MAPS Database: Medicinal plant Activities, Phytochemical and Structural Database.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology and Drug Discovery
• Ethnobotany and Natural Products Research

Background:

• Natural sources, particularly medicinal plants, have a long history of use in treating diseases.
• Existing online medicinal plant databases often lack comprehensive information, covering only specific aspects like classification, activities, or phytochemical structures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a unified web resource for medicinal plants that consolidates diverse information.
• To enhance drug discovery efforts by providing an integrated database of plant activities, phytochemicals, and their structures.

Main Methods:

• Construction of the Medicinal plant Activities, Phytochemicals & structural database (MAPS).
• Integration of data on > 500 medicinal plants, including phytochemical constituents and their structures in mol format.
• Inclusion of medicinal plant activities and their corresponding test targets reported in scientific literature.

Main Results:

• The MAPS database offers a user-friendly interface for accessing comprehensive medicinal plant information.
• It uniquely combines plant activities, phytochemical profiles, structural data, and identified biological targets.
• The database serves as a valuable resource for researchers exploring natural products for therapeutic applications.

Conclusions:

• The MAPS database addresses the limitations of existing resources by providing a holistic view of medicinal plants.
• This integrated approach facilitates efficient screening and identification of potential drug candidates from natural sources.
• MAPS supports the advancement of drug development from natural products by centralizing critical research data.