The Medicinal Plant Industry / Edition 1

by R. O. B. Wijesekera

Overview

As the medicinal plant industry blooms into a billion dollar business, it reaches beyond collection, propagation, harvesting and sale of crude vegetal drugs into product formulation, packaging and dispensing of sophisticated phyto-pharmaceuticals and herbal preparations. The scientific study of these medicines and the systematic uplifting of the industry to preserve the ancient and serve the modern, is now a global challenge.
The Medicinal Plant Industry puts together the various facets of this multi-disciplinary industry and its global interest. It discusses the dire need for developing countries to acquire technologies and techniques for programmed cultivation of medicinal plants. It addresses a wide variety of topics including the old philosophies, modern impact of traditional medicines, and methods of assessing the spontaneous flora for industrial utilization. It covers aspects of cultivation and climatic variations, biological assessment and formulation, process technologies, phytochemical research and information sources. The book reviews highly developed traditional medicine in China and India, and covers experiences in Africa and other continents.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780849366697
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/17/1991
Pages:	280
Product dimensions:	8.62(w) x 10.88(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

1: Plant-Derived Medicines and Their Role in Global Health; 2: Methodology of Economic Mapping of Medicinal Plants in the Spontaneous Flora; 3: Biological Preconditions for Cultivation and Processing of Medicinal Plants; 4: Agrotechnology of Medicinal Plants; 5: Climatic and Geographical Aspects of Medicinal Plant Constituents; 6: Methods for Biological Assessment of Plant Medicines; 7: Technologies for the Processing of Medicinal Plants; 8: Quality Control and Instrumental Analysis of Plant Extracts; 9: Formulation of Plant Extracts into Dosage Forms; 10: Some Current Trends in Medicinal Plant Research; 11: Traditional Remedies and Modern Assessment: The Case of Ginseng; 12: Utilization of Medicinal Plants: Recent Developments from the Chinese Experience; 13: Recent Developments from Indian Medicinal Plants; 14: Recent Research on Medicinal Plants in the African Region; 15: Screening and Processing of Plant Materials for Potential Pharmaceutical Needs: Experience and Applications in Three Continents; 16: Information on Medicinal Plants