HERBAL SCIENCE: EXPLORING THE PHYTOCHEMISTRY AND PHARMACOGNOSYOF MEDICINAL PLANTS

India has a diverse cultural heritage due to its biodiversity. Currently, the Indian primary health care system depends upon both organised systems such as Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani, as well as an unorganised traditional system of medicine like folk medicine. One of the renowned ancient medical systems is Ayurveda, where many medicinal plants are used therapeutically. Many studies have been carried out globally to verify the efficacy of numerous medicinal plants, due to which various plant-based medicines are formulated. The crude drugs that are procured from natural sources are considered to be the branch of Pharmacognosy. Pharmacognosy mainly deals with identifying natural drugs obtained from various plants, microbes, and animals, leading to a new approach towards drug delivery. Various important drugs originate from plants like atropine, morphine, colchicine, ricin, cannabidiol, THC, etc. Plants produce secondary metabolites, such as toxins, alkaloids, and biopolymers. On the other hand, Phytochemistry studies phytochemicals,chemicals derived from plants. Medicinal plants are a rich source of phytochemicals and natural compounds such as alkaloids, terpenes, glycosylated, phenolic compounds, flavonoids, etc. They are also an effective source of folk and modern medicine widely used to treat various ailments. The ancient wisdom in this traditional system of medicine (TSMs) is still not exhaustively explored. Plants seem to be valuable for minimising side effects and having a positive impact on human health. Through this article, we can explore new avenues for discovering more efficient drugs with the help of medicinal plants, pharmacognosy, phytochemistry and their dependency on each other.