The present volume contains an editorial review article New vistas in Ethnobotany along with 76 other articles written by eminent ethno-botanist working in various scientific research and academic institutions in South Asia. Ethnobotany of tribals/traditional uses of plants in different parts of South Asia and ethnobotanical uses of Herbarium have been dealt with in this work besides many other useful articles. This work provides a glimpse of rich ethnobotanical heritage of South Asia.
This volume is a compendium of selected plant species of ethnobotanical value to the highland communities of popular Southeast Asia. “Traditional” knowledge held by local communities on their resources is always in flux and adapting to a quickly changing environment. New plants find their entry into the local pharmacopoeias, while existing ones maybe removed. Likewise, various local communities might find the same plant useful for completely different purposes. While compiling information on the species, authors have taken great care to ensure that the dynamic nature of ethnobotanical knowledge is represented adequately. Special emphasis has also been given to cultural value of species to the local communities in the region. The field (and thus the market) of ethnobotany and ethnopharmacology has grown considerably in recent years. Student interest is on the rise, attendance at professional conferences has grown steadily, and the number of professionals calling themselves ethnobotanists has increased significantly (the various societies (Society for Economic Botany, International Society of Ethnopharmacology, Society of Ethnobiology, International Society for Ethnobiology, and many regional and national societies in the field currently have thousands of members). The objective of this new Major Reference Work on Ethnobotany of Mountain Regions of Southeast Asia is to take advantage of the increasing international interest and scholarship on highland landscapes and communities. While ethnobotanical studies are now available from many regions of the world, no comprehensive encyclopedic volume on the highlands of popular SE Asia is available in the market. We include the best and latest research on a full range of descriptive, methodological, theoretical, and applied research on the most important plants for the region. Scholars in plant sciences worldwide will also be interested in the dedicated website for this volume and its dynamic content.
For the half million people living in the remote mountains of Northern Thailand, survival is dependent upon the forest. This study, based on extended field research, identifies more than 1,000 plant species, with particular emphasis on medicinal plants and their uses. This book is only available through print on demand. All interior art is black and white.
Medicinal Plants of South Asia: Novel Sources for Drug Discovery provides a comprehensive review of medicinal plants of this region, highlighting chemical components of high potential and applying the latest technology to reveal the underlying chemistry and active components of traditionally used medicinal plants. Drawing on the vast experience of its expert editors and authors, the book provides a contemporary guide source on these novel chemical structures, thus making it a useful resource for medicinal chemists, phytochemists, pharmaceutical scientists and everyone involved in the use, sales, discovery and development of drugs from natural sources. - Provides comprehensive reviews of 50 medicinal plants and their key properties - Examines the background and botany of each source before going on to discuss underlying phytochemistry and chemical compositions - Links phytochemical properties with pharmacological activities - Supports data with extensive laboratory studies of traditional medicines
Ethnobotany: A Phytochemical Perspective explores the chemistry behind hundreds of plant medicines, dyes, fibers, flavors, poisons, insect repellants, and many other uses of botanicals. Bridging the gap between ethnobotany and chemistry, this book presents an introduction to botany, ethnobotany, and phytochemistry to clearly join these fields of study and highlight their importance in the discovery of botanical uses in modern industry and research. Part I. Ethnobotany, explores the history of plant exploration, current issues such as conservation and intellectual property rights, and a review of plant anatomy. An extensive section on plant taxonomy highlights particularly influential and economically important plants from across the plant kingdom. Part II. Phytochemistry, provides fundamentals of secondary metabolism, includes line drawings of biosynthetic pathways and chemical structures, and describes traditional and modern methods of plant extraction and analysis. The last section is devoted to the history of native plants and people and case studies on plants that changed the course of human history from five geographical regions: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Ocean. Throughout the entire book, vivid color photographs bring science to life, capturing the essence of human botanical knowledge and the beauty of the plant kingdom.
Published on the 100th anniversary of the science of ethnobotany, this volume provides a comprehensive summary of the history and current state of the field. The 36 articles present a truly global perspective on the theory and practice of today's ethnobotany. This book is only available through print on demand. All interior art is black and white.
Plants have cultural histories, as their applications change over time and with place. Some plant species have affected human cultures in profound ways, such as the stimulants tea and coffee from the Old World, or coca and quinine from South America. Even though medicinal plants have always attracted considerable attention, there is surprisingly little research on the interface of ethnobotany and medical anthropology. This volume, which brings together (ethno-)botanists, medical anthropologists and a clinician, makes an important contribution towards filling this gap. It emphasises that plant knowledge arises situationally as an intrinsic part of social relationships, that herbs need to be enticed if not seduced by the healers who work with them, that herbal remedies are cultural artefacts, and that bioprospecting and medicinal plant discovery can be viewed as the epitome of a long history of borrowing, stealing and exchanging plants.
This is the second of a five-volume set. This series of volumes on the ethnobotany of different regions of India melds important knowledge in one place. India is one of the most important regions of the old world and has culturally rich and diverse knowledge systems. The expert authors have been selected to summarize information on the various aspects of ethnobotany of India, such as ethnoecology, traditional agriculture, cognitive ethnobotany, material sources, traditional pharmacognosy, ethnoconservation strategies, bioprospection of ethnodirected knowledge, and protection of ethnobotanical knowledge.
Ethnopharmacology is one of the world’s fastest-growing scientific disciplines encompassing a diverse range of subjects. It links natural sciences research on medicinal, aromatic and toxic plants with socio-cultural studies and has often been associated with the development of new drugs. The Editors of Ethnopharmacology have assembled an international team of renowned contributors to provide a critical synthesis of the substantial body of new knowledge and evidence on the subject that has emerged over the past decade. Divided into three parts, the book begins with an overview of the subject including a brief history, ethnopharmacological methods, the role of intellectual property protection, key analytical approaches, the role of ethnopharmacology in primary/secondary education and links to biodiversity and ecological research. Part two looks at ethnopharmacological contributions to modern therapeutics across a range of conditions including CNS disorders, cancer, bone and joint health and parasitic diseases. The final part is devoted to regional perspectives covering all continents, providing a state-of-the –art assessment of the status of ethnopharmacological research globally. A comprehensive, critical synthesis of the latest developments in ethnopharmacology. Includes a section devoted to ethnopharmacological contributions to modern therapeutics across a range of conditions. Contributions are from leading international experts in the field. This timely book will prove invaluable for researchers and students across a range of subjects including ethnopharmacology, ethnobotany, medicinal plant research and natural products research. Ethnopharmacology- A Reader is part of the ULLA Series in Pharmaceutical Sciences www.ullapharmsci.org
