of 0.1-0.15 compared to morphine ingested orally, hence it is much safer to use. Although codeine can be extracted from the opium poppy, the process is not feasible economically due to the low abundance of pure codeine in the plant. A chemical process of methylation of the much more abundant morphine is the main method of production.
  Atropine is an alkaloid first found in atropa belladonna, a member of the nightshade family. Pure atropine was first extracted in the 19th century, however its' medical use dates back to fourth century B.C. where it was used for wounds, gout, and sleeplessness. Currently atropine is administered intraveinously to treat bradycardia and as an antidote to organophosphate poisoning. Overdosing of atropine may lead to atropine poisoning which results in side effect such as Blurred vision, nausea, lack of sweating, dry mouth and tachycardia.
  Resveratrol is a flavinoid belonging to the phenolics family. It is highly abundant in grapes, blueberries, raspberries and peanuts. It is commonly used as a dietary supplement for extending life and reducing the risk of cancer and heart disease, however no there is no strong evidence supporting that. Despite no strong evidence for the use of resveratrol flavonoids on the whole have beneficial effects for humans. For instance certain studies shown that flavonoids have direct antibiotic activity. A number of in vitro and limited in vivo studies shown that flavonoids such as Quercetin have synergistic activity with antibiotics and are able to suppress bacterial loads.
  Digoxin is a cardiac glycoside first derived by William Withering in 1785 from the Fox Glove plant. It is typically used to treat heart conditions such as atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter or heart failure. Digoxin can, however, have side effects such as nausea, bradycardia, diarrhea or even life threatening arrhythmia.
caption: Opium field in Afghanistan, the largest grower of opium.[25]
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