Exploration of nature for material with commercial potential
Many important medications have been discovered by bioprospecting including the diabetes drug metformin (developed from a natural product found in Galega officinalis).[1]
Bioprospecting has both strengths and weaknesses as a strategy for discovering new genes, molecules, and organisms suitable for development and commercialization.
With the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) now ratified by most countries, bioprospecting has the potential to bring biodiversity-rich and technologically advanced nations together, and benefit them both educationally and economically (eg. information sharing, technology transfer, new product development, royalty payment).[2][35]
For useful molecules identified through microbial bioprospecting, scale up of production is feasible at reasonable cost because the producing microorganism can be cultured in a bioreactor.[8][36]
Weaknesses
Although some potentially very useful microorganisms are known to exist in nature (eg. lignocellulose-metabolizing microbes), difficulties have been encountered cultivating these in a laboratory setting.[38] This problem may be resolvable by genetically manipulating easier-to-culture organisms such as Escherichia coli or Streptomyces coelicolor to express the gene cluster responsible for the desired activity.[14][39]
Isolating and identifying the compound(s) responsible for a biological extract's activity can be difficult.[39] Also, subsequent elucidation of the mechanism of action of the isolated compound can be time-consuming.[39] Technological advancements in liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry and other techniques are helping to overcome these challenges.[39]
Implementing and enforcing bioprospecting-related treaties and legislation is not always easy.[2][35] Drug development is an inherently expensive and time-consuming process with low success rates, and this makes it difficult to quantify the value of potential products when drafting bioprospecting agreements.[2]Intellectual property rights may be difficult to award too. For example, legal rights to a medicinal plant may be disputable if it has been discovered by different people in different parts of the world at different times.[2]
Whilst the structural complexity of natural products is generally advantageous in drug discovery, it can make the subsequent manufacture of drug candidates difficult. This problem is sometimes resolvable by identifying the part of the natural product structure responsible for activity and developing a simplified synthetic analogue. This was necessary with the natural product halichondrin B, its simplified analogue eribulin now approved and marketed as an anticancer drug.[40]
Bioprospecting pitfalls
Errors and oversights can occur at different steps in the bioprospecting process including collection of source material, screening source material for bioactivity, testing isolated compounds for toxicity, and identification of mechanism of action.
Collection of source material
Prior to collecting biological material or traditional knowledge, the correct permissions must be obtained from the source country, land owner etc. Failure to do so can result in criminal proceedings and rejection of any subsequent patent applications. It is also important to collect biological material in adequate quantities, to have biological material formally identified, and to deposit a voucher specimen with a repository for long-term preservation and storage. This helps ensure any important discoveries are reproducible.[10][13]
Bioactivity and toxicity testing
When testing extracts and isolated compounds for bioactivity and toxicity, the use of standard protocols (eg. CLSI, ISO, NIH, EURL ECVAM, OECD) is desirable because this improves test result accuracy and reproducibility. Also, if the source material is likely to contain known (previously discovered) active compounds (eg. streptomycin in the case of actinomycetes), then dereplication is necessary to exclude these extracts and compounds from the discovery pipeline as early as possible. In addition, it is important to consider solvent effects on the cells or cell lines being tested, to include reference compounds (ie. pure chemical compounds for which accurate bioactivity and toxicity data are available), to set limits on cell line passage number (eg. 10–20 passages), to include all the necessary positive and negative controls, and to be aware of assay limitations. These steps help ensure assay results are accurate, reproducible and interpreted correctly.[10][13]
Identification of mechanism of action
When attempting to elucidate the mechanism of action of an extract or isolated compound, it is important to use multiple orthogonal assays. Using just a single assay, especially a single in vitro assay, gives a very incomplete picture of an extract or compound's effect on the human body.[41][42] In the case of Valeriana officinalis root extract, for example, the sleep-inducing effects of this extract are due to multiple compounds and mechanisms including interaction with GABA receptors and relaxation of smooth muscle.[41] The mechanism of action of an isolated compound can also be misidentified if a single assay is used because some compounds interfere with assays. For example, the sulfhydryl-scavenging assay used to detect histone acetyltransferase inhibition can give a false positive result if the test compound reacts covalently with cysteines.[42]
Biopiracy
Look up biopiracy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
The term biopiracy was coined by Pat Mooney,[43] to describe a practice in which indigenous knowledge of nature, originating with indigenous peoples, is used by others for profit, without authorization or compensation to the indigenous people themselves.[44] For example, when bioprospectors draw on indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants which is later patented by medical companies without recognizing the fact that the knowledge is not new or invented by the patenter, this deprives the indigenous community of their potential rights to the commercial product derived from the technology that they themselves had developed.[45] Critics of this practice, such as Greenpeace,[46] claim these practices contribute to inequality between developing countries rich in biodiversity, and developed countries hosting biotech firms.[45]
In the 1990s many large pharmaceutical and drug discovery companies responded to charges of biopiracy by ceasing work on natural products, turning to combinatorial chemistry to develop novel compounds.[43]
Famous cases of biopiracy
The rosy periwinkle
The rosy periwinkle case dates from the 1950s. The rosy periwinkle, while native to Madagascar, had been widely introduced into other tropical countries around the world well before the discovery of vincristine. Different countries are reported as having acquired different beliefs about the medical properties of the plant.[47] This meant that researchers could obtain local knowledge from one country and plant samples from another. The use of the plant for diabetes was the original stimulus for research. Effectiveness in the treatment of both Hodgkin lymphoma and leukemia were discovered instead.[48] The Hodgkin lymphoma chemotherapeutic drug vinblastine is derivable from the rosy periwinkle.[49]
The Maya ICBG case was among the first to draw attention to the problems of distinguishing between benign forms of bioprospecting and unethical biopiracy, and to the difficulties of securing community participation and prior informed consent for would-be bioprospectors.[52]
In 1997, the US corporation RiceTec (a subsidiary of RiceTec AG of Liechtenstein) attempted to patent certain hybrids of basmati rice and semidwarf long-grain rice.[57] The Indian government challenged this patent and, in 2002, fifteen of the patent's twenty claims were invalidated.[58]
The Enola bean
The Enola bean is a variety of Mexican yellow bean, so called after the wife of the man who patented it in 1999.[59] The allegedly distinguishing feature of the variety is seeds of a specific shade of yellow. The patent-holder subsequently sued a large number of importers of Mexican yellow beans with the following result: "...export sales immediately dropped over 90% among importers that had been selling these beans for years, causing economic damage to more than 22,000 farmers in northern Mexico who depended on sales of this bean."[60] A lawsuit was filed on behalf of the farmers and, in 2005, the US-PTO ruled in favor of the farmers. In 2008, the patent was revoked.[61]
Hoodia gordonii
Hoodia gordonii, a succulent plant, originates from the Kalahari Desert of South Africa. For generations it has been known to the traditionally living San people as an appetite suppressant. In 1996 South Africa's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research began working with companies, including Unilever, to develop dietary supplements based on Hoodia.[62][63][64][65] Originally the San people were not scheduled to receive any benefits from the commercialization of their traditional knowledge, but in 2003 the South African San Council made an agreement with CSIR in which they would receive from 6 to 8% of the revenue from the sale of Hoodia products.[66]
In 2008 after having invested €20 million in R&D on Hoodia as a potential ingredient in dietary supplements for weight loss, Unilever terminated the project because their clinical studies did not show that Hoodia was safe and effective enough to bring to market.[67]
Further cases
The following is a selection of further recent cases of biopiracy. Most of them do not relate to traditional medicines.
One common misunderstanding is that pharmaceutical companies patent the plants they collect. While obtaining a patent on a naturally occurring organism as previously known or used is not possible, patents may be taken out on specific chemicals isolated or developed from plants. Often these patents are obtained with a stated and researched use of those chemicals.[citation needed] Generally the existence, structure and synthesis of those compounds is not a part of the indigenous medical knowledge that led researchers to analyze the plant in the first place. As a result, even if the indigenous medical knowledge is taken as prior art, that knowledge does not by itself make the active chemical compound "obvious," which is the standard applied under patent law.
In the United States, patent law can be used to protect "isolated and purified" compounds – even, in one instance, a new chemical element (see USP 3,156,523). In 1873, Louis Pasteur patented a "yeast" which was "free from disease" (patent #141072). Patents covering biological inventions have been treated similarly. In the 1980 case of Diamond v. Chakrabarty, the Supreme Court upheld a patent on a bacterium that had been genetically modified to consume petroleum, reasoning that U.S. law permits patents on "anything under the sun that is made by man." The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has observed that "a patent on a gene covers the isolated and purified gene but does not cover the gene as it occurs in nature".[76]
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) came into force in 1993. It secured rights to control access to genetic resources for the countries in which those resources are located. One objective of the CBD is to enable lesser-developed countries to better benefit from their resources and traditional knowledge. Under the rules of the CBD, bioprospectors are required to obtain informed consent to access such resources, and must share any benefits with the biodiversity-rich country.[80] However, some critics believe that the CBD has failed to establish appropriate regulations to prevent biopiracy.[81] Others claim that the main problem is the failure of national governments to pass appropriate laws implementing the provisions of the CBD.[82] The Nagoya Protocol to the CBD, which came into force in 2014, provides further regulations.[83] The CBD has been ratified, acceded or accepted by 196 countries and jurisdictions globally, with exceptions including the Holy See and United States.[79]
Bioprospecting contracts
The requirements for bioprospecting as set by CBD has created a new branch of international patent and trade law, bioprospecting contracts.[2] Bioprospecting contracts lay down the rules of benefit sharing between researchers and countries, and can bring royalties to lesser-developed countries. However, although these contracts are based on prior informed consent and compensation (unlike biopiracy), every owner or carrier of an indigenous knowledge and resources are not always consulted or compensated,[84] as it would be difficult to ensure every individual is included.[85] Because of this, some have proposed that the indigenous or other communities form a type of representative micro-government that would negotiate with researchers to form contracts in such a way that the community benefits from the arrangements.[85] Unethical bioprospecting contracts (as distinct from ethical ones) can be viewed as a new form of biopiracy.[81]
An example of a bioprospecting contract is the agreement between Merck and INBio of Costa Rica.[86]
^Mazarrasa I, Olsen YS, Mayol E, Marbà N, Duarte CM (October 2014). "Global unbalance in seaweed production, research effort and biotechnology markets". Biotechnology Advances. 32 (5): 1028–36. doi:10.1016/j.biotechadv.2014.05.002. PMID24858315.
^"Biopiracy". www.merriam-webster.com. Merriam-Webster. 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
^Benson E (February 2012). "Endangered science: the regulation of research by the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection and Endangered Species Acts". Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences. 42 (1): 30–61. doi:10.1525/hsns.2012.42.1.30. PMID27652415.
^ abWani JA, Wali AF, Majid S, Rasool S, Rehman MU, Rashid SM, Ali S, Farooq S, Rasool S, Ahmad A, Qamar W (2020). "Bio-Pesticides: Application and Possible Mechanism of Action". In Bhat RA, Hakeem KR, Dervash MA (eds.). Bioremediation and Biotechnology, Vol 2: Degradation of Pesticides and Heavy Metals. Cham. pp. 97–119. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-40333-1_6. ISBN978-3-030-40332-4. S2CID218939420.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^John RP, Tyagi RD, Brar SK, Surampalli RY, Prévost D (September 2011). "Bio-encapsulation of microbial cells for targeted agricultural delivery". Critical Reviews in Biotechnology. 31 (3): 211–226. doi:10.3109/07388551.2010.513327. PMID20879835. S2CID207467630.
^Kano S (May 2014). "Artemisinin-based combination therapies and their introduction in Japan". Kansenshogaku Zasshi. 88 (3 Suppl 9–10): 18–25. PMID24979951.
^Saraiva RG, Dimopoulos G (2020). "Bacterial natural products in the fight against mosquito-transmitted tropical diseases". Natural Product Reports. 37 (3): 338–354. doi:10.1039/c9np00042a. PMID31544193. S2CID202731385.
^"Bleomycin". US National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
^Borel JF, Kis ZL, Beveridge T (1995). "The History of the Discovery and Development of Cyclosporine (Sandimmune®)". The Search for Anti-Inflammatory Drugs. Boston, MA. pp. 27–63. doi:10.1007/978-1-4615-9846-6_2. ISBN978-1-4615-9848-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Russo P, Frustaci A, Del Bufalo A, Fini M, Cesario A (2013). "Multitarget drugs of plants origin acting on Alzheimer's disease". Current Medicinal Chemistry. 20 (13): 1686–93. doi:10.2174/0929867311320130008. PMID23410167.
^ abHoughton PJ, Howes MJ, Lee CC, Steventon G (April 2007). "Uses and abuses of in vitro tests in ethnopharmacology: visualizing an elephant". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 110 (3): 391–400. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2007.01.032. PMID17317057.
^"A traditional brew leads to cancer cure". Smithsonian Institution: Migrations in history: Medical Technology. Smithsonian Institution. Archived from the original on 2014-06-21. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
^Hafstein VT (26 July 2004). "The Politics of Origins: Collective Creation Revisited". Journal of American Folklore. 117 (465): 300–315. doi:10.1353/jaf.2004.0073. S2CID145691975.
^Feinholz-Klip D, Barrios LG, Lucas JC (2009). "The Limitations of Good Intent: Problems of Representation and Informed Consent in the Maya ICBG Project in Chiapas, Mexico". In Wynberg R, Schroeder D, Chennells R (eds.). Indigenous Peoples, Consent and Benefit Sharing. Springer Netherlands. pp. 315–331. doi:10.1007/978-90-481-3123-5_17. ISBN978-90-481-3123-5.
^Goldberg D (2003). "Jack and the Enola Bean". TED Case Studies Number xxx. Danielle Goldberg. Archived from the original on 2013-11-10. Retrieved 2013-11-04.
^Chen JM (2006). "The Parable of the Seeds: Interpreting the Plant Variety Protection Act in Furtherance of Innovation Policy". Notre Dame Law Review. 81 (4): 105–166. SSRN784189.
^Notman N (August 2012). "Cracking down on wildlife trafficking". Image. Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. CBD stating that the benefits arising from the use of genetic resources should be shared in a fair and equitable way (Rau, 2010)
^ abFinegold DL, Bensimon CM, Daar AS, Eaton ML, Godard B, Knoppers BM, Mackie J, Singer PA (July 2005). "Conclusion: Lessons for Companies and Future Issues". BioIndustry Ethics. Elsevier. pp. 331–354. doi:10.1016/b978-012369370-9/50036-7. ISBN978-0-12-369370-9.
^"Policy Commissions". International Chamber of Commerce: About ICC. International Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on 2013-11-02. Retrieved 2013-11-03.
The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (United Nations Environment Programme) maintains an information centre which as of April 2006 lists some 3000 "monographs, reports and serials".
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