Guidelines for Research on Medicinal Plants for Local Drug Production Flashcards
What are the useful guides for research in the field of medicinal herbs?
- Identify health conditions which can be treated by traditional drugs (or more effectively than with western drugs), taking the pathophysiological and psychosomatic aspect of the symptoms into consideration.
- Identify medicinal plants or natural substances which can be used to produce useful traditional drugs.
- Standardise the drugs and their raw materials based on pharmacognosy, quality, safety , etc.
- Develop the appropriate technology for production in the following areas: cultivation, collection, selection, extraction, processing, storage, distribution and administration.
Research into the field of medicinal herbs must be ________ in approach.
Multidisciplinary
Two major approaches can be taken in the investigation of
medicinal plants. They are:
- A purely scientific exercise which may or may not lead to the isolation of bioactive agents.
- The incorporation of useful or harmless medicinal plants into the healthcare system of a developing country.
What are the guidelines of the scientific approach of investigating medicinal plants?
- Group the plants into families or groups of plants containing similar constituents as their major constituents.
- Isolate the major and minor secondary metabolites
- Test isolated compounds for various biological activities
- Study the SAR of active compounds to produce synthetic analogues with increased activity and reduced toxicity.
The ultimate goal of the scientific method of investigation is to obtain pure compounds, which will pass the ________, _________ and ________ requirements for toxicity.
Dunlop committee, FDA and NAFDAC
Cinchona bark, Tang and Bur tree are common names of medicinal plants belonging to the family Rubiaceae. What are their scientific names?
Cinchona bark - Cinchona officinalis
Tang- Mitragyna speciosa
Bur tree- Nauclea orientalis
Mention 3 alkaloids found in Cinchona bark.
Quinine
Quinidine
Cinchonine
Cinchonidine
Mention 3 alkaloids found in Tang (Mitragyna speciosa).
Mitragynine
Speciogynine
Corynoxine
Corynoxine B
Mention 3 alkaloids found in Bur tree (Nauclea orientalis).
Naucleficine
Naucleactonine
Naucleaorals
Mention 3 alkaloids found in Psychotria colorata.
Calycanthine
Isocalycanthine
Chimonanthine
Hodgkinsine
Quadrigemine C
Neonaucline, a new alkaloid can be derived from the structural modification of ________.
Cadamine
The incorporation of useful medicinal herbs into health care systems is another approach for investigating medicinal plants. What are the guidelines?
- Determine the efficacy or otherwise of medicinal herbs using animal models where possible and conducting clinical observations of patients using traditional preparations (before and after treatment)
- Determine therapeutic levels of dosage
- Note side effects if any
- Standardise dosage
- Note any medicinal activity on diseases that the herb isn’t normally used for.
- Test plant on animal models to discover mode of action and improve the presentation of the medicament
The ultimate goal of alternative B is ________.
The preparation of standardised galenicals or teas.
Mention 3 considerations/requirements for research into medicinal plants.
- Animals for research: Experimental animals will be required in large quantities for research. The cost of animal experimentation as well as its ethics, must be borne in mind
- Laboratory and clinical testing facilities: A pharmacology and a chemical laboratory are basic minimum
requirements. They should preferably be within close proximity so that purification or extraction of the plant in the chemical laboratory can be monitored in the
pharmacological laboratory. - Medicinal plant garden: A plantation of selected medicinal plants is needed in some cases to provide a uniform and ready source of material for research.
UNIDO stands for __________.
United Nations Industrial Development Organisation
