Alternative systems of medicine (Ayurveda, Siddha, Homoepathy, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medcila Herbalism) utilizes medicinal plants for formulations. The present work is aimed at documentation of chemical composition, medicinal use and modern investigative work on medicinal plants. As the name of the title suggests, the work includes rare medicinal plants used globally in medicine. As research is being done on medicinal plants, more and more phytochemicals are being discovered. On basis of this, traditional uses of medicinal plants are being confirmed. The work will be a valuable guide for practitioners of alternative systems of medicine. It will be useful for phytochemists, ethnobotanists and herbal pharmacists who will find unique data about less documented medicinal plants.

The tea plant, Camellia sinensis, is of particular importance to humans, and the consumption of tea has a long history of over 2000 years. Currently, tea is one of the most popular beverages worldwide. In recent years the subject of tea has attracted a great deal of attention, As well as the use of tea in traditional medicine, modern biochemical research has shown the potential application of tea and tea products to disease prevention and therapy.
The goal of his book is to cover all relevant aspects including botanical identification, processing and major categories of tea, physiological and pharmacological effects, and experimental therapeutic effects. The therapeutic applications of tea based on traditional Chinese medicine are also included. The contributors are renowned experts from botanical, agricultural, chemical, biochemical, and medical circles. Tea will be an invaluable reference source for physicians and all professionals in pharmaceutical, agricultural, and food research and development industries as well as anyone who is interested in the potential medical applications of tea.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203301277

This book presents a taxonomic account of families of order Tubiflora, namely, Verbenaceae, Labiatae, Solanaceae, and Scrophulariceae, which contain several interesting endemic genera and species that are important for understanding the developmental history of Central Asian flora.

This volume provides a taxonomic account of horsetails, club-mosses, conifers, joint-firs, and several small families of monocotyledons standing at the beginning of the Engler system, from Typhaceae to Butomaceae as well as a supplementary bibliographic list of works on the flora of Central Asia.

This volume deals with leadwort (Plumbaginaceae), olive (Oleaceae), butterfly-bush (Buddlejaceae), gentian (Gentianaceae), buck-bean (Menyanthaceae), dogbane (Apocynaceae) and milkweed (Asclepiadaceae) families. The book includes 4 plates and 5 maps of distribution ranges.

The genus Vetiveria is one of the most versatile genera in plant species. The species Vetiveria Zizanoides produces oderous roots from which a precious essential oil is distilled and used in a variety of applications from perfumery to ethnopharmacology. The same roots give the plant particular characteristics that make it a valuable natural barrier against erosion. Vetiveria: The Genus Vetiveria describes the anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, essential oil biogenesis and chemical composition, ethnopharmacology and distillation, as well as the production of plants for oil exploration and for the use of Vetiver as an ecological tool against erosion, flood, soil pollution and many other applications.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203218736

This volume examines the Middle East's leading armed forces and their role in both military and political affairs. It considers their missions, doctrine, training, equipment and effectiveness as fighting forces. At the same time, the various expert contributors discuss the relations between the armed forces and their respective governments, with the issues raised ranging from internal repression to budgetary matters. On some issues, high-ranking officers force Arab regimes to meet their demands. In other ways, regimes impose restrictions on the armies in order to maintian their own political control. These mechanisms also reduce the soldiers' military quality, and hence their ability to wage war.

Perhaps the least appreciated dramatis personae in human history are plants. Humans, like all other animals, cannot produce their own food as plants do through photosynthesis, and must therefore acquire organic material for survival and growth by eating plants or by eating other animals that eat plants. Humans depend on plants not only as a food source, but also as building and clothing materials and as sources of medicines, psychoactive substances, spices, pigments, and more. With plants being such valuable resources, it is therefore not surprising that plants have been involved in practically all violent conflicts among different human societies. Ironically, plants have also been the source of materials to construct weapons or weapon parts. Wars have always constituted a large part of human history, and the overall theme of this book is that to understand the history of violent human conflict, we need to understand what specific materials plants make that people find so useful and worth fighting over, and what roles such plant products have played in specific conflicts. To do so, Plants and Human Conflict begins with a chapter explaining the basic biological facts of the interdependence between plants and humans, and the subsequent seven chapters describe the physical and chemical properties of specific plant products demonstrating how the human need for these products has led to wars as well as contributed to the prosecution of wars. These chapters recount some well-known (and some lesser known) historical events in which plants have played a central role. This book uniquely combines the modern scientific knowledge of plants with the human history of war, introducing readers to a new paradigm that will make them reconsider their understanding of human history, as well as to bring about a greater appreciation of plant biology.

Learn to produce healthier crops and better harvests This uniquely valuable book highlights the tremendous progress of knowledge in different areas of the field over the last decade. Here you'll find new and useful information about plant molecular virology and how the field can improve the world food situation in the coming years.The last decade has seen remarkable advances in plant virological research, owing mainly to the rapid progress made in molecular biology and genetic engineering in recent years. While recombinant DNA technology has significantly contributed to our understanding of plant viruses, new findings are being accumulated every day as reported in various publications. Plant Viruses As Molecular Pathogens is the only book to bring you all of this information--22 chapters--in a single volume, compiled by specialists around the globe Use Plant Viruses As Molecular Pathogens to enhance your knowledge of: current virus taxonomy the molecular basis of virus transmission movement of plant viruses replication and gene expression of RNA/DNA viruses resistance to viruses molecular epidemiology recombination events and possible mechanisms molecular diversity novel aspects of plant virus detection technologiesWith helpful illustrations, photos, figures, models that explain viral mechanisms, and easy-to-understand reference tables, Plant Viruses As Molecular Pathogens will stimulate your thinking on this fascinating area of plant science

Stevia rebaudiana is a remarkable South American plant which has become widely used in certain parts of the world as a natural sweetening agent and dietary supplement. Purified extracts of S. rebaudiana have been used as sweeteners and flavor enhancers in the food industry in Japan for over a quarter of a century, and have been found to be up to 300 times sweeter than sucrose.
This comprehensive volume provides reviews on the botany, ethnobotany, and chemical constituents of the genus Stevia and examines the chemical synthesis of such compounds as steviol and stevioside. The perceived safety of these compounds has become somewhat controversial in recent years, and a thorough consideration of the pharmacology and biological activity is provided. The final two chapters offer some insight into the various applications of S. rebaudiana extracts and stevioside in Japan and Korea, the two countries with the most extensive use of these food additives at present.
Containg numerous up to date references, the book will appeal to a wide segment of the scientific community at all levels, especially those in the fields of natural products, pharmacy, pharmacognosy, plant science, agriculture and the food and beverages industry.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203165942

Plants depend for their survival on physiological mechanisms with which to combat adverse environmental conditions, such as pathogen attack, wounding, drought, cold, freezig, salt, UV, intense light, hevy metals, and SO2. Many of these cause excess production of active oxygen species in plant cells. Plants in turn have evolved complex defence systems against such oxidative stress. The study of these mechanisms has become a fast-moving, topical firld of importance to many biologists studying the effect of the environment on living organisms.
Written and edited by world-leading scientists, Oxidative Stress in Plants reviews the current knowledge of the mechanisms by which various biotic and abiotic environmental stress conditions produce oxygen eadicals. The biochemistry and molecular biology of both non-enzymatic (Vitamin C; Glutathione) and enzymatic systems which eliminate active oxygen species are considered in detail. In addition, the book discusses evidence that active oxygen species and antioxidants act as signals which trigger defence reactions.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203303148

The short methods chapters and topical case studies are ideal for instructors but will also engage a wider readership.

Lexicon of Pulse Crops integrates botanical and linguistic data to analyze and interpret the grain legume significance from the earliest archaeological and written records until the present day. Aimed at both agronomic and linguistic research communities, this book presents a database containing 9,500 common names in more than 900 languages and dialects of all ethnolinguistic families, denoting more than 1,100 botanical taxa of 14 selected pulse crop genera and species. The book begins with overviews of the world's economically most important grain legume crops and their uncultivated relatives, as well as the world's language families with their inner structure, including both extinct and living members. The main section of the text presents 14 specialized book chapters covering Arachis, Cajanus, Cicer, Ervum, Faba, Glycine, Lablab, Lathyrus, Lens, Lupinus, Phaseolus, Pisum, Vicia, and Vigna. They provide the reader with extensive lists of the botanically accepted species and subtaxa and surveys lexicological abundance in all world's ethnolinguistic families, comprising extinct and living as well as natural and constructed languages, while the vernacular names for the most significant taxa are presented in comprehensive tables. Each of these chapters also presents the existing etymologies and novel approaches to deciphering the origins of common names, accompanied by one original color plate depicting possible root evolutions in the form of corresponding pulse crop plants.

Acacias: The Genus Acacia (sensu lato) is an evidence-based treatment of this super genus, through the eyes of a clinical pharmacognosist and integrative medicine specialist. The book begins with antiviral activity, revealing within the five genera of Acacia s.l., pharmacological properties and pharmacologically active compounds. Profiles of prominent species within these genera, including photographs, accompany the narrative of current research and traditional usage into antibacterial, antifungal, anticancer, antidiabetic, metabolic syndrome ameliorative, and psychotherapeutic potential. Features: Comprehensive treatment of the entire Acacia sensu lato genus. Aids ethnopharmacological prospectors of new sources of novel botanically-based medicines for modern metabolic and psychiatric diseases. Illuminates the presence of psychedelic simple substituted tryptamines in trees and their medical and psychotherapeutic potential. Acacias: The Genus Acacia (sensu lato) provides a unique and comprehensive coverage of one of the most interesting and diverse genera of trees, firmly entrenched in the Levant, Africa, Australia, the Far East, and the New World. The influence of these genera on pharmacy and industry (especially through gum arabic, wildcrafted in Africa from Senigallia senigallia), human consciousness, the advent and development of religions, planetary ecology, botanical therapeutics, and the emergence of psychedelic medicine reflects both the history of our species and the transformative promise of tomorrow.

Nanomaterials is an encouraging field for scientists and researchers due to its numerous applications in different fields such as medicine, energy, pharmaceutical, environmental science, agricultural food science and technology. Researchers are shifting towards the synthesis of nanoparticles using various plant systems.

This volume provides reviews and details of the quality, safety and efficacy for some of the top-selling botanicals worldwide, including black cohosh, chamomile, comfrey, echinacea, garlic, ginkgo, ginseng, kava, milk thistle, St John's wort and valerian. The work was written based on a systematic review of the scientific literature from 1975-2000.;Each review includes a brief introduction, a section on quality including a definition of the crude drug, geographical distribution, and a listing of the major chemical constituents. The safety and efficacy sections summarize the medical uses, pharmacology, contraindications, warnings, precautions, adverse reactions, dose and dosage forms. The safety and efficacy sections were written for a busy health-care professional, and should enable one to ascertain which clinical uses are supported by clinical data, without having to read through all the pharmacology. Each chapter is fully referenced, enabling the reader to access further information when necessary.

This book is a comprehensive review of the genera of Myrtaceae, a flowering plant family of mostly trees and shrubs, found in tropical East Africa. It presents information on their character, occurrence, habitat, phenotypic variations and distribution of each of the species under these genera.

This series of books is a translation of Flora Evropeiskoi Chasti SSR, which provides information on the wild and most important cultivated plants growing in the European portion of Russia and its bordering regions. The text describes plant systematics, habitat conditions, range, and chromosome numbers. The series serves as a manual for botanists, agronomists, teachers, students and naturalists. This volume includes descriptions of 30 families of higher plants and information on families Butomaceae and Ruppiaceae.

This series of books is a translation of Flora Evropeiskoi Chasti SSR, which provides information on the wild and most important cultivated plants growing in the European portion of Russia and its bordering regions. The text describes plant systematics, habitat conditions, range, and chromosome numbers. The series serves as a manual for botanists, agronomists, teachers, students and naturalists. Volume 5 includes descriptions of 608 species from 133 genera and 23 families belonging to the orders Salicales, Erocales, Diapensiales, Ebenales, Primulares (, Polemoniales, and Scrophulariales.

This multidisciplinary book focuses on the relationships and interactions between palaeobiogeography, biogeography, dispersal, vicariance, migrations and evolution of organisms in the SE Asia-Australasian region. The book investigates biogeographic links between SE Asia and Australasia which go back more than 500 million years. It also focuses on the links between geological evolution and biological migrations and evolution in the region. It was in the SE Asian region that Alfred Russell Wallace established his biogeographic line, now known as Wallace's Line, which was the beginning of biogeography. Wallace also independently developed his theory of evolution based on his work in this area.;The book brings together, for the first time, geologists, palaeontologists, zoologists, botanists, entomologists, evolutionary biologists and archaeologists, in the one volume, to relate the region's geological past to its present biological peculiarities. The book is organized into six sections. Section 1 Paleobiogeographic Background provides overviews of the geological and tectonic evolution of SE Asia-Australasia, and changing patterns of land and sea for the last 540 million years. Section 2 Palaeozoic and Mesozoic Geology and Biogeography discusses Palaeozoic and Mesozoic biogeography of conodonts, brachiopods, plants, dinosaurs and radiolarians and the recognition of ancient biogeographic boundaries or Wallace Lines in the region. Section 3 Wallace's Line focuses on the biogeographic boundary established by Wallace, including the history of its establishment, its significance to biogeography in general and its applicability in the context of modern biogeography.;Section 4 Plant biogeography and evolution includes discussion on primitive angiosperms, the diaspora of the southern rushes, and environmental, climatic and evolutionary implications of plants and palynomorphs in the region. The biogeography and migration of insects, butterflies, birds, rodents and other non-primate mammals is discussed in section 5, Non Primates. The final section 6 Primates focuses on the biogeographic radiation, migration and evolution of primates and includes papers on the occurrence and migration of early hominids and the requirements for human colonization of Australia.

Students of conservation encounter some of the most complex issues on our planet. The resolution of existing problems become more complex when humans create further stresses on the natural balance. Moulton and Sanderson brought the challenging issues in wildlife conservation into greater clarity in Wildlife Issues in a Changing World. The Second Edition of this definitive reference focuses more closely on the causes of wildlife issues. The examination of Jared Diamond's "Evil Quartet" (the four principal causes of extinction) provides a framework for categorizing and resolving these issues. The authors encourage the use of the scientific method basis for resolution - especially where environmental laws have failed. The three new chapters provide further counterpoints to preconceived notions. A two-part history of wildlife in the U.S. shows how wildlife had already been decimated by the year 1900. "Can Humans Manage Wildlife?" questions efforts to revive endangered species, acts which may inadvertently jeopardize the survival of other life. Viewing the natural order from prehistoric times to the present, Wildlife Issues in a Changing World, Second Edition gives students and instructors an all-encompassing introduction to past relations between humans and nature; explorations of current threats to species and their habitats; and recent "novel solutions," where humanity and industry have made adjustments to protect the natural order. Professionals will also find invaluable reminders of the importance of their work - the continuation and endurance of wildlife everywhere on Earth.

Conservation of plant resources is often focused on seed banks and botanical gardens. However, the two authors of this volume present a comprehensive conservation strategy that complements this "ex-situ" approach with practical guidance on "in-situ" management and conservation of plant resources. The book aims to facilitate better management of protected areas and to illustrate new approaches to conservation of plants within their landscapes. It draws on concepts from forestry, the agricultural sciences, anthropology, ethnology and ethnobotany and should be useful to practitioners, academics and policy-makers.

A practical guide to the protection and management of ecosystems against invasions by non-indigenous plant species. The authors seek to offer an accessible account of the subject and how to protect natural habitats. The majority of countries suffer from invasive plants and there are case studies from North America, Europe, Australia, South and South East Asia and the Pacific and Atlantic islands. There is also a list of invasive species, with their countries of origin and regions of introduction.

A considerable change in climate at a global level will impact the vegetable cultivation and agriculture as a whole; subsequently affecting the world's food supply. Climate change per se is not necessarily harmful; the problems arise from extreme events that are difficult to predict (erratic rainfall patterns and unpredictable high and low temperatures), and consequently reduce crop productivity. Vegetables are in general more succulent (have 90% water) and are more sensitive to climatic vagaries. Sudden changes in temperature coupled with irregular precipitation at any phase of crop growth can affect the normal growth, flowering, pollination, fruit setting, fruit development and fruit ripening can decrease the yield. The irregular precipitation can also affect the soil salinity and is a major challenge in many vegetable growing areas. To mitigate the harmful impact of climatic change there is a urgent need to develop adequate adaptation strategies for adverse effect of climate change and the preference should be given on development of heat, cold, drought, flood and salinity stress tolerant genotypes along with climate proofing through conventional and non-conventional breeding techniques. Available evidence shows that there is a high probability of increase in the frequency and intensity of climate related natural hazards due to climate change and hence increases the potential threat due to climate change related natural disasters in the world. This book (Volume- I) will be basically useful for the researchers and postgraduate students with current challenges and mitigation strategies for increasing vegetable production under a changing climate.

Fully updated and expanded, this third edition of the top-selling Field Guide to Common Trees & Shrubs of East Africa now features more than 520 of the trees and shrubs – indigenous and naturalized exotics – commonly found in the region.

Each of the four sections – trees, shrubs, palms and mangroves – is arranged in alphabetical order according to scientifi c name. The book features:

• An informative introduction to families.

• Species accounts describing the plants’ habitat, bark, leaves, fl owers and fruit.

• General and commercial applications and uses in traditional medicine.

• Almost 2,000 photographs depicting the species, its fruit, fl owers and bark.

• Glossaries, both textual and illustrated, of botanical and medical terms.