Invasive plants: problems and solutions

Invasive plants pose a serious problem in Ukraine, in the European Union and globally, displacing native species, reducing biodiversity, negatively impacting agriculture and other industries, and threatening human health. In Ukraine, efforts are being made to control the spread of invasive plants, including monitoring and eradication programmes, public education and awareness raising and the development of policy and regulations aimed at preventing further introductions. The control of some invasive plants can lead to the exploitation of their raw material for industrial or pharmaceutical purposes. For example, Paulownia tomentosa, which is spreading in the central and southern parts of Ukraine, can also be used in the pharmaceutical industry.The spreading Gleditsia triacanthos contains the alkaloid triacanthine, which has strong antispasmodic properties. The plant is used in folk medicine to treat bronchial and intestinal spasms, chronic gastritis, gastrointestinal spasms, etc. Studies on the invasive Epilobium ciliatum in Europe have shown that its phenolic composition (oenothein B, hyperoside) is equal to, or even superior to, native and often sparse species of the genus Epilobium. The leaves and rhizomes of the alien Iris×germanica accumulate a high concentration of biologically active compounds (germanaism B, irisolidon), thus allowing naturalised populations to be used for the preparation of raw materials without damaging the native populations. It is therefore important to investigate and assess the chemical composition of spreading invasive plants and to search for new bioactive compounds in order to maximise the economic benefit of the resulting biomass of invasive species to be controlled and eradicated.

 

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Publication History

Article published online:
16 November 2023