Beattie Andrew J, Hay Mark, Magnusson Bill, de Nys Rocky, Smeathers James, Vincent Julian F V
Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109.
Austral Ecol. 2011 May 1;36(3):341-356. doi: 10.1111/j.1442-9993.2010.02170.x. Epub 2010 Aug 19.
Bioprospecting is the exploration of biodiversity for new resources of social and commercial value. It is carried out by a wide range of established industries such as pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and agriculture as well as a wide range of comparatively new ones such as aquaculture, bioremediation, biomining, biomimetic engineering and nanotechnology. The benefits of bioprospecting have emerged from such a wide range of organisms and environments worldwide that it is not possible to predict what species or habitats will be critical to society, or industry, in the future. The benefits include an unexpected variety of products that include chemicals, genes, metabolic pathways, structures, materials and behaviours. These may provide physical blueprints or inspiration for new designs. Criticism aimed at bioprospecting has been addressed, in part, by international treaties and legal agreements aimed at stopping biopiracy and many activities are now funded by agencies that require capacity-building and economic benefits in host countries. Thus, much contemporary bioprospecting has multiple goals, including the conservation of biodiversity, the sustainable management of natural resources and economic development. Ecologists are involved in three vital ways: first, applying ecological principles to the discovery of new resources. In this context, natural history becomes a vast economic database. Second, carrying out field studies, most of them demographic, to help regulate the harvest of wild species. Third, emphasizing the profound importance of millions of mostly microscopic species to the global economy.
生物勘探是指对生物多样性进行探索，以寻找具有社会和商业价值的新资源。从事生物勘探的既有制药、制造和农业等众多老牌行业，也有水产养殖、生物修复、生物采矿、仿生工程和纳米技术等一系列较新的行业。生物勘探带来的益处源自全球范围内如此众多的生物和环境，以至于无法预测未来哪些物种或栖息地对社会或产业至关重要。这些益处包括种类意想不到的各种产品，如化学物质、基因、代谢途径、结构、材料和行为。这些可能为新设计提供实物蓝图或灵感。针对生物勘探的批评已部分通过旨在制止生物剽窃的国际条约和法律协议得到解决，现在许多活动由要求在东道国进行能力建设和带来经济利益的机构资助。因此，当代的许多生物勘探都有多个目标，包括生物多样性保护、自然资源的可持续管理和经济发展。生态学家通过三种重要方式参与其中：第一，将生态原则应用于新资源的发现。在这种情况下，博物学成为一个庞大的经济数据库。第二，开展实地研究，其中大多数是人口统计学研究，以帮助规范野生物种的采集。第三，强调数以百万计的大多为微观的物种对全球经济的深远重要性。
