Flinders Centre for Innovation in Cancer, Flinders University, Bedford Park, South Australia, Australia.
J Pharm Pharm Sci. 2013;16(2):259-71. doi: 10.18433/j31s4q.
With one of the oldest surviving cultures in the world, Australian Aboriginal people have developed immense knowledge about the diverse Australian flora. Western scientific investigation of some Australian Aboriginal medicinal plants has demonstrated interesting pharmacological activities and chemistry, however the majority of these species have not yet been extensively examined. We argue that research that is locally initiated and driven by Indigenous traditional owners in collaboration with Western scientists has significant potential to develop new plant-based products. Locally driven medicinal plants research in which traditional owners work as researchers in collaboration with University-based colleagues in the investigation of medicines rather than "stakeholders" or "informants" is one model that may be used in characterising plants with the potential to be developed into sustainable plant-based medicinal products with commercial value. Our team has taken this approach in research located both on traditional homelands and in the laboratory. Research being conducted by the University of South Australia and Chuulangun Aboriginal Corporation has led to patent filing for protection of intellectual property associated with novel compounds and extracts with the potential for development through cosmetic, complementary medicine and pharmaceutical routes. Ongoing research is examining the commercial developmental pathways and requirements for product development in these spaces. This review will address the opportunities that might exist for working in partnership with Australian Indigenous communities, some of the scientific knowledge which has been generated so far from our work together and the lessons learnt since the inception of the collaboration between the Chuulangun Aboriginal Corporation and scientists from the University of South Australia.
澳大利亚原住民拥有世界上最古老的文化之一，他们对澳大利亚多样的植物群有着丰富的知识。西方对一些澳大利亚原住民药用植物的科学研究已经证明了它们具有有趣的药理学活性和化学成分，但这些物种中的大多数尚未得到广泛的研究。我们认为，由当地的原住民发起并与西方科学家合作的研究，对于开发新的植物类产品具有重要的潜力。在这种由当地驱动的药用植物研究中，传统所有者作为研究人员与大学的同事合作，共同研究药物，而不是作为“利益相关者”或“信息提供者”。这是一种可能用于鉴定具有开发潜力的植物的模式，这些植物有可能被开发成具有商业价值的可持续植物类药用产品。我们的团队在传统家园和实验室都采取了这种方法进行研究。南澳大利亚大学和楚拉伦根原住民公司开展的研究导致了与新型化合物和提取物相关的知识产权专利申请，这些化合物和提取物具有通过化妆品、补充药物和药物途径开发的潜力。正在进行的研究正在研究这些领域的商业发展途径和产品开发的要求。本文将探讨与澳大利亚原住民社区合作的机会，以及我们的合作迄今为止产生的一些科学知识，以及自楚拉伦根原住民公司与南澳大利亚大学的科学家合作以来的经验教训。
