Advances in Medicinal Plants/K. Janardhan Reddy, Bir Bahadur, B. Bhadraiah and M.L.N Rao. New Delhi, Universities Press, 2007, xii, 320 p., figs., tables, (pbk). ISBN 81-7371-588-2.

    Contents: Foreword. Preface. 1. Medicinal plants: an overview/Bir Bahadur, K. Janardhan Reddy and M.L.N Rao. 2. Medicinal and aromatic plants cultivation in India/Kondapally Narsimha Reddy. 3. Indigenous medical systems: problems and prospects/K.V. Krishnamurthy. 4. Medicinal plants, biological diversity and intellectual property rights: India's interests/V. Nageswara Rao. 5. GIS mapping of selected medicinal plants diversity in the Southeast Coastal Zone for effective collection and conservation/K.S. Varaprasad, N. Sivaraj, Mhd. Ismail and S.K. Pareek. 6. Biodiversity of medicinal plants: exploration, collection and conservation from Southeast Coastal India/S.R. Pandravada, N. Sivaraj, B. Sarath Babu, K.S. Varaprasad and Md. Ismail. 7. Conservation and re-introduction of Decalepis Hamiltonii Wight and Arn. (Periplocaceae) in its natural habitat/P.S. Rao, J.S.M. Murthy and D. Basavasankar Rao. 8. Conservation strategies for medicinal plants of the Garhwal Himalayas with special emphasis on species recovery action plan/S. Kumar and Paridhi Nagiyar. 9. Agro-technology of Phyllanthus Emblica L.: an overview/Manoranjan Bhanja. 10. Cultivation technology for economically important medicinal plants/B.R Rajeswara Rao, K. Singh, K.P. Sastry, C.P. Singh, S.K. Kothari, D.K. Rajput and A.K. Bhattacharya. 11. Cultivation and processing of Cassia Augustifolia Vahl. in Tamil Nadu/K.P. Sastry, B.R. Rajeswara Rao, D.K. Rajput, C.P. Singh and Kamla Singh. 12. Problems faces by Ashwagandha (Withania Somnifera Dunal) growers of North Karnataka: a study/K.N. Kattimani, M. Ravikumar and V. Devappa. 13. Problems and prospects of Coleus Forskohlii (Willd.) Briq. Cultivation in North Karnataka/K.N. Kattimani, M. Ravikumar and V. Devappa. 14. Effect of dates of planting and spacing on fertility characters and Berry yield of Solanum Viarum Dunal/P.M. Gangadharappa, G.S. Sulikeri and B. Sathnayaranayana Reddy. 15. Effect of harvesting intervals and ecotypes on yield and nutrient content of Brahmi: Centella Asiatica (L.) urban/P.S.S. Murty, J. Jagannadham and D. Tabitha. 16. Medicinal and edible plants used by the tribes of Jalgaon and Nasik Districts of Maharashtra state/N.M. Dongarwar, K.H. Makde and K.J. Cherian. 17. Indigenous technical knowledge on medicinal plants of Visakhapatanam Agency (A.P)/P.S.S. Murty, K.V. Ramana Murthy, S. Annapurna and Y. Surya Kumari. 18. Plants with anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties/Bir Bahadur, K. Janardhan Reddy, Vinod Kumar Bhatnager and Vijay Devi Mathur. 19. Hairy roots for pharmaceutical production: a biotechnological perspective/P. Reddanna and G.V. Reddy. 20. Naphthoquinone production from cultured cells of Plumbago Indica L./P. Komaraiah, G. Jogeswar, S.V. Rama Krishna and P.B. Kavi Kishor. 21. In vitro production of phytochemicals of pharmaceutical importance from Justicea Adhatoda L. and Cullen Corylifolium (L.) Medirus/K. Jaya Paul, L. Sree Laxmi and K. Janardhan Reddy. 22. In vitro propagation of Heliotropium Indicum Linn. - A widely used Ayurvedic Herb/M. Senthil Kumar and M.V. Rao. 23. In vitro regeneration and propagation of the medicinal plant Hemidesmus Indicus (L.) R. Br./Santosh K. Mahapatra and Brahma B. Panda. 24. Medicinal plants and antioxidants/Yamini Bhusan Tripathi. 25. Phytochemical investigation of Cassia Siamea Lam./B.S. Sastry, T. Sreelatha, K. Suresh Babu and J. Madhusudhana Rao. 26. Essential oil production potential and quality of sacred Basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum L. Syn. O. Sanctum L.) under semi-arid tropics/S.K. Kothari, Y. Vijay Kumar, P. Sathi Reddy and A.K. Bhattacharya. 27. Production potential and agro-techniques for natural dye-yielding crops for Rain-fed regions/G. Pratibha, G.R. Korwar, B. Venkateswarlu, M.S. Rao and S.K. Yadav. 28. Isolation and synthesis of µ-Glucosidase inhibitor, (-) Epiafzelechin from Cassia Marginata Roxb./P.V. Srinivas, Asok Tiwari, T. Sreelatha, K. Suresh Babu, R. Jagadeeswar Rao and J. Madhusudhana Rao. 29. Chemical examination of heartwood of Hardwickia Binata Roxb and Stem Bark of Mundulea Sericea (Willd.) Cheval. (Indian variety): Isolation and structural elucidation of new flavonoids, Hardwichin and Mundulisinol, respectively and their biological activity/M. Satyanarayana Reddy, T. Udaya Kumari, G.L. David Krupadanam and G. Srimannarayana. 30. Essential oil composition of Chloroxylon Swietenia DC Leaf extracts: seasonal variations/S. Ravi Kiran, K. Bhavani, N. Praveena, J. Usha Kumari, P. Sita Devi and K. Janardhan Reddy. 31. Medicinal and aromatic plants and their extracts in insect pest management: a review/M. Sreenivasa Rao, G. Pratibha, G.R. Korwar and B. Venkateswarlu. 32. Antitermitic compounds from Diospyros species/S. Ganapaty and P. Steve Thomas. 33. Medicinal botany in Kautilya's Arthashastra/Vinod Kumar Bhatnagar and P.V.V. Prasad. 34. Medicinal plants referred in ancient Hindu Literature with special reference to Atharvaveda and Vamana Purana/P.V.V. Prasad, Vinod Kumar Bhatnagar and P.K.J.P. Subhakta. 35. Processing, preparation and marketing of Unani Medicines/Shaik Imam and S.J. Hussain. 36. Fungal contamination of medicinal plants, herbal crude drugs and preparations/C. Manoharachary and B. Bhadraiah. List of authors.

    "Medicinal plants are nature's hidden and to a large extent unexplored treasure. Although they have been used as a source of safe and effective medicine since time immemorial, this potential resource has hardly been commercially tapped. India is endowed with about 8000 species of medicinal plants. According to a recent estimate of the Planning Commission, Government of India, the potential for plant-based crude drugs is about Rs. 400 billion. Globally, the demand for medicinal plants and their derivatives is growing at a rate of 7-15%.

    Thus, considering the current market size and future growth prospects, there is a huge requirement for cultivation of medicinal plants in India. Medicinal plant biodiversity, conservation and commercial exploitation offers promising avenues of self-employment and business opportunities particularly in the rural area, preventing mass exodus of manpower to cities.

    Advances in Medicinal Plants is the outcome of a national seminar held to address challenging opportunities in the field. The papers presented were on a wide range of topics including strategies for conserving medicinal plant biodiversity, GIS mapping of Medicinal Plant Diversity and cultivation of important medicinal crops."  

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