Medicinal Weeds – Examples

Ambience: Dawn Chorus

JM: Many important medicines are derived from plants and some of those plants could be found in your own back yard. I’m Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet. Rick Stepp is an assistant professor at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

RS: “This plant is Brugmansia candida or “Angels Trumpet”. This is commonly used as an ornamental in the United States. It has a very showy, bright flower that comes off as sort of a trumpet shaped flower, but common throughout the southeastern US. It has gotten a bit of bad reputation because people have ingested it and had some poisonings that result from it but when used externally in a topical manner it seems to be quite effective against inflammation of muscle tissue and joints.”

JM: In fact many medicinal plants may be poisonous if used improperly, but with the guidance of an expert practitioner, they can heal and even save lives.

RS: “Atropa belladonna or Atropine, which is used to treat motion sickness and its pretty common. Digitalis purpura is a very important medicinal plant used to treat heart conditions, and that’s where digitalis and digitoxin come from. And that’s a very common, used in gardening as an ornamental, but not too many people know that in fact its an important medicinal. Another one that is pretty important is Catharanthus roseus or the “Rosy Periwinkle” and it was just recently in the last 20 years developed into a pharmaceutical to treat cancer. In fact it treats both childhood leukemia and Hodgkin’s Disease and the success rates for these diseases went from about a ten percent success rate up to ninety percent with the development of this pharmaceutical from Rosy Periwinkle which people have just growing out in their yard.”

JM: Pulse of the Planet is presented by the National Science Foundation. I’m Jim Metzner.

Medicinal Weeds - Examples

They're poisonous if used improperly, but in the hands of an expert, they can save lives.

Air Date:07/17/2013

Scientist:

Transcript:

Medicinal Weeds - Examples

Ambience: Dawn Chorus

JM: Many important medicines are derived from plants and some of those plants could be found in your own back yard. I'm Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet. Rick Stepp is an assistant professor at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

RS: "This plant is Brugmansia candida or "Angels Trumpet". This is commonly used as an ornamental in the United States. It has a very showy, bright flower that comes off as sort of a trumpet shaped flower, but common throughout the southeastern US. It has gotten a bit of bad reputation because people have ingested it and had some poisonings that result from it but when used externally in a topical manner it seems to be quite effective against inflammation of muscle tissue and joints."

JM: In fact many medicinal plants may be poisonous if used improperly, but with the guidance of an expert practitioner, they can heal and even save lives.

RS: "Atropa belladonna or Atropine, which is used to treat motion sickness and its pretty common. Digitalis purpura is a very important medicinal plant used to treat heart conditions, and that's where digitalis and digitoxin come from. And that's a very common, used in gardening as an ornamental, but not too many people know that in fact its an important medicinal. Another one that is pretty important is Catharanthus roseus or the "Rosy Periwinkle" and it was just recently in the last 20 years developed into a pharmaceutical to treat cancer. In fact it treats both childhood leukemia and Hodgkin's Disease and the success rates for these diseases went from about a ten percent success rate up to ninety percent with the development of this pharmaceutical from Rosy Periwinkle which people have just growing out in their yard."

JM: Pulse of the Planet is presented by the National Science Foundation. I'm Jim Metzner.