Why the first update of 456 plant drugs of Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India
- 1. Why the first update of 456 plant drugs of Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India? Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeial Plant Drugs: Expanded Therapeutics, published by CRC Press, will now be available during November, 2015. It is aimed at unveiling the Sanskritized classical annotations recast in contemporary language to bridge the gap between scientists and proponents of Ayurveda. Plant drugs Sanskrit name of the Classical period of Ayurveda was adopted as the Pharmacopoeial name. Its historical evolution and usage during Classical and Post-classical periods was examined. Non-classical Sanskritized names and Sanskritized versions of botanical names have been identified and comments were posted. The nomenclature of Ayurveda was not a binomial system as adopted by modern botany. In Ayurveda, there are many names for a single entity and a single name is used to denote many plants. For the sake of authenticity and accuracy, all the botanical names assigned to Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeial names were re- examined by consulting 20 volumes of The Wealth of India series, 11 volumes of Indian Council of Medical Research series (up to H), Asima Chatterjees 6 volumes of The Treatise on Indian Medicinal Plants, Ayurvedic Formulary of India, Pat I and II, and reference works published by Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Indian National Science Academy, National Academy of Ayurveda, Central Council for research in Ayurveda and Siddha. Biologically active chemical constituents remained the main thrust of the text of the expanded therapeutics, as this section was treated as a secondary exercise by Ayurvedic scholars. Sources of chemical constituents have not been disclosed in the Pharmacopoeia. Without proper references, access to the original source was denied. On the other hand, references (Sanskrit verses, classical as well as non-classical) were provided in support of quoted classical attributes. Chemical constituents, therapeutic uses, doses, contraindications and herb-drug interactions have been expanded by consulting 13 volumes (up to H) of Reviews on Indian Medicinal Plants series by Indian Council of Medical Research, The Wealth of India series published up to 2009, and other reference works, including the German Commission monographs, World Health Organization herbal monographs, British Herbal Compendium, Natural Medicines Databases, PDR for Herbal Products. Doses in all the monographs were based on Bhaavaprakasha Nighantu (sixteenth century), though actual source was not provided. In the expanded therapeutics, LD50 doses have been quoted from published literature of the
- 2. Indian Council of Medical Research and Standardization basis marker compounds from the Indian Pharmacopoeia. The expanded therapeutics demystifies the pharmacopoeial attributes of Ayurvedic herbs and formulations in order to facilitate their correct implementation. Classical compounds, quoted in the monographs, in a number of the cases, do not represent specific medicinal value of the Ayurvedic herb. Paucity of valid compounds reflected in most of the monographs. A number of compound drugs which qualify for inclusion in the Pharmacopoeia have been added and exclusion of a number of compounds and cross-checking of text variations have been suggested. Literature of the North and South was scanned for commenting upon the authenticity of quoted classical compounds and for ascertaining clinical relevance of plant drugs advocated in the Pharmacopoeia. Archaic nature of Ayurvedic terminology for a number of diseases was maintained (or could not be modified) till 2008 in the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia. From volume I to volume VI, it was not easy to convert Sanskrit terminology into English equivalents. This section and quoted classical and non-classical Sanskrit verses (shlokas) for supporting the attributes of Ayurvedic plant drugs needed further review. With all these salient features, this review of Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeial Plant Drugs an effort has been made give a scientific edge to the new generation of Ayurvedic students, enlightened faculty members, researchers and enterprising phytopharmaceutical scientists who expect the Pharmacopoeia to be the last word. The aim is that scientific temper of this reference work may solve many intricacies of classical Ayurveda globally and will expand its area beyond geographical boundaries. --C.P. Khare .