This unique book is a collaborative effort between researchers at Rutgers University and colleagues from numerous institutions in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. It will be the first book to document more than 200 of the most important medicinal plants of Central Asia, many whose medicinal uses and activities are being described in English for the first time. The majority of the plants described grow wild in Central Asia with some being endemic, while other species have been introduced to Central Asia but are commonly used in regional plant based medicine. The book contains four introductory chapters. The first and second chapters cover the geography, climate and vegetation of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, respectively. The third chapter provides a brief history of medicinal plant use and science in Central Asia and the fourth chapter contains general information about phytochemistry. The fifth chapter comprises the bulk of the book and covers 208 medicinal plant species. Nearly all species have one or more high quality, color photographs. Three useful appendices have been included. The first is a glossary of botanical and ecological terms, the second is a glossary of chemistry terms and the third is a glossary of medical terms. During the preparation of this manuscript we found there to be a deficiency in quality reference resources for the translation of many of the technical terms associated with the different branches of science covered in this book. In order to make our job easier we compiled glossaries over the course of preparing the manuscript and have included them feeling that they will be an extremely valuable resource for readers. ​

Central Asia is a large and understudied region of varied geography, ranging from the high passes and mountains of Tian Shan, to the vast deserts of Kyzyl Kum, Taklamakan to the grassy treeles steppes. This region is faced with adverse conditions, as much of the land is too dry or rugged for farming. Additionally, the rich specific and intraspecific diversity of fruit trees and medicinal plants is threatened by overgrazing, oil and mineral extraction, and poaching. Countless species from the approximately 20 ecosystems and 6000 plant taxa are now rare and endangered. Traditional vegetation studies in this region are far from adequate to handle complex issues such as soil mass movement, soil sodicity and salinity, biodiversity conservation, and grazing management. However, data analysis using a Geographical Information System (GIS) tool provides new insights into the vegetation of this region and opens up new opportunities for long-term sustainable management. While vegetation planning can occur at a property scale, it is often necessary for certain factors, such as salinity, to be dealt with on a regional scale to ensure their effective management. GIS increases the effectiveness and accuracy of vegetation planning in a region. Such regional planning will also greatly increases biodiversity values. This book systematically explores these issues and discuses new applications and approaches for overcoming these issues, including the application of GIS techniques for sustainable management and planning. Professional researchers as well as students and teachers of agriculture and ecology will find this volume to be an integral resource for studying the vegetation of Central Asia.

This unique book is a collaborative effort between researchers at Rutgers University and colleagues from numerous institutions in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. It will be the first book to document more than 200 of the most important medicinal plants of Central Asia, many whose medicinal uses and activities are being described in English for the first time. The majority of the plants described grow wild in Central Asia with some being endemic, while other species have been introduced to Central Asia but are commonly used in regional plant based medicine. The book contains four introductory chapters. The first and second chapters cover the geography, climate and vegetation of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, respectively. The third chapter provides a brief history of medicinal plant use and science in Central Asia and the fourth chapter contains general information about phytochemistry. The fifth chapter comprises the bulk of the book and covers 208 medicinal plant species. Nearly all species have one or more high quality, color photographs. Three useful appendices have been included. The first is a glossary of botanical and ecological terms, the second is a glossary of chemistry terms and the third is a glossary of medical terms. During the preparation of this manuscript we found there to be a deficiency in quality reference resources for the translation of many of the technical terms associated with the different branches of science covered in this book. In order to make our job easier we compiled glossaries over the course of preparing the manuscript and have included them feeling that they will be an extremely valuable resource for readers. ​

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

Phytochemicals from medicinal plants are receiving ever greater attention in the scientific literature, in medicine, and in the world economy in general. For example, the global value of plant-derived pharmaceuticals will reach $500 billion in the year 2000 in the OECD countries. In the developing countries, over-the-counter remedies and "ethical phytomedicines," which are standardized toxicologically and clinically defined crude drugs, are seen as a promising low cost alternatives in primary health care. The field also has benefited greatly in recent years from the interaction of the study of traditional ethnobotanical knowledge and the application of modem phytochemical analysis and biological activity studies to medicinal plants. The papers on this topic assembled in the present volume were presented at the annual meeting of the Phytochemical Society of North America, held in Mexico City, August 15-19, 1994. This meeting location was chosen at the time of entry of Mexico into the North American Free Trade Agreement as another way to celebrate the closer ties between Mexico, the United States, and Canada. The meeting site was the historic Calinda Geneve Hotel in Mexico City, a most appropriate site to host a group of phytochemists, since it was the address of Russel Marker. Marker lived at the hotel, and his famous papers on steroidal saponins from Dioscorea composita, which launched the birth control pill, bear the address of the hotel.

This beautifully illustrated textbook pairs research on the biochemical properties and physiological effects of medicinal plants with a history of the ways in which humans have cultivated plant species and investigated their effects. Nature's Pharmacopeia fosters an appreciation of the chemistry and cultural resonance of herbal medicine.

"In July 2007, the European Union initiated a fundamentally new approach to the countries of Central Asia. The launch of the EU Strategy for Central Asia signals a qualitative shift in the Union's relations with a region of the world that is of growing importance as a supplier of energy, is geographically situated in a politically sensitive area - between China, Russia, Iran, Afghanistan and the south Caucasus - and contains some of the most authoritarian political regimes in the world. In this volume, leading specialists from Europe, the United States and Central Asia explore the key challenges facing the European Union as it seeks to balance its policies between enhancing the Union's energy, business and security interests in the region while strengthening social justice, democratisation efforts and the protection of human rights. With chapters devoted to the Union's bilateral relations with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan and to the vital issues of security and democratisation, 'Engaging Central Asia' provides the first comprehensive analysis of the EU's strategic initiative in a part of the world that is fast emerging as one of the key regions of the 21st century."--BOOK JACKET.