GA@net Entry
UCL School of Pharmacy – Pharmacognsoy and Phytotherapy
Organization
Address
29 - 39 Brunswick Sq.
Zip/Post Code
WC1N 1AX
City
London
Country
UK (England)
Personal data
Contact person
Prof Michael HEINRICH
Email
Phone
ORCID-ID
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2611-6303
Role in Organization
Senior Management
Main Area of Expertise
Areas
... please specify
Michael Heinrich is a Professor of Ethnopharmacology and Medicinal Plant Research (Pharmacognosy) and was until 2018 the head of the research cluster / Centre ‘Biodiversity and Medicines’ at the UCL School of Pharmacy. He currently serves as the joint chair of UCL’s Research Ethics Committee (with Dr. L. Ang, Institute of Education).
The group"s research is based on a transdisciplinary perspective integrating approaches from the biomedical and social sciences with an overall aim of tackling the fast changing global health needs. Key areas of interest include the prevention and early stage management of diabetes / metabolic syndrome and cancer chemoprevention based on the use of traditional medicines as well as value chains of (herbal) medicinal products. The research integrates methodological approaches from ethnopharmacology, natural product research, public health research, and anthropology.
Main facilities and/or core expertise
Analytical tools for the evaluation of complex mixtures including NMR and MS.
A large ellement of our research is linked to integrating pharmacy practice research with natural sciences approaches
In vitro pharmacology focusing on anti-inflammatory agents
Herbal medicine safety
Expertise in access and benefit sharing / global biodiversity / drug development from natural sources
Main output/products/publications
Heinrich M, Mah J, Amirkia V. (2021) Alkaloids Used as Medicines: Structural Phytochemistry Meets Biodiversity—An Update and Forward Look. Molecules. 2021; 26(7):1836. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26071836.
Lazarou, Rebecca and M. Heinrich (2019) Herbal medicine: Who cares? The changing views on medicinal plants and their roles in British Lifestyle. Phytother. Res. 10.1002/ptr.6431
Heinrich, M., Scotti, F., Andrade-Cetto, A., Berger-Gonzalez, M., Echeverría, J., Friso, F., Garcia-Cardona, F., Hesketh, A., Hitziger, M., Maake, C., Politi, M., Spadafora, C., & Spadafora, R. (2020) Access and Benefit Sharing Under the Nagoya Protocol-Quo Vadis? Six Latin American Case Studies Assessing Opportunities and Risk. Fr Pharmacol. 11, 765. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2020.00765
Scotti F., Löbel K., Booker A., Heinrich M (2018) St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum) products – How variable is the primary material? Fr. Plant Sc. 9: 1973. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2018.01973.
Silveira, D., Prieto-Garcia, J.M., Boylan, F., Estrada, O., Fonseca-Bazzo, Y.M., Jamal, C.M., Magalhães, P.O., Oliveira, M., Tomcovidczyk, M., Heinrich, M. (2020) COVID-19: Is there evidence for the use of herbal medicines as adjuvant symptomatic therapy? Front. Pharmacol. | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2020.581840
Fields of interest
Please specify each field of interest
We are open to collaborations globally. Specific areas of collaboration relate to the use of medicinal plants as elements of local and traditional practices. The focus is on research projects, and collaborative projects with commercial potential are also of interest.
