Syllabus (BOTANY)

Course Type: MAJ-5

Semester: 4

Course Code: BBOTMAJ05C

Course Title: Economic Botany, Pharmacognosy and Natural Resource Management

(L-P-Tu): 4-2-0

Credit: 6

Practical/Theory: Combined

Course Objective: 1. To create an interest about the natural resources and its management practices among the students. 2. To create awareness about the economic important plants and their diverse uses in the society. 3. to induce interest among the different medicinal pla

Learning Outcome: 1. The students should able to identify the major economically important plants and their role in civilization. 2. Able to use evidenced-based comparative knowledge and the propagation of plants with respect to environmental conditions. 3, Students will

(Theory, Credit 4)

Unit	Topic	No. of Lectures/Hrs
1	Natural resources Definition and types	2
2	Sustainable utilization Concept approaches (economic, ecological and socio-cultural).	2
3	Land Utilization (agricultural, pastoral, horticultural, silvicultural); Soil degradation and management.	4
4	Water Fresh water (rivers, lakes, groundwater, aquifers, watershed); Marine; Estuarine; Wetlands; Threats and management strategies.	6
5	Biological Resources Biodiversity-definition and types; Significance; Threats; Management strategies; Bioprospecting; IPR; CBD; National Biodiversity Action Plan).	6
6	Energy Renewable and non-renewable sources of energy.	2
7	Contemporary practices in resource management EIA, GIS, Participatory Resource Appraisal, Ecological Footprint with emphasis on carbon footprint, Resource Accounting; Waste management.	4
8	National and international efforts in resource management and conservation.	2
9	Origin of cultivated plants: Concepts of centres of origin and their importance with reference to Vavilov’s work with special reference to Rice, Legumes and Beverages.	4
10	Study of the following economically important plants (Scientific names, families, parts used and importance Spices, Ginger, cumin, Beverages- Tea, coffee, Medicinal plants-, neem, Vasaka, Vegetables- Potato, radish, bottle, Fibre yielding plants- jute, Timber yielding plants- Sal, Lac Culture, Fruits- Mango, Sugar yielding plant- Sugarcane.	8
11	Sources of oils and fats General description, classification, their uses and health implications groundnut, coconut, linseed, soybean, mustard and coconut (Botanical name, family & uses). Essential Oils: General account, comparison with fatty oils & their uses.	5
12	Medicinal botany: History, scope and importance of medicinal plant, a brief idea about indigenous medicinal sciences- ayurveda, siddha and unani. Polyherbal formulations.	3
13	Pharmacognosy- General account: Pharmacognosy and its importance in modern medicine, Crude drugs, Classification of drugs- chemical and pharmacological, Drug evaluation– organoleptic, microscopic, chemical, physical and biological, Major pharmacological groups of plant drugs and their uses.	5
14	Secondary metabolites: 3.1 Definition of secondary metabolites and difference with primary metabolites, 3.2 Interrelationship of basic metabolic pathways with secondary metabolite biosynthesis (outlines only), 3.3 Major types–terpenoids, phenolics, flavonoids, alkaloids and their protective action against pathogenic microbes and herbivores.	4
15	Pharmacologically active constituents: Source plants (one example) parts used and uses of: 1 Steroids (Solasodin, Diosgenin, Digitoxin), Tannin (Catechin), Resins (Gingerol, Curcuminoids), Alkaloids (Quinine, Atropine. Pilocarpine, Strychnine, Reserpine, Vinblastine), Phenols (Sennocide and Capsaicin).	3

Practical (Credits -2, 60 Hrs)

1. Estimation of solid waste generated by a domestic system (biodegradable and nonbiodegradable) and its impact on land degradation.

2. Estimation of foliar dust deposition.

3. Determination of total solid in water (TDS)

4. Determination of chemical properties of soil by rapid spot test (carbonate, iron, nitrate)

5. Estimation of organic carbon percentage present in soil sample.

6. Collection of data on forest cover of specific area

7. Study of economically important plants (rice/jute/ tea) through herbarium specimens and field study. 2. Study of cultivation practices in field and submission of report.

8. Study of local economically important plants and submission of report with photographs

9. Chemical tests for (a) Tannin (Camellia sinensis / Terminalia chebula), (b) Alkaloid (Catharanthus roseus)

10. Powder microscopy – Zingiber and Holarrhena.

11. Histochemical tests of (a) Curcumin (Curcuma longa), (b) Starch in non-lignified vessel (Zingiber), (c) Alkaloid (stem of Catharanthus and bark of Holarrhena).

Reading References:

Economic Botany:

1. Kochhar, S.L. (2012). Economic Botany in Tropics, MacMillan & Co. New Delhi, India.

2. Wickens, G.E. (2001). Economic Botany: Principles & Practices. Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands.

3. Chrispeels, M.J. and Sadava, D.E. 1994 Plants, Genes and Agriculture. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Pharmacognosy:

1. Glossary of Indian medicinal plants, R.N.Chopra, S.L.Nayar and I.C.Chopra, 1956. C.S.I.R, New Delhi.

2. Ayurvedic drugs and their plant source. V.V. Sivarajan and Balachandran Indra 1994. Oxford IBH publishing Co.

3. Pharmacognosy, Dr. C. K. Kokate et al. 1999. Nirali Prakashan.

4. Trease and Evans' Pharmacognosy (27 May, 2009) by FRPharmS Evans, William Charles, BPharm, BSc, PhD, DSc, FIBiol, FLS (Author)

Natural Resource Management:

1. Vasudevan, N. (2006). Essentials of Environmental Science. Narosa Publishing House, New Delhi.

2. Singh, J. S., Singh, S.P. and Gupta, S. (2006). Ecology, Environment and Resource Conservation. Anamaya Publications, New Delhi.

3. Rogers, P.P., Jalal, K.F. and Boyd, J.A. (2008). An Introduction to Sustainable Development. Prentice Hall of India Private Limited, New Delhi.