ICREA and Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellatera, Barcelona, Spain.
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2010 Nov 17;6:32. doi: 10.1186/1746-4269-6-32.
Ethnopharmacology is at the intersection of the medical, natural, and social sciences. Despite its interdisciplinary nature, most ethnopharmacological research has been based on the combination of the chemical, biological, and pharmacological sciences. Far less attention has been given to the social sciences, including anthropology and the study of traditional knowledge systems.
I reviewed the literature on traditional knowledge systems highlighting its potential theoretical and methodological contributions to ethnopharmacology.
I discuss three potential theoretical contributions of traditional knowledge systems to ethnopharmacological research. First, while many plants used in indigenous pharmacopoeias have active compounds, those compounds do not always act alone in indigenous healing systems. Research highlights the holistic nature of traditional knowledge systems and helps understand plant's efficacy in its cultural context. Second, research on traditional knowledge systems can improve our understanding of how ethnopharmacological knowledge is distributed in a society, and who benefits from it. Third, research on traditional knowledge systems can enhance the study of the social relations that enable the generation, maintenance, spread, and devolution of cultural traits and innovations, including ethnopharmacological knowledge. At a methodological level, some ethnopharmacologists have used anthropological tools to understand the context of plant use and local meanings of health and disease. I discuss two more potential methodological contributions of research on traditional knowledge systems to ethnopharmacological research. First, traditional knowledge systems research has developed methods that would help ethnopharmacologists understand how people classify illnesses and remedies, a fundamental aspect of folk medicinal plant selection criteria. Second, ethnopharmacologists could also borrow methods derived from cultural consensus theory to have a broader look at intracultural variation and at the analysis of transmission and loss of traditional ethnopharmacological knowledge.
Ethical considerations in the ethnopharmacology of the 21st century should go beyond the recognition of the Intellectual Property Rights or the acquisition of research permits, to include considerations on the healthcare of the original holders of ethnopharmacological knowledge. Ethnopharmacology can do more than speed up to recover the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples to make it available for the development of new drugs. Ethnopharmacologists can work with health care providers in the developing world for the local implementation of ethnopharmacological research results.
民族药理学处于医学、自然科学和社会科学的交叉点。尽管具有跨学科性质，但大多数民族药理学研究都是基于化学、生物和药理学科学的结合。社会科学，包括人类学和传统知识体系的研究，受到的关注要少得多。
我回顾了关于传统知识体系的文献，强调了其对民族药理学研究的潜在理论和方法学贡献。
我讨论了传统知识体系对民族药理学研究的三个潜在理论贡献。首先，虽然许多被纳入本土药典的植物都含有活性化合物，但这些化合物在本土治疗系统中并不总是单独起作用。研究强调了传统知识体系的整体性，并有助于了解植物在其文化背景下的功效。其次，对传统知识体系的研究可以帮助我们更好地理解民族药理学知识在社会中的分布，以及谁从中受益。第三，对传统知识体系的研究可以增进对生成、维护、传播和传承文化特征和创新（包括民族药理学知识）的社会关系的研究。在方法论层面，一些民族药理学家使用人类学工具来了解植物使用的背景和当地健康和疾病的意义。我还讨论了传统知识体系研究对民族药理学研究的另外两个潜在方法学贡献。首先，传统知识体系研究已经开发出一些方法，这些方法将有助于民族药理学家理解人们如何对疾病和疗法进行分类，这是民间药用植物选择标准的一个基本方面。其次，民族药理学家也可以借鉴源于文化共识理论的方法，从更广泛的角度看待文化内的变化，以及分析传统民族药理学知识的传播和丧失。
21 世纪民族药理学的伦理考虑不应仅仅局限于承认知识产权或获得研究许可，还应包括对原始民族药理学知识持有者的医疗保健的考虑。民族药理学不仅可以加快恢复原住民的传统知识，使其可用于开发新药。民族药理学家还可以与发展中国家的医疗保健提供者合作，在当地实施民族药理学研究成果。
