Goals

1. To evaluate the potential use of naturally occurring compounds and extracts to prevent and treat oral infectious diseases;
2. To develop innovative and effective therapeutic approaches using pharmacologically active molecules from natural products;
3. To analyze the biological effects of natural products and their mechanisms of actions at physiological, molecular and structural levels;
4. To evaluate the effectiveness of therapies using natural compounds in vivo under ethical guidelines according to international regulations;
5. To conduct inter-laboratorial studies using well-established and standardized methods to evaluate the biological properties of natural products;
6. To develop new bioassay methods and technologies to rapidly identify and isolate novel bioactive molecules;
7. To promote and establish a reproducible, sustainable and standardized practices to ensure continuous availability of natural sources for optimal extraction and isolation of bioactive substances, and at the same time conserving the local biodiversities;
8. To provide a website for networking investigators, information and publications related to natural products research and oral health.