New clinical trial designs can work for testing both Western and traditional medicines, argue Liang Liu and colleagues.

Several collaborations between researchers and indigenous communties are underway, but more needs to be done, says Henry P. Huntington.

Developing countries should turn down the UN biodiversity convention proposals to nationalise genetic resources, argue Indian scientists.

Traditional medical cultures need a true partnership with modern medicine, say Bhushan Patwardhan, Gerard Bodeker and Darshan Shankar.

How can modern drug discovery methods enhance the value of African traditional medicines, asks South African drug expert Kelly Chibale.

Local health needs should be paramount in efforts to merge traditional and modern medicine, says Oswaldo Salaverry.

It's time to consign to history the idea that traditional medical systems have nothing to offer modern medical science, says Antony Taubman of the World Trade Organization.

Databases of traditional medicines can help protect against biopiracy while opening the doors for new drug discovery, says Priya Shetty.

International bodies, governments and indigenous people must all help protect medicinal biodiversity, say Jeffrey A. McNeely and Sue Mainka.

Africa and India are struggling in the fight against tuberculosis, say Richard E. Chaisson, Neil A. Martinson and Vikram Paralkar.

Traditional healers can help deliver key health services in Ghana, argues Kofi Akosah-Sarpong.

Kazhila Chinsembu says Africa risks being 'enslaved' by technology it doesn't own and urges African nations to regain control over their biological resources and indigenous knowledge.

Robert Grant and colleagues say that despite controversy surrounding trials of promising HIV preventive drugs, we must encourage such research rather than try to curb it.

Rajesh Kochhar says profits from patents on innovations derived from traditional knowledge should be shared with the world's poor.