Combining high risk science with ambitious social and economic goals

Great strides have been made during the past decade in understanding the interelatedness of human health, economic welfare and environmental quality. Among these is the certainty that improvements in health may be impeded or reversed by poverty and destruction of the natural resources that diverse biological species provide. The International Cooperative Biodiversity Groups (ICBG) represent an experimental effort supported by three agencies of the U.S. Government to integrate research in natural products drug discovery with efforts to build the scientific and economic capacity of developing countries as well as enhance the skills and incentives needed to conserve biological diversity. These groups are unique, public-private collaborations that have been carrying out interdisciplinary research and development projects for up to seven years in 12 countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia. In addition to research on species in 230 plant families and 25 arthropod orders, over 1400 individuals have received technical training, and potential therapies for several parasitic diseases, tuberculosis and crop diseases are in development. The ICBGs have also developed novel research and intellectual property agreements and have become important testing grounds in national and global discussions regarding access, informed consent and benefit-sharing associated with generic resources.