European Journal of Medicinal Plants

Medicinal Plant Diversity and Conservation in the Environmental Education Theme Park of RIE Ajmer: A Case Study

Sanjeeb K. Das, Shrestha Shrijani, Aakanksha Singh — Sat, 01 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Medicinal plants constitute an important component of biodiversity and provide valuable opportunities for environmental education, conservation awareness, and the preservation of ethnobotanical knowledge. The present study documented medicinal plant diversity within the Environmental Education Theme Park of the Regional Institute of Education (RIE), Ajmer, Rajasthan. Field surveys were conducted during 2025–2026 through direct observation, specimen collection, photography, and interaction with local residents. Plant specimens were identified using standard floristic literature and available taxonomic monographs. A total of 113 medicinal plant species belonging to 89 genera and 50 families were recorded on the campus. The inventory comprised 106 dicot species representing 82 genera and 45 families and seven monocot species representing six genera and five families. Based on growth habit, the recorded flora included 47 trees, 38 herbs, 21 shrubs, and seven climbers. Fabaceae and Euphorbiaceae were the dominant families, each represented by six species, while Ficus was the most represented genus, with three species. Nine medicinal plant species were reported under Rare, Endangered, or Threatened categories, indicating the need for site-based conservation attention. The documented campus flora demonstrates the potential of the theme park as a practical resource for plant identification, biodiversity education, and awareness of medicinal plant conservation. Continued monitoring, taxonomic verification, voucher documentation, and appropriate in situ and ex situ conservation measures are required to support the sustainable management and educational use of these medicinal plant resources.

Unveiling the Safety Margin: Acute Toxicity Assessment and LD₅₀ Determination of Senna occidentalis Extract in Wistar Rats

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background: Senna occidentalis is used as a medicinal plant in several parts of Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Its seeds, leaves, roots, and stems have been used as laxatives, analgesics, diuretics, antibiotics, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, antihyperlipidaemic, antioxidant, and antianaemic agents, and in the treatment of malaria, influenza, and liver and urinary tract infections.

Aim: This study assessed the acute oral toxicity and median lethal dose (LD₅₀) of ethanolic leaf, stem, and root extracts of S. occidentalis in female Wistar rats.

Materials and Methods: Twelve nulliparous, non-pregnant female Wistar rats aged 8–12 weeks were randomly assigned to four groups (n = 3 per group). Group 1 (control) received distilled water, whereas Groups 2, 3, and 4 received 2,000 mg/kg of S. occidentalis leaf, stem, and root extracts, respectively, by oral administration. The rats were observed for signs of toxicity, general behaviour, and mortality for 14 days. At the end of the experiment, the rats were euthanised, and the liver, kidneys, and heart were harvested for examination.

Results: S. occidentalis produced no signs of toxicity or mortality during the study period; however, the leaf and stem extracts significantly (p < 0.05) reduced body weight. None of the extracts significantly affected the weights of the liver, kidneys, or heart. Phytochemical screening revealed alkaloids, cardiac glycosides, phenols, tannins, flavonoids, and saponins in all extracts. Steroids and terpenoids were detected in the root and stem extracts, anthraquinones and glycosides in the root extract, and polyphenols in the stem extract. The LD₅₀ values of the S. occidentalis leaf, stem, and root extracts were greater than 2,000 mg/kg.

Conclusion: A single oral dose of 2,000 mg/kg of S. occidentalis leaf, stem, and root extracts caused no mortality or visible acute toxicity and did not significantly alter liver, kidney, or heart weights in female Wistar rats. Nevertheless, further biochemical, haematological, neurobehavioural, gross pathological, and histological assessments are required.

Protective Effects of Hydromethanolic Leaf Extracts of Carica papaya and Chromolaena odorata on Cadmium-induced Intestinal Injury in Wistar Rats

Igattah, Prudence Akachukwu, Waribo, Helen Anthony, Ibama, Onengiyeofori — Sat, 08 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Aims: To evaluate the protective effects of hydromethanolic leaf extracts of Carica papaya and Chromolaena odorata, administered individually and in combination, against cadmium-induced intestinal oxidative damage in Wistar rats.

Study Design: Experimental animal study.

Place and Duration of Study: Animal House, Department of Animal and Environmental Biology, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria, between February 2025 and October 2025.

Methodology: Forty-eight albino Wistar rats were randomly assigned to eight groups (n = 6). Intestinal injury was induced by oral administration of cadmium chloride (20 mg/kg body weight) for 14 days, followed by treatment with hydromethanolic leaf extracts of Carica papaya (300 and 600 mg/kg), Chromolaena odorata (250 and 500 mg/kg), or their combined extracts (300 and 600 mg/kg) for 14 days. Phytochemical constituents of both plants were identified using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, while heavy metal contents were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Serum cadmium concentration, intestinal oxidative stress biomarkers (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and malondialdehyde), and histopathological changes were evaluated using standard analytical methods. Data were analysed using one-way analysis of variance followed by Tukey's post hoc test at P < 0.05.

Results: Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry revealed the presence of diverse bioactive phytochemicals in both plant extracts, while heavy metal concentrations were within recommended safety limits. Cadmium exposure significantly increased serum cadmium concentration and malondialdehyde levels while significantly reducing superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase activities compared with the normal control (P < 0.05). Treatment with the hydromethanolic leaf extracts significantly reduced serum cadmium concentration, restored antioxidant enzyme activities, decreased lipid peroxidation, and improved intestinal histoarchitecture in a dose-dependent manner. The high-dose C. papaya extract showed the greatest recovery of superoxide dismutase activity, whereas the high-dose combined extract was most effective in reducing lipid peroxidation and improving intestinal histoarchitecture.

Conclusion: Hydromethanolic leaf extracts of Carica papaya and Chromolaena odorata protected against cadmium-induced intestinal oxidative injury by reducing cadmium burden, improving antioxidant status, and preserving intestinal tissue architecture. While the high-dose C. papaya extract produced the greatest recovery of superoxide dismutase activity, the combined extract showed marked protective effects, particularly in reducing lipid peroxidation and preserving intestinal histoarchitecture, suggesting its potential as a phytotherapeutic approach against cadmium-induced intestinal toxicity.

Standardization of Trikatu Powder and Comparative Analysis of the Quality Parameters of Its Constituent Drugs

Shreelakshmi Harikrishnan, Manasi Deshpande, Tejaswini Babar — Mon, 10 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Trikatu is a classical polyherbal formulation consisting of Shunthi (Zingiber officinale), Maricha (Piper nigrum), and Pippali (Piper longum) in equal proportions. Standardisation of herbal formulations is essential to ensure consistency and quality of raw materials and finished products. The present study aimed to evaluate and compare the quality parameters of Trikatu powder and its individual constituent drugs through organoleptic, physicochemical, chromatographic, and analytical approaches. The collected samples were authenticated and processed individually before preparation of Trikatu powder. Organoleptic and macroscopic characteristics were evaluated, followed by assessment of moisture content, ash values, extractive values, thin-layer chromatography (TLC), and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The physicochemical parameters showed moisture content of 7.6%, 9.36%, 8.36%, and 9.6%; total ash values of 4.6%, 4.45%, 6.45%, and 4.6%; water-soluble extractive values of 4.4%, 14.4%, 19.4%, and 19.4%; and alcohol-soluble extractive values of 7.4%, 15.44%, 13.44%, and 15.4% for Shunthi, Maricha, Pippali, and Trikatu powders, respectively, establishing comparative analytical profiles. TLC analysis demonstrated characteristic chromatographic patterns for individual ingredients and the combined formulation. HPLC analysis confirmed the presence of Piperine as a marker compound in Trikatu powder, with a quantified content of 0.018 mg/mL (0.18%), indicating the presence of a key bioactive constituent. The findings provide analytical information regarding the quality characteristics and standardisation parameters of Trikatu powder. The study contributes baseline data for quality evaluation and supports further investigations related to the formulation.

Phytochemical Screening and Biological Studies of Different Extracts and GC-MS Analysis of n-Hexane Extracts of Stem Bark and Root of Calophyllum inophyllum Linn Growing in Bangladesh

Wed, 19 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Calophyllum inophyllum is a medicinal plant containing numerous bioactive compounds with diverse pharmacological properties. This study investigated the phytochemical composition and antioxidant, cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory activities of successive n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of its stem bark and root. The n-hexane extracts were subjected to GC-MS analysis to identify their major chemical constituents. All extracts contained steroids and terpenoids, while the occurrence of other phytochemicals varied according to solvent polarity. The ethyl acetate extracts exhibited the highest DPPH radical-scavenging activity, with IC₅₀ values of 22.90 µg/mL for the stem bark and 45.70 µg/mL for the root, followed by the methanol extracts. The stem bark methanol extract had the highest total phenolic content (398.53 ± 1.89 mg GAE/g), whereas the root ethyl acetate and methanol extracts had the highest flavonoid contents and total antioxidant capacities. The stem bark ethyl acetate extract exhibited cytotoxic activity, with an LC₅₀ value of 25.64 µg/mL, compared with 3.57 µg/mL for vincristine sulfate. The methanol extracts exhibited the highest anti-inflammatory activity, with IC₅₀ values of 21.03 µg/mL for the root and 34.73 µg/mL for the stem bark. GC-MS profiling identified 14 compounds in the stem bark extract and 22 compounds in the root extract, with 13-docosenamide and glycerol 1-palmitate as the major constituents, respectively. Overall, the results indicate that the comparatively polar extracts of C. inophyllum possess antioxidant, cytotoxic, and anti-inflammatory activities.

Multi-Functional Phytotherapeutics for Health and Socio-Ecological Sustainability: A Critical Narrative Review of Evidence, Trade-Offs and Governance

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Plant-derived preparations are increasingly promoted as interventions that deliver therapeutic benefit while simultaneously supporting rural incomes, cultural continuity and habitat stewardship. This framing, described here as multi-functionality, has become influential in policy and commercial discourse, yet the evidence supporting each of its component claims has rarely been appraised together. The present review examines whether the therapeutic, socio-economic and ecological functions attributed to phytotherapeutics are supported by evidence of comparable strength, and where the assumed synergies between them break down. Literature was identified through structured searching of open scholarly indexes and citation tracking, followed by verification of bibliographic identity for every retained source. Five findings emerge. Clinical evidence remains concentrated in a small number of well-characterised preparations, while much of the wider literature is compromised by inadequate chemical characterisation of the material tested and by computational inference that recycles a narrow set of database-privileged molecules. Safety evidence is dominated by product-level failures, including adulteration and elemental contamination, rather than by intrinsic pharmacological toxicity alone. Ecological evidence indicates that demand-driven harvest pressure is real but unevenly documented, with extinction-risk assessment biased towards conspicuous and commercially prominent taxa. Socio-economic evidence shows that harvesters typically capture a minor share of final value, and that gendered participation is high where returns are lowest. Governance instruments addressing quality, benefit sharing and trade operate on different jurisdictional logics and are only weakly coupled to one another. The convergence of health and sustainability objectives is therefore conditional rather than automatic, and depends on supply model, species biology, market structure and regulatory capacity. Research priorities include harvest-response studies for high-volume traded taxa, chemically characterised pragmatic trials, and value-chain analyses that report distributional outcomes alongside conservation indicators.