Fundamentals of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy, 4th Edition

Pharmacognosy, the science of nature-derived drugs, pharmaceuticals, and poisons, played a crucial role in the development of modern medicine, and now has an equally important place in healthcare all over the world. This wide scope ranges from traditional medicine systems and herbal and nutritional therapies, the preparation and use of highly standardised and clinically tested herbal medicines, to the production of potent drugs used only in a purified form. Natural sources mainly focus on plants, fungi and algae, but drug discovery of novel compounds and structures includes bacteria and even marine animals.

Fundamentals of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy is a landmark textbook that covers this spectrum of medicinal plant use. Written by leading experts in this field, this book takes the reader through the history, identification, and quality assurance of plant-based medicines to their therapeutic properties, safety, and compatibility and interaction with prescribed drugs.

Aimed at students of all healthcare professions, including pharmacy, medicine, nursing and complementary therapies, the comprehensively updated information in this textbook is also relevant to those companies and organisations concerned with the regulation and testing of herbal medicines (phytomedicines), other natural health products, nutraceuticals and dietary supplements.

• Introduces the concepts and scope of pharmacognosy

• Examines the scientific evidence of plant-based medicines for a range of health conditions

• Extended and updated referencing includes recent reviews, WHO and official documents (open access where available) for quick access to further scientific literature

• Antimicrobial natural products: as antibiotics and antiseptics, and their potential as bacterial resistance modifiers

• Anticancer natural products: scope now includes their role in chemoprevention and associated anti-inflammatory mechanisms

• New chapter on pharmacovigilance for herbal medicines and related products

• Quality assurance and pharmacopoeial methods extended, with many new figures and examples

• Plant medicines of recent scientific interest (popularity, or notoriety) added throughout

1. Importance of natural product resources in pharmacy and medicine
2. Pharmacognosy and its history: people, plants and natural products
3. General principles of botany: morphology and systematics
4. Plant families yielding important medicines
5. Ethnobotany and ethnopharmacy
6. Natural product chemistry
7. Methods in natural product analysis
8. Isolation and structure elucidation
9. Anticancer natural products
10. Antiseptic, antibiotic and antimicrobial resistance natural products
11. The complex pharmacology of herbal medicines
12. Production, quality control and standardization of herbal materials
13. Toxicity of herbal constituents
14. Herbal medicine interactions
15. Regulatory science and product classification
16. Overview of regional and traditional medicine
16.1 Western herbal medicine (origin Europe, but used elsewhere)
16.2 TCM and Kampo
16.3 Ayurveda, Unani, Jammu
16.4 Islamic and Arabic medicine
16.5 The Americas
16.6 Africa
16.7 Oceania
17. Complementary and alternative medicine
18. Digestive and liver disorders (Diarrhoea, constipation, gastritis, ulcer, IBS, dyspepsia, biliousness, nausea, vomiting, bloating and flatulence, liver disease)
19. Cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome (Heart failure and arrhythmias, venous insufficiency and circulatory, antiplatelet, anti-atherosclerotic, hypoglycaemic. Weight loss?)
20. Upper respiratory disorders (Asthma: bronchodilators, antiallergics. Coughs, colds and bronchitis: decongestants, inhalations, expectorants, mucolytics, cough suppressants, demulcents, anti-infectives, immunostimulants)
21. Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat (Topical applications for inflammation, congestion, infection)
22. Nervous system disorders (Hypnotics, sedatives, antidepressants, stimulants, analgesics, migraine, cognition, memory enhancement, stress)
23. Infections (Broad spectrum antimicrobial, antibacterial, anti-fungal and antiprotozoal)
24. Female hormonal imbalance, pregnancy, childbirth and nursing (Dysmenorrhoea, menopause (inc phytoestrogens). Pregnancy, childbirth and lactation)
25. Male hormonal and reproductive disorders (Prostate hyperplasia, erectile dysfunction)
26. Musculoskeletal disorders (Arthritis, rheumatism, muscle pain, gout, topical anti-inflammatories, nocturnal cramp, osteoporosis)
27. Skin and hair conditions (Dry skin, allergic rash, eczema, psoriasis, vitiligo, wound healing, infestations (lice, fleas)
28. Nutraceuticals and natural products used to support health (Debility, cancer support. Add medicinal mushrooms (ß-glucans, Ganoderma etc.)
Annexure