Medicinal plants thrive in biodiversity hotspots

(German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig) Scientists from Leipzig have shown a way to considerably simplify this search for bioactive natural compounds using data analyses on the phylogenetic relationships, spatial distribution and secondary metabolites of plants. Their approach makes it possible to predict which groups of plants and which geographical areas are likely to have a particularly high density of species with medicinal effects. This could pave the...