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VOL. 67 (1) 2001 BIODIVERSITY AND NATURAL PRODUCTS

Whether the traditional use of a plant for a given pathology consti-
tutes public property and prior art is a vexing question. The protection of
knowledge, within the context of plants with biological activity, cannot be
easily accomplished via patents and it becomes necessary to search for
further avenues. From the standpoint of equity, answers may be able to
be found during the transfer of knowledge. Consider that the number of
plants which are presently used in their original form in therapeutics is
quite limited. In practice it is the process of bio-directed fractionation of
plant extracts that eventually permits us to find compounds which then
typically also undergo further structural modification to ultimately pro-
vide preferred molecules that are more active and less toxic. Conse-
quently, in this type of scenario a patent covering the initial plant material
may not be adequate. The solution to this scenario of “plant-
development” can lead to an impasse precisely for the countries in search
of development, thereby possibly losing by default the possibilities for the
use of their biodiversity.

Economic compensation for historical knowledge should not be
lost during the overall development process because the living materials
may have needed protection and conservation, sometimes throughout cen-
turies, in order to ultimately afford the current validation of their use.
This effort might be compensated for through a contract, establishing roy-
alties that could be obtained when commercialization takes place. In line
with our previous discussion, the contract might also specify in advance
of commercialization and as part of a collaborative development venture,
the training of persons and the acquisition of equipment and technologies
as well as the more typical payment for samples. For example, compen-
sation could be provided to the persons that provide the plant, make the
extracts, and carry out biological assays, in such a way that each one can
maintain his or her own interest and ultimate stake in commercialization.
The country obtains benefits directly through taxation corresponding to
the activities, and more importantly, through the scientific and techno-
logical upgrading of its society. The possibility of regional subsidiary or
local companies playing a more important role in the transference of re-
search and technology in such collaborative scenarios should also be seri-
ously considered.

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