Saving the ethnopharmacological heritage of Samoa
Cox PA. 1993. Saving the ethnopharmacological heritage of Samoa. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 38:181-188
"Early European visitors to Samoa tended to denigrate the authenticity and efficacy of Samoan herbal medicines, yet bioassays indicate pharmacological activity in over 86% of Samoan medicinal plants. Novel anti-inflammatory compounds have been isolated from Alphitonia zyzphoides and Erythrina variegata, and the anti-HIV compound prostratin has been isolated from Homalanthus nutans. Unfortunately, both Samoan ethnopharmacology and Samoan rain forest are threatened. In order to prevent logging, funds were raised to build a needed village school in exchange for a village covenant to protect the 30,000 acre Falealupo forest. Subsequently, four additional rainforest reserves have been established. Hopefully such conservation measures can save the ethnopharmacological knowledge of Samoa."
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Cox, Paul
- Units
- NPSA , PACN
- Keywords
- Conservation, Ethnobotany, ethnopharmacology, Plant Studies, prostratin, Vegetation, Western Samoa