Ethnopharmacology and Biodiversity of Medicinal Plants provides an in-depth examination of medicinal plants. Intended for researchers, undergraduates, and postgraduates, the textbook covers the diversity of medicinal plants, ethnopharmacology, and relevant therapeutic practices. Each chapter describes research conducted in diverse environments across India where many therapeutic regimens using botanical sources have originated.
This is a timely collection of research for the readers of YJBM’s Plant-based Medicine and Pharmacology issue as the authors of this volume raise the alarm on the growing threat of urbanization and environmental encroachment on biodiversity and traditional health practices. As outlined in the prologue, failure to conserve bioresources and traditional therapeutic practices could lead to the loss of a substantial source of untapped medicinal and pharmacological agents derived from medicinal plants and ethnobotany.
This volume is divided into two parts: biodiversity and conservation followed by ethnopharmacology and medicinal plants. The first part contains eight insightful chapters on bioprospection, biodiversity in global and Indian contexts, and potential biomolecules found in India with therapeutic value. Part two contains ten chapters that delve further into the potential contained within the diversity of medicinal plants, traditional methods, and herbal healing practices of the Indian subcontinent, and the ethnopharmacological properties of threatened medicinal plant species. In light of the public health threat of antimicrobial resistance, an interesting manuscript contained in the latter part describes the possibilities for an array of medicinal plants that can be used as antimicrobial agents. This example along with others found in the volume sheds a powerful light on using reverse pharmacology and the study of ethnopharmacology to address modern challenges in public health and medicine.
Ethnopharmacology and Biodiversity of Medicinal Plants is an accessible textbook with a focus on medicinal plants and ethnopharmacological practices of the Indian subcontinent. The editors of this volume succeed in assembling a niche and novel set of manuscripts that highlight the diversity and modern therapeutic value of medicinal plants. This text is well suited for researchers interested in translating the largely untapped potential of medicinal plants in India to therapeutic regimens in other parts of the globe.