Ayurveda and Riveda Quiz

Course Information

• Course: PHARMACOGNOSY I
• Course Code: PPC (101c)
• Year Level: 1st Year Students (Clinical)

Theoretical Syllabus

• Week 1 (1/10/2024): Registration, General Introduction to Pharmacognosy, Crude Drugs, Natural Products, Cultivation, Environmental Conditions, Regulators, Collection and Drying of Crude Drugs
• Week 2 (8/10/2024): Changes during Drying, Packing, Preservation, Different Types of Drug Adulteration, Detection, Secondary Plant Metabolites
• Week 3 (15/10/2024): Potato, Rice, Wheat, Maize Starches, Dusting Powders, Kieselguhr, Talc, Kaolin, Bentonite, Sulfur, Chalk, Mixtures
• Week 4 (22/10/2024): Introduction of Leaves, Senna, Digitalis
• Week 5 (29/10/2024): Solanaceous leaves (Belladonna, Datura, Hyoscyamus, Henna, Guava, eucalyptus, Buchu)
• Week 6 (5/11/2024): Seeds (Linseed, Foenugreek, Strophanthus, Nuxvomica, Cardamom, Colchicum, Nutmeg, Black Mustard, Calabar Beans, Nigella, Coffee Beans, Datura stramonium seed)
• Week 7 (12/11/2024): Seeds Continued
• Week 8 (19/11/2024): Flowers (Clove, Compositae Flowers, Pyrethrum, Santonica, Calendula, Safflower, Arnica)
• Week 9 (26/11/2024): Midterm Exam
• Week 10 (3/12/2024): Flowers Continued, Lavender, Hibiscus, Saffron, Corn Silk, Red Rose, Crataegi, Tilia
• Week 11 (10/12/2024): Bark (Cinchona, Cinnamon, Cassia, Cascara, Frangula, Quillaia, Pomegranate, Galls)
• Week 12 (17/12/2024): Wood (Quassia, Guaiacum, Sandalwood)
• Week 13 (24/12/2024): Introduction to Bark, Wood Continued

Definition of Pharmacognosy

• Branch of pharmaceutical science studying medicinal/crude drugs from natural sources (plants, animals, minerals, marine sources, microorganisms).
• Includes history, methods of cultivation/collection, physical/chemical/structural, characters, processing, preservation and uses of crude drugs.

History of Pharmacognosy

• Primitive man: knew edible/poisonous plants and used plants as spices/condiments.
• Strophanthus seeds: used as arrow poison.
• Priest-physicians and herbalists: learned about plant's medicinal properties through trial and error.
• Folk medicine emerged using knowledge of crude drugs.

Ancient Egyptian Period

• 400 primary materials: described in papyrus pharmacopeia.
• Animal origin: blood, meat, milk, honey, excreta
• Plant origin: aloes, gum, poppy, pomegranate, coriander, cumin, palms, onion, anise, grapes, melon, castor
• Plant organs: roots, rhizomes, flowers, leaves, fruits, seeds, oils, ashes
• Application forms: powders, pills, suppositories, creams, cakes, pastes, ointments

Babylonian Period (Laws of Hamorabi 772 B.C.)

• Mainly vegetable origin.
• 250 plant materials, 180 animal materials known to the Egyptians.
• No quantities given in Babylonian formulas.
• Drugs applied as decoctions, usually administered before sunrise.
• Mixed with honey, water, oil or wine.

Old Indian Medicine

• "Riveda", "Ayurveda" (2000 B.C.): contained sacred medicinal plants.
• Collection done only by innocent, pure, religious people.
• Fresh plants were considered the most effective.
• Famous Indian drugs: Sandalwood, Clove, Pepper, Cardamom, Caraway, Ginger, Benzoin, Cannabis, Castor oil, Sesame oil, Aloes.

Old Chinese Medicine

• Combined acupuncture with herbal medicine.
• "Pen Ts'ao Kang Moa" (1000 B.C.): included an incredible number of medicinal plants and drugs of animal origin.
• High regard for: Ginseng, Rhubarb, Ephedra, Star Anise, Pomegranate, Aconite, Opium.

The Greek & Romans

• Pythagoras (560 B.C.): used drugs, including mustard and squill.
• Hippocrates (466 B.C.): familiar with many drugs, including writings (Corpus Hipocraticum 460 B.C.).
• Dioscorides: first to document 5000 medicinal plants (Greek Herbal of Dioscorides).
• Pliny: author of natural history, lived around the same time as Dioscorides.
• Galen (134-200 A.C.): physician; Galenical preparations attributed to him.

Islamic Contributions

• Beginning of chemistry derived from Arabic word "Kemia", including alcohol and alkali.
• Added numerous new plants and medicaments.
• Pharmacy reached high reputation becoming an independent branch of medicine.
• First pharmacy was known in Baghdad as "Sandalia".
• Famous figure: Rhazey (850-932 A.C.): director of Baghdad hospital.
• Another important figure: Ibn Al-Baitar: renowned pharmacognosist and botanist.
• Sheikh Dawood El-Antaki: book "Tazkaret Uli Al-Albab" describing many herbs, animal and mineral drugs.

Crude Drugs

• Harvested, usually dried plant or animal sources with pharmaceutical/medicinal properties.
• Form the subject matter of pharmacognosy.
• Previously termed "Simple Drugs" - not compounded/mixed.

Examples of Crude Drugs

• Entire plants/animals (Mentha, Lobelia, Cantharidis, Thyme, Colocynth)
• Entire organs (Senna, Clove, Fennel, Linseed, Cinchona, Liquorice, Thyroid gland)
• Minerals (chalk, kaolin, talc)
• Other categories (surgical fibers, fabrics, substances like agar, gelatin, wax, insecticides/pesticides like derris and pyrethrum).

Classification of Crude Drugs

• Alphabetical classification (Latin/English names)
• Taxonomic classification (using botanical systems)
• Morphological classification (based on plant part characteristics). Organized and unorganized.
• Chemical classification (based on constituents e.g. volatile oils, glycosides, alkaloids)
• Pharmacological classification (based on pharmacological action)

Official and Unofficial Drugs

• Official drugs: listed and described in a pharmacopeia, governed by quality/purity/strength standards.
• Unofficial drugs: used in practice but not in pharmacopeia and not governed by those standards.
• Egyptian pharmacopoeia: first appeared in English in 1953, and Arabic in 1961.

Description of Individual Drugs

• Origin (biological, geographical, history/name)
• Cultivation/preparation (methods, collection, drying, packing, treatment)
• Characters (physical, sensory/histolgical, colours, odor, taste)

Constituents & Tests

• Constituents: reputed active constituents and reserve food materials, chemical identity tests
• Adulterants: materials added fraudulently or associated with drugs due to carelessness. Evaluation of physical/chemical properties
• Uses: application in medicine

Origin of Drugs

• Natural/biological (source of drug) - if plant it is botanical origin, from animal then it would be from zoological origin.
• Commercial origin

The Binomial System

• Swedish biologist Linnaeus developed this system.
• First name is the genus (capitalized), second is the species (capitalized if named after a person).
• The specific name usually describes characteristics.

Geographical Sources of Drugs

• Region where plants/animals grow.
• Indigenous plants/animals native to that region.
• Regions yielding various medicinal plants/animals like: mountainous regions of Europe, Egypt, India, Mediterranean, tropics, subtropics, East Indies, Central Europe, North & Central America.

Medicinal plants and environment

• Water: crucial for cell function, biological reactions and plant growth.
• Temperature: affects growth rates, Optimum temperature zones for specific plants
• Time of day (Diurnal): important for growth development, optimum temperatures for growth are different between day and night.
• Altitude: affects temperature conditions and growth of plants

Production of Crude Drugs

• Involves cultivation, collection, drying, packing and preservation.

Cultivation of Medicinal Plants

• Wild-growing, cultivated.
• Indigenous (native) to certain regions, naturalized when growing in foreign/other places.

Collection Disadvantages

• Sparse distribution, difficulty in collection/transport.
• Excessive collection could lead to extinction/inadequate yield.
• Adulteration from collectors mixing undesirable plants/parts.

Collection Advantages

• Concentration, simplified collection, control of quality, ensures regular supply (often sufficient for market)
• Improved cultivation practices (treatment, fertilizer use, essential elements, pest control)

Other Notes

• Important figure's names and dates are included
• Specific drugs are mentioned including various origins (eg Egypt, India).

Test your knowledge on Ayurveda and Riveda, including their origins, the key figures involved in collecting plant materials, and the primary contents of these medicinal systems. This quiz will challenge your understanding of these ancient practices and their historical significance.