Dipartimento di Scienze Ambientali - Universitàdegli Studi di Siena

	SECTION OF PHARMACEUTICAL BIOLOGY
		Plants have been not only the main sources of medicines throughout the world for millennia, but also the basis for the modern pharmacological methods and for preparing synthetic drugs, a high percentage of which were developed from lead compounds discovered in plants. Recently, WHO confirmed that herbal medicine (crude drugs, extracts and their active principles) is the most used remedy to cure common diseases for about 80% of the population all over the world. Till today, plants are a considerable source of biologically active substances; in fact a significant portion of all currently used medications are derived, either directly or indirectly, from active principles that have been isolated from plants. That many traditional remedies are of therapeutic value is no longer open to doubt, but the use of manufactured products should be governed by the same standards of quality, safety and efficacy as are required for modern conventional pharmaceutical products.
Staff
Prof. Daniela Giachetti (Associate Professor) Dr. Elisabetta Miraldi (Researcher) Dr. Marco Biagi (Contractor)

Research Activity
The Section of Pharmaceutical Biology is involved in Pharmaceutical Botany and Pharmacognosy, that is concerned with composition and effects of naturally occurring substances having a medicinal action (directive CEE 83/570). Scientific activity has focused on botanical, chemical, pharmacological and toxicological study of medicinal plants, in order to know the chemistry and the biology of active principles and to determine their possible pharmacological value. Scientific activity follows two different research lines: - phytochemical aspect: accurate extraction and analytical procedures are developed in order to know the quali-quantitative composition of medicinal plants. The analyses are often carried out in collaboration with CIADS (University of Siena) by means of advanced apparatus (GC, GC-MS, HPLC, ESI). - pharmacological aspect: the therapeutic efficacy of medicines used in phytotherapy is evaluated on the basis of scientific methods, such as conventional medicines. Pharmacological analyses are often carried out together with Faculty of Medicine (University of Siena). At present, many spontaneous and cultivated species are investigated, and particularly drugs active as antidepressant (Hypericum perforatum), as cicatrizant (Arum italicum), and as flavouring (Foeniculum vulgaris, Peumus boldus).