Bioactive Phytochemicals from Himalayas: A Phytotherapeutic Approach

High-altitude plants have traditionally been a rich source of preventive and curative medicinal compounds. The rich repository of herbs found in the Himalayan region has not only been a source of health and general well-being for local communities but also for the modern pharmaceutical industry. In the current scenario, medicinal plants from the Himalayas are a promising resource for numerous metabolites which can serve as lead molecules against various deadly diseases. Plants growing at high altitudes suffer from an onslaught of stressful conditions, including mutagenic radiations, high-velocity winds, dehydration, etc. Plants of this region usually cope with these by altering their biochemical profile and producing chemicals that are called secondary metabolites. These secondary metabolites belong to chemical classes like phenols, terpenes, and alkaloids in general. The primary objective of this chapter is to study the anticancer potential of phytochemicals from some high-altitude plants. The underlying mechanism of their anticancer and chemopreventive action will also be discussed.

Liver is essential for the maintenance and functioning of the body. The liver is responsible for the majority of the metabolic and physiological performance of our body, as well as the detoxification of different drugs and xenobiotic agents. During the detoxification process, the reactive chemical intermediates damage the liver, resulting in liver toxicity. As a result, maintaining a healthy liver is critical to overall health. Hepatic damage is caused by several factors, including environmental pollutants, such as chemicals, consumption of certain medications, poor eating habits, excessive alcohol, and other hepatotoxins, as well as viruses. The liver is sensitive to a range of diseases, including hepatitis, hepatic steatosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular cancer, as a consequence of its multifunctionality and constant exposure to toxins. These diseases are substantial sources of mortality and morbidity. Long-term use of the current synthetic medicines to treat liver problems causes further liver damage. Herbal medicine is the major source of basic health care for around 75–80% of the world’s population, primarily in developing countries because of its better cultural acceptability, compatibility with the human body, and fewer side effects. Medicinal plants from the Himalayas are used in the Ayurvedic, Unani, and other traditional systems of medicine and plant-based pharmaceutical industries. The Tibetan system of medicine is also based on Himalayan plant species. Herbal medicines are extensively used in the treatment of liver diseases. In the absence of adequate liver hepatoprotective medications in modern medicine, a variety of medicinal plants and their phytochemicals are used to treat hepatic ailments in the traditional system of medicine in the Himalayan regions. The Himalayas are a rich source of medicinal plants and their phytoconstituents, which play a significant role in hepatoprotection. In the current chapter, an attempt was made to collect data on the Himalayan medicinal plants and their biomolecules traditionally used to treat hepatotoxicity.

The Himalayas have been known for their plant diversity, as they are rich in nearly 8000 vascular plant species, which include approximately 1748 plants containing medicinal properties. Ayurveda, a branch of traditional medication focuses on substances of natural origin like plants, their parts, minerals, and animal parts either alone or in combination. With the advancement in Science and Technology, there has been an increase in the understanding of molecular mechanisms behind the origin of diseases. Recently, the roles of several bioactive molecules present in natural sources in blocking or treating diseases have also become increasingly clear. Since the Himalayas are rich herbal treasures; therefore the plant diversity, as well as their medicinal properties have been widely explored.

Progressive loss of nerve cells/neurons in terms of structure and function is termed neurodegeneration. Selective loss of neurons leads to nervous disorders referred to as Neurodegenerative disorders/diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, etc., are some of the major health issues suffered by individuals in the current situation. Plant-derived bioactive molecules or phytomedicines have been in practice for many years and have been found to be effective in managing/treating these disorders.

This chapter aims at highlighting some of the Himalayan herbs, which exhibit a promising role in managing neurodegenerative diseases. For example, Acorus calamus is well known for its brain rejuvenating ability. It has been found that A. calamus possesses neuroprotective activity against stroke. Asparagus racemosus, known for its anti-aging activity, has been observed to protect the brain from oxidative damage, thereby preventing neurodegenerative diseases. Calotropis procera is ethnomedicinally used to treat mental disorders. Sida cordifolia, another perennial shrub found in the Himalayan region used for treating many ailments related to the respiratory system is also used for treating patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease. There are many more plants found in the Himalayan region, which have the potential for treating brainrelated disorders.

The rising cases of neurodegenerative disorders need a better understanding of plants rich in neuroprotective phytochemicals. Plants are one of the promising medication sources with the least side effects, which will help in providing an ethnopharmacological aspect and managing/treating neurodegenerative disorders. 

As the Himalayan mountains and valleys keep on the continuous progression of their expansion during evolution, so does their cradle of medicinal plants. Humans started to find answers to various ailments by studying these medicinal plants. One such valuable medicinal plant from the Himalayas is called Swertia chirayita (Chiraito, SC), which shows a variety of therapeutic properties. SC has been shown to be effective in a wide therapeutic spectrum and acts as an anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, hypoglycaemic, anti-diabetic, anti-obesity, anti-tumor, anti-microbial, and chemoprotective agent. Due to its numerous medicinal properties, it is one of the main ingredients in a variety of herbal preparations in Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Tibetian, and Traditional Chinese medicines. Apart from the traditional medicine systems, it is systematically mentioned under various pharmaceutical codexes like the Indian, UK, and American pharmacopeias. SC is significantly used as an anti-diabetic in various herb-based medicinal practices. Swertia chirayita is one of the very important plants known for its hypoglycaemic potential and hence exhibits a potential for the management of type II diabetes.

Himalayan regions are a great source of berries. Berries are well-known for their nutritional benefits, which include low calorie, high vitamin, and fiber content. For millennia, indigenous cultures have used edible berries for food and medical purposes. In Ayurveda, the consumption of fresh berries is recommended for their health benefits and the prevention of non-communicable chronic diseases. They are also considered a part of the ‘Satvik Foods’ that promote health and wellbeing, inner happiness, stress reduction, and memory enhancement. Currently, berries are promoted as nutraceuticals for the prevention of cancer, diabetes mellitus, obesity, liver abnormalities, cardiovascular disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases. Berries of plants belonging to the genus Grewia are traditionally used for nutrition as well as medicinal purposes, but these are less explored. In particular, the berries of Grewia asiatica and Grewia tenax species have been scantily explored for their medicinal properties and bioactive constituents despite their plenty of uses in folklore medicines. The focus of this chapter is to highlight the traditional uses, phytochemical composition, and pharmacological potential of G. asiatica and G. tenax berries along with mechanistic pathways of their action. Hopefully, such an attempt would attract the attention of basic researchers, the nutraceutical industry, natural therapists, Ayurveda practitioners, and the public at large.

As per the World Health Organization (WHO), medicinal herbs are utilized by nearly 80% of the world's population for adequate medical care. Herbal treatments have been extensively employed to cure many fatal human diseases. Ethnic medicine is an informal system that includes folk beliefs, skills, techniques, and tactics relating to health care and are passed from generation to generation mainly through oral traditions. Traditional medicine using herbal drugs exists in every part of the world. Of the plants present at higher altitudes, Atropa belladonna is amongst the most effective botanicals. The perennial plant Atropa belladonna flourishes in the upper Himalayan range. The roots and leaves of the plant are used as a sedative, narcotic and anodyne. The current chapter intends to learn about the usage of Atropa belladonna L., as an alternative medicine and its scientific validation through the literature review.

Tinospora cordifolia (TC, Giloy, Guduchi, or Amrita) is a valuable medicinal herb in the Indian System of Medicine (ISM), Chinese, and other traditional systems of medicine. TC contains a broad array of therapeutic phytoconstituents like alkaloids, glycosides, steroids, terpenoids, aliphatic compounds, diterpene lactones, phenolics, and flavonoids. TC is hailed for its therapeutic use with anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, cardiac disease, anti-arthritis, and anti-microbial properties. TC induces immunomodulatory effects through the induction of macrophage activation, pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, lymphocyte proliferation, and also secretion of interleukins. The present chapter highlights the biological properties, therapeutic use, and immunomodulatory pathways of Tinospora cordifolia.

Withania somnifera, a herb used in Ayurveda since ancient times, is commonly found in the Himalayan belt. Withania somnifera is reported to be useful in fever, arthritis, asthma, bronchitis, tuberculosis, syphilis, and cancers. Its leaves are found to be effective against swelling, chest pain, sores, and ulcers. Withania possesses antioxidant, immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, anti-stress, anti-bacterial, antimicrobial, anti-fungal, anti-tumor, adaptogenic, and memory-enhancing properties. Among the bioactive compounds present in Withania, Withaferin A is the most important and well-explored compound having anti-cancer activity among several other activities. Many studies have reported the anti-inflammatory action of Withania somnifera and isolated Withaferin A. In this chapter, we have summarized the antiinflammatory activities exhibited by this multifaceted medicinal plant.

Located between the Indian subcontinent and the Tibetan plateau, the Himalayas are home to a rich repertoire of medicinal resources. A wide range of communities from Asia and Africa prefer natural remedies, including medicinal plants, over prescription drugs. Since so many people use medicinal plants as their only source of healing, the plants are also an important source of income for the locals.. The plants found in the entire region of this snowy mountain range provide remedies ranging from bronchitis to cancer. We attempted to summarise the important medicinal plants of this region in this book chapter, specifically those that act and modulate the inflammatory and oxidative stress pathways, as these are the primary culprits behind many diseases and disorders. The current chapter will list the ethnobotanicals used, their active ingredients, and reported pharmacological properties, as well as potential mechanisms of action.

Phytochemical databases are a rich source of information that supports phytotherapy research and the conservation of medicinally important plants. Collecting the knowledge of databases and their specific focus along with ways to use them efficiently will help the community. This chapter summarises the phytochemical databases available that support phytotherapy research and the conservation of medicinally important plants. Broadly, 56 databases that are classified into regionspecific, disease-specific, other common medicinal and phytochemical databases, and Himalayan-region-specific plant databases, have been summarised for ready reference in this book chapter. We also provide a typical workflow with examples to search the phytochemicals of selected Himalayan medicinal plants from existing Himalayan region-specific databases of Medicinal Plants. Finally, the need for urgently developing a comprehensive Himalayan-specific phytochemical database for phytotherapy is proposed.

Tools and techniques leading to drug discovery from natural compounds are of immense interest. Studies related to the identification and isolation of bioactive phytochemicals and their associated therapeutic potential are routinely adopted for the discovery and development of new drug molecules against various diseases. In this chapter, we discussed the latest tools and techniques that can be adopted to exploit the potential of bioactive phytochemicals from Medicinal Plants. In a case study, the focus is laid on the in silico screening of bioactive phytochemicals from Rhododendron arboreum petals sourced from the Himalayan origin against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) polyketide synthase-13, a critical enzyme for the synthesis of mycolic acid of the cell wall. Inhibition of this enzyme could be a potential target to inhibit the growth of Mtb, a leading cause of tuberculosis disease. The overall workflow is adoptable to study the potential of bioactive phytochemicals leading to drug discovery and development.