Nobel for Chinese scientist has lessons for Indian traditional medicine research
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Kolkata: The Nobel Prize for Chinese scientist Tu Youyou, who turned to traditional herbal medicine to develop novel malaria therapies, should inspire India to focus on scientifically validating and promoting its rich heritage of folk medicine, an expert said on Thursday.
We have a vast repertoire of traditional medicine and these are documented in our ancient texts such as the Vedas. But we have to embrace modern science and validate the claims with hard scientific evidence. The Nobel for Tu is well deserved and should encourage India to back traditional knowledge with hard scientific data," G. Padmanaban, former director of the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, told IANS.
One half of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to William C. Campbell and Satoshi Omura for their discoveries concerning a novel therapy against infections caused by roundworm parasites.
The other half was awarded to Tu for her discoveries concerning a novel therapy against malaria.
Tu developed anti-malarial drug artemisinin in the late 1960s and 1970s. Artemisinin is the active constituent of the plant Artemisia annua.
IANS
We have a vast repertoire of traditional medicine and these are documented in our ancient texts such as the Vedas. But we have to embrace modern science and validate the claims with hard scientific evidence. The Nobel for Tu is well deserved and should encourage India to back traditional knowledge with hard scientific data," G. Padmanaban, former director of the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, told IANS.
One half of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to William C. Campbell and Satoshi Omura for their discoveries concerning a novel therapy against infections caused by roundworm parasites.
The other half was awarded to Tu for her discoveries concerning a novel therapy against malaria.
Tu developed anti-malarial drug artemisinin in the late 1960s and 1970s. Artemisinin is the active constituent of the plant Artemisia annua.
IANS
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