Plants as Phytochemical Laboratories

In the therapeutic use of natural products with mild activity a crude drug and/or extract can be adequate, but in the case of a drug with a stronger effect, a pure substance is to be preferred. 

The advantage of a pure substance is the exact dosage, giving a defined effect, which is not influenced by other similar substances in the plant drug. Furthermore, the pure natural substance is easier to analyse than a crude drug. 

The different naturally occurring pure substances originate from photosynthesis and related biosynthetic processes in the plant. 

Photosynthesis is the process which transforms solar energy into chemical energy that can be used by living cells. It is the basis of all life on earth. 

Photosynthesis takes place mainly in the green leaves of terrestrial plants, but it occurs also in marine plants. The plants take carbon dioxide from the air and water is transported from the root to the leaves. 

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Typical of many members of the botanical plant family Solanaceae, which also includes the tomato, eggplant, and pepper, goji is phytochemically rich, characterized by having both major classes of pigments—carotenoids and polyphenols, identified in laboratory research as having antidisease mechanisms. Goji appears to be one of the richest plant sources of the carotenoid zeaxanthin (closely related in chemical structure to the... 

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