• Allelopathy: A potent potential in new drug discovery
  • Hamideh Bakhshayeshan-Agdam,1,* Seyed Yahya Salehi-Lisar ,2
    1. Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz-5166616471, Iran
    2. Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz-5166616471, Iran


  • Introduction: Allelopathy is one of the most important interaction among organisms, which is sub-discipline of chemical ecology. Indeed, it is ecological behavior which evolved during natural selection. The allelopathy phenomenon is triggered by production and releasing of certain compounds called allochemicals that are species- and tissue- specific compounds, mainly producing as secondary metabolites. Allelochemicals that are produced chiefly by plants, bacteria, fungi, lichens, micro- and macro-algae, viruses, and animals could be a potent source of compounds for discovering new drugs.
  • Methods: The majority of compounds that used in traditional medicine are allelopathic compounds. Hence, the current review focuses on introduce allelopathy phenomenon and related compounds (allelochemicals) as novel and natural source for drug discovery. This review provides an opportunity to reveal allelopathy usage in pharmacy.
  • Results: In fact, allelopathy is an action against diseases, and organisms use it to protect themselves against biotic stresses. Today, it is safe to say that most of the natural compounds used in traditional and even modern medicine for remedy are allopathic compounds. Plant extracts, which are now widely used, often contain large amounts of allelochemicals. Many allelochemicals are found in cosmetic products such as rosemarinic acid and many phenolic compounds. Allelopathic compounds are a rich source of unknown compounds for the production of new drugs. Dramatic increases in natural drugs production have been observed from the latter half of the twentieth century owing to the increasing reliance on traditional medicine and natural products. The use of natural drugs by humans is increasing day by day and there is a need for an infinite source. Although the natural drugs are the good option to disease remedy, but they are not devoid of some drawbacks such as use limitation, emergence of drug-resistant diseases, and so on, have led scientists to seek and discover alternative resources for new drugs. Allopathic plants and microorganisms could be good sources for finding new drugs. Nowadays, there are limited studies on allelopathy and its potential in biomedicine, which is increasing day by day. One of the studies that has been done is the effect of redroot pigweed allelopathy on leukemia cancer. The allelochemical compounds of this plant have the power to inhibit growth and proliferation of cancer cells. There are several similar examples in this regard that including allelopathic plants, bacteria, and even aquatic organisms.
  • Conclusion: Overall, the study results of allelopathy effects on diseases such as cancer are so significant that investigate to allelopathy in biomedicine and pharmacy is inevitable. Definitely, targeted studies of allelopathy for drug production would herald a new revolution in the pharmaceutical industry.
  • Keywords: Allelopathy, pharmacy, allelochemical, drug discovery, natural drug