Introduction to Pharmacognosy: Definition, history, scope and development of Pharmacognosy. Sources of Drugs – Plants, Animals, Marine & Tissue culture. Organized drugs, unorganized drugs (dried latex, dried juices, dried extracts, gums and mucilage, oleoresins and oleo- gum -resins).
Classification of drugs: Alphabetical, morphological, taxonomical, chemical, pharmacological, chemo and sero taxonomical classification of drugs.
Quality control of Drugs of Natural Origin: Adulteration of drugs of natural origin. Evaluation by organoleptic, microscopic, physical, chemical and biological methods and properties. Quantitative microscopy of crude drugs including lycopodium spore method, leaf constant, camera lucida and diagrams of microscopic objects to scale with camera lucida
Cultivation, Collection, Processing and storage of drugs of natural origin: Cultivation and Collection of drugs of natural origin. Factors influencing cultivation of medicinal plants.
Plant hormones and their applications. Polyploidy, mutation and hybridization with reference to medicinal plants.
Conservation of medicinal plants.
Pharmacognosy in various systems of medicine:
Role of Pharmacognosy in allopathy and traditional systems of medicine namely, Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy and Chinese systems of medicine.
Introduction to secondary metabolites: Definition, classification, properties and test for identification of Alkaloids, Glycosides, Flavonoids, Tannins, Volatile oil and Resins.