Medicinal Roots and Tubers for Pharmaceutical and Commercial Applications

The root and tuber are vital parts of medicinal plants providing mechanical support, producing critical growth regulators, and storing food. Bioactive compounds obtained from plant roots and tubers demonstrate health benefits presenting antioxidative, antimicrobial, hypoglycaemic, hypocholesterolaemic, and immunomodulatory properties. Roots of many medicinal plants have been used for the treatment of disease and formulation of drugs, and they are also known for their commercial value, being used as an ingredient in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Medicinal Roots and Tubers for Pharmaceutical and Commercial Applications provides information on the medicinal properties of roots and tubers and various phytochemicals derived from them.

Features

• Presents exhaustive information on plant roots and tubers including Glycyrrhiza glabra, Curcuma longa, Beta vulgaris, Zingiber officinale, Boesenbergia pandurata, Houttuynia cordata, Eutrema japonicum, and Withania somnifera
• Explains the roles of secondary metabolites isolated from roots and tubers and features information on their pharmaceutical and commercial applications
• Discusses opportunities for future prospects of different roots and tubers for their industrial applications

A volume in the Exploring Medicinal Plants series, this book provides information on phytochemicals derived from medicinal plant roots and tubers. This is valuable information for scientists, researchers, and students working on medicinal plants, economic botany, chemistry, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and many other interdisciplinary subjects.

Rakesh Kumar Bachheti graduated from the Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna University, Garhwal, India, in 1996. He completed his MSc in Organic Chemistry from Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna University, Garhwal, India, in 1998. He had undergone a one-year Post Graduate Diploma in Pulp and Paper Technology from Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, in 2001. He obtained his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Kumaun University, Nainital, India, in 2007. He is presently working as an Associate Professor of Organic Chemistry in the Department of Industrial Chemistry at the Addis Ababa Science and Technology University (AASTU) of Ethiopia, where he teaches Ph.D., graduate, and undergraduate students. Before joining AASTU, Rakesh was working as Dean Project (Assistant) at Graphic Era University (A grade university by NACC) in Dehradun, India. Rakesh also presented papers at various international (Malaysia, Thailand, and India) and national conferences. He was also a member of various important committees, such as the Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC), Anti-ragging committee. His major research interests include natural products for Industrial application, biofuel and bioenergy, green synthesis of nanoparticles, their application and Pulp and paper technology. He retains a fundamental love for natural products, which permeates all of his research. He has also successfully advised 30 MSc and 3 Ph.D. students to completion, and countless undergraduates have researched in his laboratory. Dr. Bachheti is actively involved in curriculum development for BSc/MSc/Ph.D. programs. Dr. Bachheti has over 70 publications dealing with various aspects of natural product chemistry and nanotechnology and has twenty book chapters published by Springer, Elsevier, and Nova Publisher. Presently, he is supervising 5 Ph.D. students and 3 Master's students and works on two research projects funded by AASTU.

Archana (Joshi) Bachheti did BSc in 1997 and MSc in 1999 from HNB Garhwal University. She received her Ph.D. from Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, India, in 2006. She has carried out research projects and consultancy work in the areas of ecorestoration/ development of wasteland, physico-chemical properties of Jatropha curcus seed oil and their relation with altitudinal variation, and has been a consultant Ecologist to a project funded by a government agency. Dr. Joshi is currently Professor at Graphic Era University, Dehradun, India. She has also served in many capacities in academia within India and provided expertise internationally for more than 15 years. She taught Ecology and Environment, Environmental Science, Freshwater Ecology, Disaster management, and Bryophytes and Pteridophytes. Her major research interests encompass the broad, interdisciplinary field of plant ecology, focusing on ecorestoration, green chemistry, especially the synthesis of nanomaterial, and medicinal properties of plants. The breadth of her research spans from degraded land ecological amelioration and physical and chemical properties of plant oil to plant-based nanomaterial. She guided one Ph.D. student, supervised three scholars, and guided graduate and undergraduate students with their research projects. While the fascination with forest biodiversity captured her interest, it has been her love for the exploration of values of biodiversity and social upliftment through it that has maintained that passion. Dr. Joshi has published over 55 research articles in international and national journals and sixteen book chapters. She organized several National seminars/conferences at Graphic Era University, India.