Medicinal Plants Course Quiz

Medicinal Plants Introduction

• Medicinal plants are plants with properties similar to conventional drugs, used to treat illness with minimal side effects.
• Pharmaceutical drugs are laboratory-produced medicines for treating illness.
• "Medicinal plant" encompasses plants used in herbalism (herbology/herbal medicine).

Aims of the Course

• Students will gain knowledge of medicinal plants, from the farm to pharmaceutical forms.
• Topics include plant cytology, histology, medicinal leafy plants, and taxonomy.
• The course covers medicinal plant history, importance of natural products, preparation, collection, drying, packaging, storage, and adulteration.
• The binomial system and plant taxonomy of specific plant families will be discussed.
• Students will learn to identify classes of secondary metabolites and pharmacologically active compounds in medicinal plants according to WHO monographs.

Learning Outcomes (LOs)

• 1: History of pharmacognosy, folk medicine, general pharmacognosy principles and definitions.
• 2: Cultivation of medicinal plants, drug collection from wild plants, plant propagation.
• 3: Factors influencing plant growth (extrinsic), organic manures, and essential soil elements.
• 4: Intrinsic growth factors (plant growth hormones) affecting plant growth.
• 5: Preparation of crude plant drugs, factors influencing drug collection, natural and artificial drying.
• 6: Changes during drug drying, packing, and storage (physiochemical and biological factors).
• 7: Adulteration of drugs and types (examples).
• 8: Starchy and non-starchy dusting powders.
• 9: Primary and secondary plant metabolites, classification of vegetable drugs, binomial system, and origins of drugs.
• 10: Plant taxonomy with examples of selected families.
• 11: Active constituents and pharmacological activity of medicinal leafy plants (according to WHO monographs).

Folk Medicine

• Traditional medicine (also indigenous medicine or folk medicine) encompasses medical aspects of traditional knowledge, developed by various societies (including indigenous peoples) before modern medicine.

Pharmacognosy

• Pharmacognosy is the study of medicinal plants and other natural substances as sources of drugs.
• The term "pharmacognosy" comes from the Greek words "pharmakon" (drug) and "gnosis" (knowledge).
• The Austrian physician Schmidt first used the term in 1811, and Anotheus Seydler in 1815.

Pharmacognosy (Continued)

• Pharmacognossy is an applied science dealing with biological, biochemical, and economic features of natural drugs and their constituents.
• Crude drugs (unprocessed drugs) from natural sources including plants (e.g., neem, saffron, clove), animal sources (e.g., honeybee, beeswax), mineral sources (e.g., chalk, bentonite, talc), and marine sources (e.g., sponges, red algae, agar).

Function of a Pharmacognosist

• Identification of drug origins.
• Determination of morphological characteristics.
• Investigation of potency, purity, and mixtures.
• Planning and initiating the cultivation of medicinal plants.
• Prescribing detailed processes for collection, drying, and preservation of drugs.
• Knowledge of active constituents, their chemical nature, determination, and reactions.

Where does medicine come from?

• Drugs are either from natural sources (crude drugs) or synthetic sources.
• Crude drugs are obtained from natural sources like plants, animals, marine organisms, or minerals and used naturally.

Sources of crude drugs

• Plants: Senna, digitalis, datura, cascara, cinchona, clove, etc.
• Animals: Honey, cod liver oil, honeybee products, etc.
• Marine: Sponges, red algae, agar, etc.
• Minerals: Talc, kieselguhr, etc.

Types of Crude Drugs

• Organized Drugs: Contain cellular tissues, e.g., rhizomes, barks, leaves, fruits, entire plants, hairs, fibers.
• Unorganized Drugs: Prepared through intermediate physical processes (incision/extraction with solvents), lack cellular structures, e.g., aloe juice, opium latex, agar, gambir, gelatin, tragacanth, benzoin, honey, beeswax, lemon grass oil, etc.

Types of Crude Drugs (Continued)

• Organized drugs are separated further into parts:
• Overground organs:* Herbs, Fruits, Bark, Flower.
• Underground organs:* Roots, Rhizomes, Bulbs.
• Unorganized drugs are categorized further into:
• Juices,* Minerals, Dried extracts, Fixed oils.

Monographs

• A monograph is a document on a single topic.
• An herbal monograph gives a basic description of a herb used for therapeutic purposes.
• Herbal monographs typically include: -Nomenclature (English, Arabic, Latin, French). -Description and plant part used. -Conditions for collection and preparation. -Active constituents. -Applications and pharmaceutical products. -Dosage, use, and actions of the herb. -Contraindications, side effects, and incompatibilities. -Tests for identity, adulteration, and related drugs.

Pharmacopoeia

• A pharmacopoeia is a book containing standardized directions for the identification and preparation of medicines.
• It is published by a governing body, medical society, or pharmaceutical society (e.g., British Pharmacopoeia, Indian Pharmacopoeia, Japanese Pharmacopoeia).

Official Books

• Official books provide guidelines for the manufacturing, quality control, packaging, storage, dosage, indications, interactions of pharmaceutical products.
• Examples include: USP, BP, NF, BNF, BDNF, BPC

Official vs. Unofficial Drugs

• Official Drugs: Included in pharmacopoeias, national formularies, or recognized books.
• Unofficial Drugs: Recognized earlier but not currently included in the official listings due to toxicity or other reasons.
• Non-official Drugs: Not included in any official listings.

Classification of Crude Drugs

• Methods of classifying crude drugs include:
• Alphabetical (based on Latin or English names).
• Taxonomical (based on plant taxonomy).
• Morphological (based on plant structure--organized/unorganized).
• Chemical (based on chemical composition of constituents).
• Pharmacological/therapeutic (based on therapeutic activity of constituents).
• Chemo-taxonomical (based on chemical constituents of different plant species/families).

Origin of the Drug

• Biological Origin: Indicates the plant and family the drug comes from, including botanical (plant) and zoological (animal) origins.
• Geographical Origin: Highlights the native region and the plant/animal's habitat. Plants can be native, naturalized, or acclimatized.
• Commercial Origin: Indicates the channels of trade, production location, and export details. This is important for identifying the source of crude drugs.

Biological Origin (Binomial System)

• The binomial system (Linnaean system ) scientifically names organisms, plants being assigned two Latin names - genus and species.

Biological Origin (Binomial System Continued)

• Plant names usually consist of genus and species names, often including the name of the botanist who first described the species.

Biological Origin (Nomenclature)

• Species names are chosen for characteristics or their meaning example:
  • short plants = muticus
  • serrated leaves = serrated
  • beautiful woman = bella donna

Nomenclature (Continued)

• Species names describe features like color, aroma, or pharmacological properties.