Medicinal and aromac plants (MAPs) are invaluable natural resources of use to human race, without which the survival of human/ animal race is incredible. There is an enormous diversity of plants which are put into medicinal, beauty care and culinary purposes. Culvaon of commercially important medicinal plants is in high demand as the global community is growing towards a green and herbal oriented approach. India as a country has thousands of years old tradional medicinal systems which rely solely on medicinal plants. There is a gradual loss of medicinal plants with the increasing demand of plant derived drugs. Majority of medicinal plants are sll collected from the wild. This doesn't meet the demand and thereby pave ways to adulterants. The over extracon and ignorant acvies cause biodiversity loss. Farm producon of MAPs in these days is extremely vulnerable to underlying climate risk. Sustainable management of these resources requires urgent aenon for environmental stability and improvement of livelihood. New income generang opportunies are opening up for rural populaons and in parcular for small-scale farmers as well as marginal farmers through MAPs culvaon. New generaon are not well aware of the various uses of many plants to which it was put before. Thus there is an urgent need to spread the knowledge and conserve the wild populaons of medicinal plant diversity in various forest areas of India. Considering the importance of the MAPs, an aempt was taken in this edited book to understand and highlight the role of MAPs in livelihood improvement and income generaon through culvaon, conservaon and ulisaon. Most of the chapters in this book dealt with individual medicinal plants in detail. Two chapters have also been included on pests and diseases management of MAPs. Nowadays, IPR issues are more important. One chapter has been included on IPR issues on medicinal plants. A chapter also devoted on value addion of the medicinal plant products.

Medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) have accompanied mankind from its very early beginnings. Their utilization has co-evolved with homo sapiens itself bringing about a profound increase in our scientific knowledge of these species enabling them to be used in many facets of our life (e.g. pharmaceutical products, feed- and food additives, cosmetics, etc.). Remarkably, despite the new renaissance of MAPs usage, ca. 80 % of the world’s population is relying on natural substances of plant origin, with most of these botanicals sourced from the wild state. This first volume and ultimately the series, provides readers with a wealth of information on medicinal and aromatic plants.

Medicinal plants are globally valuable sources of herbal products. Plant-based remedies have been used for centuries and have had no alternative in the western medicine repertoire, while others and their bioactive derivatives are in high demand and have been the central focus of biomedical research. As Medicinal plants move from fringe to mainstream with a greater number of individuals seeking treatments free of side effects, considerable attention has been paid to utilize plant-based products for the prevention and cure of human diseases. An unintended consequence of this increased demand, however, is that the existence of many medicinal plants is now threatened, due to their small population size, narrow distribution area, habitat specificity, and destructive mode of harvesting. In addition, climate change, habitat loss and genetic drift have further endangered these unique species. Although extensive research has been carried out on medicinal and aromatic plants, there is relatively little information available on their global distribution patterns, conservation and the associated laws prevailing. This book reviews the current status of threatened medicinal plants in light of increased surge in the demand for herbal medicine. It brings together chapters on both wild (non-cultivated) and domestic (cultivated) species having therapeutic values. Thematically, conventional and contemporary approaches to conservation of such threatened medicinal plants with commercial feasibility are presented. The topics of interest include, but not limited to, biotechnology, sustainable development, in situ and ex situ conservation, and even the relevance of IPR on threatened medicinal plants. We believe this book is useful to horticulturists, botanists, policy makers, conservationists, NGOs and researchers in the academia and the industry sectors.

Before the concept of history began, humans undoubtedly acquired life benefits by discovering medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) that were food and medicine. Today, a variety of available herbs and spices are used and enjoyed throughout the world and continue to promote good health. The international market is also quite welcoming for MAPs and essential oils. The increasing environment and nature conscious buyers encourage producers to produce high quality essential oils. These consumer choices lead to growing preference for organic and herbal based products in the world market. As the benefits of medicinal and aromatic plants are recognized, these plants will have a special role for humans in the future. Until last century, the production of botanicals relies to a large degree on wild-collection. However, the increasing commercial collection, largely unmonitored trade, and habitat loss lead to an incomparably growing pressure on plant populations in the wild. Therefore, medicinal and aromatic plants are of high priority for conservation. Given the above, we bring forth a comprehensive volume, “Medicinal and Aromatic Plants: Healthcare and Industrial Applications”, highlighting the various healthcare, industrial and pharmaceutical applications that are being used on these immensely important MAPs and its future prospects. This collection of chapters from the different areas dealing with MAPs caters to the need of all those who are working or have interest in the above topic.

A detailed discussion of the need to conserve medicinal plants and their environments.

This book presents the opinions of an international panel of specialists that explored the agricultural, commercial, ecological, legal, pharmacological and social future of medicinal and aromatic plants. It represents a wide collection of views, reflecting the diversity of disciplines and interests of the panel members. It highlights the necessity of continued and integrated research on plant sources, conservation, bioactivity, analysis and marketing in examining future scenarios for application and sale of medicinal and aromatic plants. It shows the need for proof of efficacy and safety in drug development and the need to recognize societies contributing plant materials. The development of safe and effective medicinal and aromatic plant products depends upon the collaborative efforts of growers, collectors, conservationists, processors and businesses along with those of educators, sociologists, researchers and investors in developed and developing societies.

Plants have been a source of medicines and have played crucial role for human health. Despite tremendous advances in the field of synthetic drugs and antibiotics, plants continue to play a vital role in modern as well as traditional medicine across the globe. In even today, one-third of the world’s population depends on traditional medicine because of its safety features and ability to effectively cure diseases. This book presents a comprehensive guide to medicinal plants, their utility, diversity and conversation, as well as biotechnology. It is divided into four main sections, covering all aspects of research in medicinal plants: biodiversity and conservation; ethnobotany and ethnomedicine; bioactive compounds from plants and microbes; and biotechnology. All sections cover the latest advances. The book offers a valuable asset for researchers and graduate students of biotechnology, botany, microbiology and the pharmaceutical sciences. It is an equally important resource for doctors (especially those engaged in Ayurveda and allopathy); the pharmaceutical industry (for drug design and synthesis); and the agricultural sciences.