Thread: Compound vs extract

Why is compound better than extract? Let say I have an extract of somekind of leaves that's believe to have an anticancer properties..why do we have to know the active compound in it? why don't we just use the whole extract to produce a drug?

1. If there is only one compound within that extract that actually makes a difference then we might be able to replicate it in the laboratory and not keep killing the poor bloomin' plant for extracts.

2. While there may be one or more active ingredients in the extract, we have no idea how many other potentially harmful compounds there may be in it. We would prefer the safety of analysing all its components and removing those that are potentially harmful.

3. Each plant is a living creature and as such, subject to variation. Quality control on an extract is therefore just that bit more difficult than on a laboratory or industrially produced compound.

4. And this is the cynic's view (and probably the only one a conspiracy theorist will accept): isolating the compound enables the pharma industry to register a patent and exclusively make profits on the product.

These are some of the reasons. I hope you find them helpful.

cheer

shanks

Yup..thank a lot :-D

But, what if the compound doesn't work or not active after isolation..i mean, the extract is good but after the compound has been isolated, it does not give very convincing results compared to the extract...is it worth to further study or maybe it should be terminated and i need to look for the other compounds???

In that case probably the compound you isolated wasn't the effective one in the extract. Or perhaps the effectiveness came from a combination of compounds in the extract.

Ok....hmm...if i planned to study the mechanism of cell death induced by the combination of compounds that are not active alone, the death is because of the two compounds works together or is it possible that it might works on their on ways..do u get me?

Thanx for the explanations anyway