Pharmacognosy

• Pharmacognosy


  The study of drugs from natural sources
• Natural sources of drugs

  • Plants
  • Animals
  • Microbes
• Pharmacognosy came from the Greek word “Pharmakon” which means drug and “gnosis” which means knowledge
• The literal translation of pharmacognosy is “knowledge of drugs”
• Babylonians made clay models of the human body
• Babylonians were aware of the medicinal effects of several plants
• Egyptians possessed an understanding of the human anatomy as well as knowledge of the medicinal uses of many plants
• A document known as a paper scroll (Papyrus Ebers) was found in the tomb of a mummy
• Egyptians were adept in embalming the dead using myrrh
• Pedanios Dioscorides


  He wrote the book De Materia Medica
• De Materia Medica

  Medicinal material – substances and products derived from natural sources
• Father of Pharmacology

  • Pedanios Dioscorides
• Natural products

  • Aloe
  • Colchicum
  • Belladonna
  • Ergot
  • Opium
• Aloe

  Aloe barbadensis, used as an emollient, treatment of burns, and cathartic
• Colchicum

  Colchicum officinale, treatment of acute gout
• Belladonna

  Atropa belladonna, mydriatic agent
• Ergot


  Claviceps purpurea, contains ergonovine (oxytocic) and ergotamine (migraine)
• Opium


  Stone of immortality, Papaver somniferum, contains morphine (narcotic analgesic)
• Claudius Galen


  Father of Extemporaneous Compounding
• Claudius Galen described the methods of preparing formulas containing plant and animal constituents
• Galenical Pharmacy


  Introduced by Claudius Galen
• C.A. Seydler coined the term pharmacognosy from Pharmakon and Gnosis
• C.A. Seydler used the term pharmacognosy in his dissertation entitled Analectica Pharmacognostica (1815)
• J.A. Schimdt wrote Lehrbuch der materia medica which describes the study of plants and properties
• F.A. Fluckiger described the most comprehensive idea of the scope of pharmacognosy
• Pharmacognosy


  An applied science that deals with the biologic, economic, and biochemical features of natural drugs and their constituents
• Biologic features

  • Carolus Linnaeus
  • Father of Modern Taxonomy
  • Binomial System
• Economic feature: Acacia gum is exported by Sudan and Senegal
• Active constituent


  Responsible for the therapeutic effects
• Inert constituent


  Mainly used as excipients; may cause incompatibilities
• Inert constituent examples


  • Acacia + Bi = cementation
  • Acacia + Fe = Gelatinization
• Paracelsus began the isolation of compounds
• Quintessence


  First compound isolated by Paracelsus
• Crude drugs are vegetable or animal substances that have undergone only the process of collection and drying
• Crude drugs have extractive/derivatives which are the chief constituents of the drug
• Menstruum


  Solvent or liquid mixture that dissolves the chief constituents
• Polar constituents


  • Sugar
  • Alcohol glycoside
  • Tannins
  • Butanol
  • Methanol
  • Water
• Nonpolar constituents

  • Petroleum ether
  • Hexane
• Substance and their menstruum

  • Fats - Hexane
  • Resins - Alcohol (ethanol)
  • Chlorophyll - Acetone
  • Solanine - Acetic acid
  • Chrysarobin - Hot benzene
• Marc


  Undissolved portion of the drug that remains after extraction