RDVASQUEZ 2020

Official Textbook:
Evans, William Charles. Trease and Evans Pharmacognosy.
16th ed.Elsevier, Singapore. 2010

Laboratory Manual:
References:
Extended Readings : Guevarra, Beatrice Q. ed.,A Guidebook
to Plant Screening: Phytochemical and Biological. Research
Center for the Natural and Applied Sciences, UST, Manila,
2005.
 highly specialized science that deals with the
biologic, biochemical and economic features
of natural drugs and their constituents
 Knowledge of drugs and pharmaceuticals
 A science that deals with plant and animal
constituents
 This knowledge is based on the incantations of
vodoo tribes that is passed from one generation to
another
 Ancient civilizations used part of the plants
and animals to concort various potions to
eliminate pain, control suffering and
counteract diseases
 Babylonians
 made clay models of man< they are fully
aware of the drugs that can affect the human
body
 Egyptians
 -very apt in the practice of embalming (Myrhh)
 -vast knowledge on the medicinal uses of plants
and animals as written in the Papyrus ebers
(paper roll, 60 ft length, 600-700 prep)

myrhh
 Greeks
 Dioscorides- wrote “De Materia Medica” or the
Medicinal Material
▪ -where 600 plants are listed to have medicinal value<
used by physicians to treat diseases
▪ -aloe, belladona,colchichum, ergot and opium
▪ Aloe barbadensis ( Curacao aloe)
▪ Aloe spicata ( Cape aloe), acibar (barbaloin)
▪ Belladonna ( Atropine, sympathetic agent)
▪ Colchicum – (Colchicine, anti-gout)
 Galen- described methods of preparing formulas
containing plant and animal drugs
▪ Galenicals
Tincture of Arnica, balsamativo, aceite de manzanilla
▪ Galen’s cerate – Cold cream
 Germans
 C. A.Seydler- introduced the term
pharmacognosy
▪ Pharmakon-drugs
▪ Gnosis- knowledge
 Fluckiger- proposed the most comprehensive
definition of pharmacognosy
 Johann Adam Schmidt – coined “pharmacognosy”
 “simultaneous application of various
scientific disciplines with the object of
acquiring drugs from every point of
view”
 Lead to the formal definition of
Pharmacognosy:
 “an applied science that deals with the
biologic, biochemical and
economic features of natural drugs and
their constituents”
Economic issue of natural artemisinin
Papyrus Ebers scrolls of papers with 600 -700 citations

Pedanios Dioscorides De Materia Medica (Medicinal Materials)

, Father of Pharmacology ( 600 plants)

Claudius Galen “Galenicals”, Galen’s cerate

On the art of Healing, The Herbal
Father of Extemporaneous Compounding

C.A. Seydler Pharmacognosy

Disertation: Analectica pharmacognostica
pharmakon” means drugs; “gnosis” means knowledge
Fluckiger Presented the most comprehensive idea of the scope of
pharmacognosy

Johann Adam Schmidt Lehrbuch der Materia Medica (book); coined

pharmacognosy and pharmacodynamics
Paracelsus Botanical to chemical science
 Biologic- botanical sources, history, distribution, collection
etc
 Biochemical- how are the drugs formed in plant
 Economic- how are they produced,
e.g. Artemisinin
 Salicin Salicyl alocohol

Salicylic acid Aspirin

 Pharmacognosy and Medicinal Chemistry
 Pharmacognosy and Pharmacology
 Pharmacognosy and Clinical Pharmacy
 Pharmacognosy and Pharmaceutics
 natural substances which have undergone the
process of collection and drying
Terminology
 menstruum - solvent or liquid mixture which dissolves the
chief constituents
 marc - undissolved portion of the drug that remains after
extraction
 extractive - product of extraction process
 indigenous plants - plants growing in their native regions
 naturalized - they grow in a foreign land other than their
native homes
 Endemic – native, restricted to a certain place
 Collection- ensuring the true natural source
of the drug
 Improper collection results to partial or
complete substitution
 Collection time- time wherein the drug in a part
of the plant is highest in its content
There are several factors, but each vary in
accuracy:

The flowering time recommended by the breeder

The color of the stigma (the hair-like strands that
cover the bud)
The color of the trichomes
 Harvesting (roots, rhizome, bark, flowers, fruits)
 Drying- remove moisture to ensure good
keeping qualities
(air drying =sun or shade), artificial and vacuum
drying
 prevent molding
 stop the action of enzymes and other chemical
reactions
 Fixes the active ingredient in a drug product
 Curing
 Garbling- FINAL STEP IN THE
PREPARATION OF CRUDE DRUGS
 removal of extraneous matter such as
 Other parts of the
plant
 Dirt
 Adulterants
 Packaging, Storage and Preservation
 To avoid insect attacks:
▪ 1. SIMPLEST METHOD: Expose the drug to 65°C
▪ 2. Fumigation with methyl bromide
▪ 3. Add a drop of chloroform or carbon tetrachloride to
extract to preserve it
 whole plants and their parts; animals and
their excised organs
 no molecular modifications had been made
 Removes
substances that can
be dissolved by the
SOLVENT/
MENSTRUUM
 The undissolved
portion of the drug
is known as the
MARC
 Product of the
extraction process:
EXTRACTIVE
determine its identity, purity and quality of drugs
 Identity = biological source of drugs
 quality = amount of the active constituents
 Purity = extent of foreign organic material
present in a crude drug
 Quality- intrinsic value of the drug
▪ amount of medicinal principles or active constituents present
in a drug sample
▪ Example: Alcohol, USP
 Organoleptic Evaluation
 Microscopic Evaluation
 Pharmacologic Evaluation
 Chemical Evaluation
 Physical Evaluation
 Analytical
 Organoleptic Evaluation
 uses the ORGANS of SENSES< odor, taste, sound
of fracture, feel of drug to touch>
 evaluates the MACROSCOPIC appearance of
drugs
Drug sample Character

Cinnamon ?
Umbelliferous fruits ?
Liquorice ?
Cinchona ?
Senna leaf ?
 Microscopic Evaluation
 - identity and purity of the drug substance
▪ Example: Starches
▪ Potato starch differs in appearance with cornstarch
 Adulterants can also be detected microscopically

Rice Corn
 Pharmacologic Evaluation
 Bioassays- assays that uses living animals or
excised organs to evaluate the effects of
drugs
 Example: Pigeons- Digoxin; Cats- Atropine
Chicken- Oxytocin
 Assays Animal Used Drugs used

Hepatoprotective Male and female albino rats Paracetamol, CCl4,

rifampicin

Hypoglycemic Alloxan an Streptazocin

Antiinflammatory Croton oil, carrageenan

Antifertility Gossypol and embelin

 Chemical Evaluation- assay of active
constituents using chemicals <TITRATION>
 Biosynthetic pathways involved in drug
formation
 Best method of determining official potency
 Physical Evaluation- use of Physical Constants:
1. Moisture content 6. Refractive index
2. Viscosity 7. Ash values
3. Melting point 8. Volatile oil content
4. solubility 9. swelling factor
5. Optical rotation 10. Extractive values

 Example: Specific Rotation of Camphor

 Synthetic Camphor is Racemic
 Natural Camphor is dextrorotatory
 Morphology
 Taxonomic Classifications
 Pharmacologic or Therapeutic
Classifications
 Chemical Classification
 Morphology- forms
 Drugs are divided into grps:
 Organized drugs – leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, etc
 Unorganized drugs – dried latices, extracts, gums,
resins, oils, fats
Organized Drugs Drugs
(cellular)
PLANT PARTS
Leaves Datura, Senna, Digitalis
Barks Cinnamon, Cinchona, Kurchi
Wood Quassia, Sandalwood, Red
Sanders
Roots Rauwolfia, Liquorice, Ipecac
Rhizomes Ginger, Podophyllum, Turmeric
Flowers Clove, Saffron, Pyrethrum
Seeds Nux vomica, Linseed
Fruits Fennel, Coriander, Dill
Stems Ephedra
Hairs and Fibres Cotton, Hemp, Jute
Unorganized Drugs Drugs
(Acellular)
PLANT PARTS
Dried latices Opium, Papain, Gutta Percha
Dried Juice Aloe, Kino
Dried extracts Agar, catechu, Pectin, gelatin,
curare
Gums Acacia, tragacanth, Sterculia
Resins Benzoin, Colophony, Asafoetida
Fixed oils and fats Castors, cotton seed
Waxes Beeswax, Spermaceti
Volatile oils Coriander, Cinnamon, Clove
Animal products Beeswax, Shark liver oil, gelatin
Minerals Bentonite, Kaolin, Talc
 Taxonomic Classifications
 Based on accepted system of botanical classification
 Phylogeny- natural relationship that occurs among plants
and animals
 Drugs are arranged accdg to tha plants from which they
are obtained
▪ Solanaceae- plants belonging in this family contain
Solanaceous alkaloids
 Pharmacologic or Therapeutic
Classifications
 based on effect on the body
 Example:
▪ Cathartics- Cascara Sagrada, Senna and Castor Oil,
TAMARIND, PAPAYA
▪ Cardiac Drugs- Digitalis, Strophantus
▪ hypertension - garlic, rauwolfia
 Chemical Classification
 based on the active constituents that are present
 Preferred Method of Classification
▪ Example: Atropine and Scopolamine are Alkaloids
Glucose and Fructose are Carbohydrates
 Constituents- mixture of substances

 Active constituents- isolated constituent

that is either Pharmacologically Active or
Pharmaceutically Active
 Constituents- mixture of substances

 Active constituents- isolated constituent

that is either Pharmacologically Active or
Pharmaceutically Active
 Active constituents are considered as
Secondary Metabolites

 And the process of producing these

Secondary Metabolites used as drugs is also
known as DRUG BIOSYNTHESIS OR
BIOGENESIS
 Ontogeny or Stage of development
 Environment
 Heredity or Genetic
 Not absolute: concentration of drugs increases
with the age of the plant
 Plant growth and devt, the nature and quantity of
metabolites are affected by tempt, rainfall, length
of day, altitude, soil conditions
 Identity of the constituents also vary according to
the stage of development
▪ Example:
 1. Cannabis sativa
 cannabidiol- when the plant is still young
 cannabinol- when the plant matures
 inferiority - any substandard drug / article regardless of
cause
 spoilage - substandard drug, in which quality has been
impaired by action of bacteria / fungi, rendering it unfit for
human consumption
 deterioration - destruction of active constituents due to
aging, or bacteria
 admixture - unintentional addition of article to another
 sophistication - true adulteration; intentional
 substitution - - worst kind of adulteration; total
replacement of what is required; intentional

 OLD NAME NEW NAME OLD NAME NEW NAME

Labiatae Lamiaceae Cruciferae Brassicaceae

Compositae Asteraceae Graminae Poaceae

Umbelliferae Apiaceae Guttiferae Clussiaceae

Leguminosae Fabaceae Palmae Arecaceae

 VERNACULAR SCIENTIFIC NAME USE / FUNCTION
NAME
Lagundi Vitex negundo Cough preparation,
Ascof®
Sambong Blumea balsamifera Diuretic, anti-urolithiasis
Bayabas Psidium guajava Astringent
Ampalaya / Bitter gourd Momordica charantia Anti-diabetes mellitus
supplement
Tsaang-gubat Carmona retusa Stomachic
Ulasimang bato Peperomia pellucida Lowers uric acid in gout
Yerba Buena Mentha cordifolia Analgesic, antipyretic
Bawang Allium sativum Antihypertensive
Niyog-niyogan Quisqualis indica Anthelminthic
Akapulko (“Ringworm Cassia alata Antifungal
bush”)