Cures from the Ocean

Not all the solutions for disease cures are going to be found on land. Given that the ocean is 70% of the earth's surface, this liquid forest may provide many new chemicals that can be used to cure diseases. In fact, if you were to compile a list of potential anticancer drugs, the list would contain more drugs from the ocean than from land. That does not mean we should not save our rainforests as well, but it does indicate that we should not limit our search for new drugs to land only.

• Where in the ocean would you begin your search for new drugs?
• What ecological concerns should be considered in our hunt for new drugs and the collection of specimens to test?
• What ecological concerns should be considered in our collection of organisms to obtained sufficient quantities of these drugs?
• Which organism is the best candidate for a new drug: plant, alga, fungus, bacterium or animal?

More than 30 marine based drugs are under investigation. Some of these may provide cures for certain cancers. One of these drugs is an anti-inflammatory drug being used, of all things, in an Este Lauder Resilience facial cream.