Medicinal And Aromatic Plants Of The World

Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) have accompanied mankind from its very early beginnings. Their utilization has co-evolved with homo sapiens itself bringing about a profound increase in our scientific knowledge of these species enabling them to be used in many facets of our life (e.g. pharmaceutical products, feed- and food additives, cosmetics, etc.). Remarkably, despite the new renaissance of MAPs usage, ca. 80 % of the world’s population is relying on natural substances of plant origin, with most of these botanicals sourced from the wild state. This first volume and ultimately the series, provides readers with a wealth of information on medicinal and aromatic plants.

This volume in the series is devoted to Africa, a continent that possesses a vast treasure of medicinal plants and has produced some exclusive materials for the world market. This volume is expected to strengthen the medicinal plant sector in African countries by making comprehensive information on medicinal and aromatic plants available to policy-makers and entrepreneurs. It can be used to frame effective policies and create an environment conducive to the growth of the plant-based medicine industry, bringing economic benefit to African nations. It will help health organizations to improve the health of their people by using their own resources and a less expensive system of medicine, which is accepted by African society. It could also lead scientific communities to increase R&D activities in the field.

This volume is aimed at offering an insight into the present knowledge of the vast domain of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants with a focus on North America. In this era of global climate change the volume is meant to provide an important contribution to a better understanding of the diverse world of Medicinal and Aromatic Plant research, production and utilization.

The current volume, "Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the Middle-East" brings together chapters on selected, unique medicinal plants of this region, known to man since biblical times. Written by leading researchers and scientists, this volume covers both domesticated crops and wild plants with great potential for cultivation. Some of these plants are well-known medicinally, such as opium poppy and khat, while others such as apharsemon and citron have both ritual and medicinal uses. All have specific and valuable uses in modern society. As such, it is an important contribution to the growing field of medicinal and aromatic plants. This volume is intended to bring the latest research to the attention of the broad range of botanists, ethnopharmacists, biochemists, plant and animal physiologists and others who will benefit from the information gathered therein. Plants know no political boundaries, and bringing specific folklore to general medical awareness can only be for the benefit of all.

Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) have accompanied mankind from its very early beginnings. Their utilization has co-evolved with homo sapiens itself. Evolution has brought about a profound increase in our scientific knowledge about these species, so that, to date, they find utilization in many facets of our life (eg. pharmaceutical products, feed- and food additives, cosmetics, etc.). Remarkably today, despite the new renaissance of MAPs usage, ca. 80 % of the world's population relies upon natural substances of plant origin, with most of these botanicals sourced from the wild state. This huge increase in demand has put an unparalleled large burden on the natural resources of MAPs endangering their existence. The first volume of the series Medicinal Plants of the World, will briefly summarize the most essential current scientific knowledge about the sustainable sourcing of botanicals from both wild-crafting and cultivation. In these 21 chapters, eminent researchers of the topic will summarize latest scientific knowledge from the versatile and most varied scientific disciplines involved: botany, phytochemistry, plant breeding, biotechnology, agrotechnology, mechanization and economics. Individual chapters will deal with the essentials of phytomedical utilization, as well as utilization in the form of animal feed-additives. The volume concludes with a chapter on the poisonous MAPs in our homes, offices and modern everyday environments. The aim of this volume is to offer basic scientific information on MAPs. It will also enable readers of subsequent volumes to digest and interpret the other volumes in the series, that will deal with important and characteristic wild-crafted and cultivated MAPs of the different geographic and climatic regions of the world. Thus, the series is meant to be a storehouse of up-to-date information on our global wealth of medicinal and aromatic plants on the basis of which MAPs will be collected, cultivated, traded and utilized in a sustainable way.

This volume, as the seventh of the series Medicinal and Aromatic Plants of the World, deals with the medicinal and aromatic plant (MAPs) treasures of the so-called Southern Cone, the three southernmost countries (Argentina, Chile and Uruguay) of South America. Similarly to the previous volumes of the series, the main focus is to collect and provide information on major aspects of botany, traditional usage, chemistry, production / collection practices, trade and utilization of this specific group of plants. The contributors, who are recognized professionals and specialist of the domain, have collected and present state of the art information on 41 species. Most of these are not only of interest from the scientific point of view, but hold also a potential for the prospective utilization of the decreasing, occasionally overexploited / endangered medicinal plant resources of this huge continent. The book is expected to serve as a source of information also on some less known or less studied species. As such the volume is expected to support future research and public health professionals.

Before the concept of history began, humans undoubtedly acquired life benefits by discovering medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) that were food and medicine. Today, a variety of available herbs and spices are used and enjoyed throughout the world and continue to promote good health. The international market is also quite welcoming for MAPs and essential oils. The increasing environment and nature conscious buyers encourage producers to produce high quality essential oils. These consumer choices lead to growing preference for organic and herbal based products in the world market. As the benefits of medicinal and aromatic plants are recognized, these plants will have a special role for humans in the future. Until last century, the production of botanicals relies to a large degree on wild-collection. However, the increasing commercial collection, largely unmonitored trade, and habitat loss lead to an incomparably growing pressure on plant populations in the wild. Therefore, medicinal and aromatic plants are of high priority for conservation. Given the above, we bring forth a comprehensive volume, “Medicinal and Aromatic Plants: Healthcare and Industrial Applications”, highlighting the various healthcare, industrial and pharmaceutical applications that are being used on these immensely important MAPs and its future prospects. This collection of chapters from the different areas dealing with MAPs caters to the need of all those who are working or have interest in the above topic.

This is the second volume in a series of monographs which are intended to promote information exchange and international harmonised standards for the quality control and use of herbal medicines. It contains scientific information on 30 selected plants, and each entry includes a pharmacopoeial summary for quality assurance purposes, information on its clinical application and sections on contraindications, pharmacology, safety issues, and dosage forms. It provides two cumulative indexes with entries in alphabetical order by plant name and according to the plant material of interest.