History & Scope of Pharmacognosy
Definition
of Pharmacognosy: –
Pharmacognosy may be defined of branch of Bioscience which
treats in detail medicinal and related product of crude drug and primary type
morphine obtain from natural source.
Or
Pharmacognosy is defined as the scientific and systematic
study of structural, physical, chemical and biological characters of crude
drugs along with their history, method of cultivations, collection and
preparation for the market.
EX- Mineral, Marine, Plants, Animal and Micro- Organism.
Pharmacognosy word derived from Greek word–
Pharmakon – A Drug and
Gignosco – To acquire knowledge
Pharmacognosy is also known as material medicament.
Pharmacognosy is the subject of crude drugs obtained from the plant animal and
mineral source.
History of
Pharmacognosy
Egyptians wear aware of medicinal uses of several plants and
animals and also about human anatomy.
The Greek physician Hippocrates (460- 360 B.C) known as
‘Father of medicine’.
Aristotle the renowned Philosopher 384 – 322 B.C.) is well
known for his studies on animal Kingdom and Theophrastus 370 – 287 B.C.) for
the plants Kingdom.
Dioscorides, (040- 080 A.D.) A Greek physician in 78 A.D.
described several plants of medicinal importance in “De Materia Medica“.
Pliny the Eider (23-70 A.D.) who compiled 37 volumes of
natural history. Greek pharmacist Galen (131 – 200 A.D.) described various
methods of preparation containing active constituents of crude drugs. The
branch of dealing with the extraction of plant and animal drugs is known as
Galenical Pharmacy.
Indian history of medicinal plants is dated back to 3500B.C.
The curative properties of plants have been mentioned in the Suktas Of Rigveda
and Atharvaveda. Ayurveda has also described good number of plants with their
therapeutic properties. The ancient well known known treaties in Ayurveda the
Charak Samhita and Susruta Samhita are written by Charak and Susruta
Respectively.
Source of
crude drugs:-
1) Plant Source:- Neem, Babul, Tulsi, Saffron, Clove.
2) Animal source:- Honey bee, bee wax, Silk, Insulin, Shark,
Liver oil, Thyroid.
3) Mineral source:- Chalk, bentonite, asbestos, talc,
kaolin, Fuller’s earth.
4) Micro-Organism:- Antibiotics,
5) Marine:- Salt, Protozoa, etc.
Scope of
Pharmacognosy
The crude drugs are obtained from plants and only a small
number comes from animals and mineral origins.
Pharmacognosy has wide and broad scope in the field of
Pharmacy and its branches of them are given following:-
1) Cultivation and domestication of the medicinal plants.
2) Analysis and Phytochemical
3) Preparation of general tonic and stimulation.
4) The steroid industry
5) Herbal Preparation herbal medicine
6) Flavoring agent and perfumes.
7) Tissue Culture
8) Phytomedicine
9) Natural Products.
• Analysis and Phytochemical:- Many Bioactive bimolecular
are extracted and isolated from the crude drugs.
• They are analyzed by modern technique such as Thin Layer
Chromatography (TLC),
• High performance Liquid Chromatography (HPL), Gas
Chromatography.
• Herbal Preparation herbal medicine:- Herbal medicine have
become more popular in recent years because it is believe that these do not
have and toxin or side-effects as compare to the modern medicine.
• Flavouring agent and perfumes:- large number of aromatic
plants which are extensively used as Flavouring agent, perfume, spicy and
medicine Ajowan, Lemon grass, etc.
• Tissue Culture:- Plant tissue Culture broadly referral to
the in-vitro cultivation of plant seed and various parts of the plants organ
embryo, tissue, single cell protoplast.
• Phytomedicine :- Herbal based traditional medicine
practice that uses various plant material in modolities considered both
prevention and therapeutics.
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