Plantwatch: how goat’s rue inspired super drug for everything from diabetes to obesity

Galegine compound in plant formed blueprint for metformin drug, but without the toxic side-effects Goat’s rue or French lilac, Galega officinalis, is a wild plant and often grown in gardens for its clusters of attractive lilac or white flowers. For a long time the plant was also used to treat diabetes. Its key ingredient was later identified as galegine, which lowers blood glucose levels but has toxic side-effects. Eventually galegine led to the development of the synthetic drug metformin, no...

By Paul Simons