In the present time of the serious pandemic COVID 19 period, demands of pharmaceutically valuable spices and herbs have been surprisingly enhanced all over the world because they have a substantial and valuable position as nutraceutical which doubtlessly are due to their significant healthy, nutritious and immunity boosting properties. Actually, the main objective of the construction of this book was to collect the more significant valuable researches and information on spices and herbs, which are being widely used in our daily life either in the form of taste enhancing savory materials or quality improving materials or other ways. Collection of weighty researches on biologically active pharmaceutically interesting chemical compounds and their compositions and structure-activity relationships of these compounds was the second most interesting objective of this book. This book is full of scientific knowledge on spices, herbs, associated internal chemistry and wide biological performances. It includes biochemistry and biotechnology of spices and herbs, antimicrobial properties, analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents, cure of neurobiological disorders, phenolic compounds, flavonoids, structure-activity relationship, biologically active compounds and isolation, and so on.
This book “The Chemistry inside Spices & Herbs: Research and Development” (Volume 1) consists of total ten chapters and each chapter has been written by the various learned experts of their field related from different countries.
Finer points of Volume 1 may be presented as:
• Opportunities and challenges of spice biotechnology have been comprehensively and attractively presented in Chapter 1 by Hamid et al. This chapter highlights the effect of various spices on various micro-organisms, the various metabolites in spices that lend this ability, and also reviews the various works undertaken to understand the antimicrobial activity of spices.
• Antimicrobial properties of spices have been comprehensively discussed in chapter 2 by Jacob et al. This chapter highlights the effect of various spices on various micro-organisms, the various metabolites in spices that lend this ability, and also reviews the various works undertaken to understand the antimicrobial activity of spices.
• Promising involvement of spices and herbs in treatment of neurobiological disorders has been nicely discussed by Trivedi et al in chapter 3. In this chapter, several spices and herbs which are beneficial in treating various neurobiological disorders and their probable mechanisms of action are described. Though various drugs for treating neurological disorders like depression, AD, PD, Schizophrenia and epilepsy are available, treatment with spices and herbs described here may overcome the adverse effects of regular treatment.
• Effective significance of spices and herbs in bacterial and fungal resistance has been comprehensively described by Trivedi et al in chapter 4. In this chapter, they have discussed the various reasons for the development of resistant strains in bacteria and fungi. Furthermore, the details of various spices and herbs that can be beneficial in the treatment of infections and different possible mechanisms by which they act are described.
• Spices and herbs based naturally isolated compounds and their medicinal uses have been described by Ramteke et al in chapter 5. This chapter includes a wide variety of isolated compounds, such as phenolic compounds and flavanoids present in spices, which are now experimentally documented to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic activities.
• A beautifully written and described chapter 6 by Fayez et al deals with the naturally-derived analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents which covers all the nutraceuticals and phytochemicals – derived from medicinal plants– which have been reported to possess analgesic and/or anti-inflammatory effects over the period between 2018 up to June 2020.
• A comprehensive discussion on the phenolic compounds and their biological and pharmaceutical activities has been presented by Kumar et al in chapter 7.
• Different types of biologically active compounds, their chemistry and SAR, and the different biologically active compounds from daily dietary supplements, foods, and fruits, which contain polyphenolic compounds, have been discussed in chapter 8 by Khare et al.
• Chapter 9 interestingly deals with the structure-activity relationship of biologically active compounds. Ganatra has described here about the methods involved in very nice way.
• Turmeric is a valuable spice of great biotechnological values as well as medicinal properties. Significance of turmeric in the treatment of various health issues and its role in food supplements has been presented by Chaurasia et al in chapter 10.
About the Editor
Dr. Pankaj Kumar Chaurasia, Ph.D. is presently working as an Assistant Professor in the P.G. Department of Chemistry, L.S. College, B.R.A. Bihar University, Muzaffarpur. He has experience of teaching Post Graduate (PG), Under Graduate (UG) as well as I.Sc. He has a strong academic as well as research career. He has qualified ‘National Eligibility Test (NET)’ in 2009 as CSIR-JRF (NET) and was awarded with SRF-NET in 2012. He received his ‘Ph.D. degree’ in 2014. He has worked as ‘Guest Faculty’ (2016-2017) in Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Prayagraj (A Central University of India). He has been awarded ‘Research Associateship’ by CSIR-New Delhi (India) in 2017 and worked as CSIR-RA in Motilal Nehru NIT (MNNIT), Allahabad/Prayagraaj (India). He is highly engaged in teaching and research works.Pesently, he is supervising four Ph.D. research scholars. He has more than 50 publications (Books/papers in Journals/chapters in edited books) with national and international journals/publishers of repute. He has expertise in wide research areas viz., biological chemistry, biotechnology, microbiology, enzymology, organometallic chemistry, bioorganic chemistry, and environmental chemistry.
Dr. Shashi Lata Bharati, Ph.D. is presently working as ‘Assistant Professor’ in the ‘Department of Chemistry, North Eastern Regional Institute of Science and Technology, Nirjuli, Arunachal Pradesh (India). She has been teaching for the past many years. She has a good academic as well as research career. She was awarded ‘UGC-DSA fellowship’ for the meritorious students during her Ph.D. program. She obtained her Ph.D. degree in 2012 in ‘Chemistry’. She was awarded UGC-post doctoral fellowship for women in 2013 and worked as ‘Post-Doctoral Fellow’ in the ‘Department of Chemistry’ of DDU Gorakhpur University, Gorakhpur (India). Along with academic works, she is also interestingly involved in research works. She has guided many M.Sc. project students and presently, she is supervising a Ph.D. scholar. She has 40+ publications (Books, journals papers, and papers as chapters in edited books) with national and international journals/publishers of repute. She has expertise in the field of inorganic chemistry, organometallic chemistry, biological chemistry, environmental and enzymology.
Keywords:
Spices and herbs, Polyphenolic compounds, Biologically active molecules, Biomolecules, Antioxidants, Medicinal plants, Nutraceuticals, Pharmaceutically active molecules, Antimicrobials, Analgesic, anti-inflammatory , Anticancer agents, Food chemistry and Nutrition, Natural therapy, Natural products, Traditional medicines, Structure-activity relationship, Aromatherapy, Ayurveda.
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