ABSTRACT
Brazil is located between latitudes 5° North and 32° South, and its altitude ranges from sea level to more than 3000 metres. It covers several different ecological conditions varying from equatorial to temperate, which ensure the presence of a rich and diversified flora and fauna. The Brazilian tropical and subtropical forests are the original sources of several economically important products and biomolecules of industrial significance which can be utilized by the fine chemistry sector as models for the synthesis of new molecules (Myers, 1983, 1988). The increasing deforestation and degradation of natural habitats, not only in the Amazon Region but also in the south-east and south of Brazil, has provoked substantial erosion of genetic diversity and many tree species are now on the verge of extinction (CIMA, 1991; Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica, 1992).
