From a symposium at the April 1992 meeting of the American Chemical Society in San Francisco, 22 papers explore the current role and importance of plant-derived natural products in the discovery and development of drugs, in anticancer and cancer chemopreventive agents, in anti-infective and antimicrobial chemotherapeutic agents, and in the potential for products with multiple biological activities. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Proceedings of the 38th Annual Meeting at the Phytochemical Society of North America on Phytochemicals in Human Health Protection, Nutrition and Plant Defense, held July 26-31, 1998 in Pullman, WA, USA

Herbs, Spices, and Medicinal Plants for Human Gastrointestinal Disorders: Health Benefits and Safety presents valuable information for exploring the health claims of plant-based phytochemicals for the treatment and prevention of gastrointestinal disorders. It details the healing benefits of specific spices and herb plant-based remedies, such as garlic, onion, black pepper, aloe vera, Indian gooseberry, chamomile, and dandelion for the treatment of colorectal cancer and hemorrhoids, irritable bowel syndrome, gallstones, celiac disease, peptic ulcers, etc. It also discusses the therapeutic properties of fermented foods and beverages and the healing benefits of lectins in the management of gastrointestinal disorders. The abundance of research presented in this volume will be valuable for researchers, scientists, growers, students, processors, traders, industries, and others in the development of plant-based therapeutics for gastrointestinal diseases.

This new book, Plant- and Marine- Based Phytochemicals for Human Health: Attributes, Potential, and Use, provides insight with scientific evidence on the use of medicinal plants in the treatment of certain diseases. It describes bioactive compounds of marine and plant origin that have been discovered to be advantageous for human health, shedding new light on the potential of phytochemicals on human health and contributing to the ocean of knowledge on phytochemistry and pharmaceutical biology. In addition, the role of plant-based pharmaceuticals is also discussed as an example of innovative uses of plant product. This book addresses the importance of phytochemicals from plants and marine life. It divided in four parts: Bioactive compounds in medicinal plants: status and potential Plant-based pharmaceuticals in human health: review Therapeutic attributes of mushroom, cereal grains, and legumes Innovative use of medicinal plants This compendium will be useful for the students and researchers as well as for industry professionals working in the food, nutraceuticals, and herbal industries.

Medicinal plants and their derived products remain as an indispensable source of bioactive molecules that serve as either drug candidates or lead compounds for drug design and discovery. There are several advantages for plant-derived therapeutics including wide availability, diverse pharmacological actions and a generally good profile of safety and tolerability. Over the recent years, there have been numerous reports from clinical studies testifying to the efficacy and safety of medicinal plants and phytochemicals in ameliorating several human diseases. A plethora of basic studies has also unravelled molecular mechanisms underlying the health benefits of herbal medicines. Nevertheless, issues such as identification of bioactive ingredients, standardization of the products and drug interactions remain to be further studied. In this book, we aim to put together several chapters on the medicinal properties and pharmacological action of medicinal plants, plant species and phytochemicals. The goal is to present a comprehensive collection on most of the therapeutic aspects of plant-derived natural products and molecular mechanisms thereof.

In an era of market triumphalism, this book probes the social and environmental consequences of market-linked nature conservation schemes. Rather than supporting a new anti-market orthodoxy, Charles Zerner and colleagues assert that there is no universal entity, "the market." Analysis and remedies must be based on broader considerations of history, culture, and geography in order to establish meaningful and lasting changes in policy and practice. Original case studies from Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the South Pacific focus on topics as diverse as ecotourism, bioprospecting, oil extraction, cyanide fishing, timber extraction, and property rights. The cases position concerns about biodiversity conservation and resource management within social justice and legal perspectives, providing new insights for students, scholars, policy professionals and donor/foundations engaged in international conservation and social justice.

There is an increasing interest in natural plant products as a source of new pharmaceuticals and other biologically-active compounds. This is a timely review of the latest advances and trends in a field which is becoming a commercially significant area of investigation for the pharmaceutical industry. The pharmacological and phytochemical aspects of different preparations from vegetable sources is a truly interdisciplinary field and this book includes information on ethnopharmacology, selection, isolation and structure determination of plant-derived natural products. Many examples of different bioassays (in vitro and in vivo test systems) and pharmacological tests are given, providing the reader with an insight of what is presently possible in the study of bioactive plant material.

Focusing on the importance of functional foods and their secondary metabolites for human health, this volume presents new insights with scientific evidence on the use of functional foods in the treatment of certain diseases. The plants covered and their bioactive compounds are easily accessible and are believed to be effective with fewer side effects in comparison with modern drugs in the treatment of different diseases. The plants contain chemical compounds that can modify and modulate biological systems, eliciting therapeutic effects. Some plants and derived products mentioned include black carrot, olive oil, citrus peel, grapes, candy leaf, cereals and grains, and green and black tea. The volume is divided into four sections that cover these topics: Functional foods for human health: the available sources, biochemistry, structural composition, and different biological activities, especially antioxidant activity. Pharmacological aspects of fruits and vegetables: the extraction of bioactive molecules, phytochemistry, and biological activities of a selection of plants. Pharmacological aspects of natural products: bioactive compounds, structural attributes, bioactivity of anthocyanin, piceatannol, and a review of the ethnobotany and medicinal properties of green and black tea. Pharmacological aspects of cereals and grains: the health benefits of flaxseed, wheatgrass juice, and use and therapeutic potential as supplements for disease management.

Plants have served mankind as an important source of foods and medicines. While we all consume plants and their products for nutritional support, a majority of the world population also rely on botanical remedies to meet their health needs, either as their own “traditional medicine” or as “complementary and alternative medicine”. From a pharmaceutical point of view, many compounds obtained from plant sources have long been known to possess bio/pharmacological activities, and historically, plants have yielded many important drugs for human use, from morphine discovered in the early nineteenth century to the more recent paclitaxel and artemisinin. Today, we are witnessing a global resurgence in interest and use of plant-based therapies and botanical products, and natural products remain an important and viable source of lead compounds in many drug discovery programs. This Special Issue on “Plant Natural Products for Human Health” compiles a series of scientific reports to demonstrate the medicinal potentials of plant natural products. It covers a range of disease targets, such as diabetes, inflammation, cancer, neurological disease, cardiovascular disease, liver damage, bacterial, and fungus infection and malarial. These papers provide important insights into the current state of research on drug discovery and new techniques. It is hoped that this Special Issue will serve as a timely reference for researchers and scholars who are interested in the discovery of potentially useful molecules from plant sources for health-related applications.