| Research and development of phytopharmaceuticals |
Research & Development is a core activity of the pharmaceutical industry.
Advanced therapeutic solutions, with proven efficacy and safety, and new drug therapies for
diseases so far untreatable are challenging the researchers and pharmaceutical companies
world-wide. International scientific progress and the needs of a changing market environment
are the basis for R&D project planning.
A big potential of medicinal plants to be investigated
Over the past few decades, the search for new medicines has turned to
plant-based products and to ethnobotanical studies as a first step of investigation. Up to 500,000 plant species are believed to exist
world-wide, of which less than 10% have been studied from a phytochemical and pharmacological
point of view so far.
Phytomedicine
has become a field of interest for many pharmaceutical companies. However, only phytomedicines which comply with the most
stringent international standards and fulfil the same criteria of quality, safety and efficacy required for synthetic products,
have established themselves as valuable health-care options on the global market. They are the result of new discoveries
and investigations in the field of rational phytotherapy, which uses herbal medicines with a science-based approach.
Rational phytomedicines
The study of the pharmacotherapeutic action of herbal preparations using the knowledge and experience
of traditional phytotherapy, but based on the recent scientific understanding of human physiology and the modern
pharmacological and analytical tools, is a huge, ongoing task for medicine.
Phytopharmaceutical preparations have certain characteristics that are different from synthetic drugs. The most relevant
one is the complexity of the herbal drug itself. Whereas most common synthetic drugs are single chemical entities, the plant extracts contained in
phytomedicines usually contain hundreds of compounds. The composition of the mixture depends on the botanical origin, the part of the plant,
the season and time of harvesting, the method of extraction and the presence of chemical or biological contaminants.
The pharmacological action may depend on a single substance, but may also very well depend on a combination of two or more
compounds, and the mode of action of the single compounds in the extract is usually only partially known or completely unknown.
Pharmaton, an expert in research on medicinal plants
At Pharmaton, R&D has been a core activity for more than 60 years, 40 of which have been dedicated
exclusively to phytomedicine: Panax ginseng, Ginkgo biloba, Urtica dioica, Pygeum africanum, Vitis vinifera and other
medicinal plants have provided scientifically proven, innovative phytopharmaceuticals.
In collaboration with international research centres and universities, Pharmaton performs pharmacological and toxicological
studies which conform with the most stringent standards. New active substances are isolated and identified, plant extracts
are obtained and standardised, and new galenical forms are tested for their stability and quality. In all this, Pharmaton
relies on sophisticated analytical methods and technologies such as gas and liquid chromatography coupled with mass
spectrometry, and on more than 40 years of expertise.
With innovative new product developments and line extensions of existing products, Pharmaton points the way ahead,
delivering new solutions and making a major contribution to modern, natural health care – with the awareness that R&D
is the key to the future. |
