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Medicinal Plants and Environmental Challenges

  • Presents a broad analysis of the impact of various stress factors on medicinal and aromatic plants

  • Explores the phenomenon “Horizontal Natural Product Transfer” in +20 chapters highlighting the latest research results

  • Places special emphasis on secondary metabolites

  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

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Table of contents (22 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-ix
  2. Importance of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Human Life

    • Mansour Ghorbanpour, Javad Hadian, Shahab Nikabadi, Ajit Varma
    Pages 1-23
  3. Introduction to Environmental Challenges in All Over the World

    • Azadeh Kazemi, Mansour Ghorbanpour
    Pages 25-48
  4. Effects of Toxic Gases, Ozone, Carbon Dioxide, and Wastes on Plant Secondary Metabolism

    • Vinay Kumar, Tushar Khare, Sagar Arya, Varsha Shriram, Shabir H. Wani
    Pages 81-96
  5. Effect of Climate Change on Algae Valuable Source of Medicinal Natural Compounds

    • Morteza Yousefzadi, Mohammad Hossein Mirjalili
    Pages 123-135
  6. Metabolic and Hormonal Responses of Plants to Cold Stress

    • Joanna Lado, Matías Manzi
    Pages 137-158
  7. The Impact of Drought Stress on the Quality of Spice and Medicinal Plants

    • Dirk Selmar, Maik Kleinwächter, Sara Abouzeid, Mahdi Yahyazadeh, Melanie Nowak
    Pages 159-175
  8. Effect of Salinity Stress on Growth and Physiology of Medicinal Plants

    • Aditya Banerjee, Aryadeep Roychoudhury
    Pages 177-188
  9. Horizontal Natural Product Transfer: A so Far Unconsidered Source of Contamination of Medicinal Plants

    • Melanie Nowak, Mahdi Yahyazadeh, Laura Lewerenz, Dirk Selmar
    Pages 215-225
  10. Plant Nanobionics a Novel Approach to Overcome the Environmental Challenges

    • Mansour Ghorbanpour, Shohreh Fahimirad
    Pages 247-257
  11. Medicinal Plants: Influence of Environmental Factors on the Content of Secondary Metabolites

    • Cristine Vanz Borges, Igor Otavio Minatel, Hector Alonzo Gomez-Gomez, Giuseppina Pace Pereira Lima
    Pages 259-277
  12. The Most Important Fungal Diseases Associated with Some Useful Medicinal Plants

    • Faezehossadat Abtahi, Seydeh Lavin Nourani
    Pages 279-293
  13. Weed and Weeding Effects on Medicinal Herbs

    • Alessandra Carrubba
    Pages 295-327
  14. Medicinal Plant Diseases Caused by Nematodes

    • Faezehossadat Abtahi, Mansoureh Bakooie
    Pages 329-344
  15. Plant Derived Essential Oils Against Aedes aegypti L. and Their Biotechnological Production

    • Clarice Noleto Dias, Ludmilla Santos Silva de Mesquita, Denise Fernandes Coutinho, Sonia Malik
    Pages 345-357

About this book

This book sheds new light on the role of various environmental factors in regulating the metabolic adaptation of medicinal and aromatic plants. Many of the chapters present cutting-edge findings on the contamination of medicinal plants through horizontal transfer, as well as nanomaterials and the biosynthesis of pharmacologically active compounds. In addition, the book highlights the impacts of environmental factors (e.g., high and low temperature, climate change, global warming, UV irradiation, intense sunlight and shade, ozone, carbon dioxide, drought, salinity, nutrient deficiency, agrochemicals, waste, heavy metals, nanomaterials, weeds, pests and pathogen infections) on medicinal and aromatic plants, emphasizing secondary metabolisms.

In recent years, interest has grown in the use of bioactive compounds from natural sources. Medicinal and aromatic plants constitute an important part of the natural environment and agro-ecosystems, and contain a wealth of chemical compounds known as secondary metabolites and including alkaloids, glycosides, essential oils and other miscellaneous active substances. These metabolites help plants cope with environmental and/or external stimuli in a rapid, reversible and ecologically meaningful manner. Additionally, environmental factors play a crucial role in regulating the metabolic yield of these biologically active molecules. Understanding how medicinal plants respond to environmental perturbations and climate change could open new frontiers in plant production and in agriculture, where successive innovation is urgently needed due to the looming challenges in connection with global food security and climate change. Readers will discover a range of revealing perspectives and the latest research on this vital topic.

Editors and Affiliations

  • Department of Medicinal Plants, Arak University, Arak, Iran

    Mansour Ghorbanpour

  • Amity Institute of Microbial Technology, Amity University, Noida, India

    Ajit Varma

About the editors

Mansour Ghorbanpour, Ph.D.

Mansour Ghorbanpour is an Associate Professor at the Department of Medicinal Plants, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Arak University, Arak, Iran. He holds a B.Sc. (1997), an M.Sc. (2003) and a Ph.D. (2011) from the University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran. Dr. Ghorbanpour has been a visiting scholar to the Nutrient Uptake and Toxicity Stress (NUTS) group at the University of Western Australia, Australia. His research interests include environmental stresses and plant responses, phytonanotechnology, bioavailability of emerging contaminants, and plant metabolism. He also has previous experience in beneficial soil microorganisms and biosynthesis pathways for secondary metabolites. 

To date, Dr. Ghorbanpour has published over 80 journal articles and 6 books. In addition, he serves as an editor for a number of international journals, including the Journal of Diseases and Medicinal Plants and the International Journal of Traditional and Herbal Medicine. Lastly, he has served as a reviewer for other scientific journals such as Natural Product Research, Carbon, Journal of Medicinal Plants, Journal of Hazardous Materials, Journal of Essential Oil Bearing Plant, and Canadian Journal of Microbiology.  

Ajit Varma, Ph.D.

Ajit Varma completed his PhD at Allahabad University and is a former Professor, School of Life Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. Presently, he is the Distinguished Scientist and Professor of Eminence at the Amity Institute of Microbial Technology; Pro-Vice Chancellor, Ritnand Balved Education Foundation; and Vice Chairman of Amity Science, Technology and Innovation Foundation at Amity University in Uttar Pradesh, India. He has published more than 374 papers and 87 books. Dr. Varma is Fellow of the Alexander-von-Humboldt Society, Germany, elected Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Fellow of the Microbiology Society of India.
Ajit Varma is also a series editor of the Springer series “Soil Biology” http://www.springer.com/series/5138.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Medicinal Plants and Environmental Challenges

  • Editors: Mansour Ghorbanpour, Ajit Varma

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68717-9

  • Publisher: Springer Cham

  • eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life Sciences, Biomedical and Life Sciences (R0)

  • Copyright Information: Springer International Publishing AG 2017

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-68716-2Published: 10 November 2017

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-88645-9Published: 25 August 2018

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-68717-9Published: 31 October 2017

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: VI, 413

  • Number of Illustrations: 14 b/w illustrations, 32 illustrations in colour

  • Topics: Pharmacology/Toxicology, Plant Sciences, Ecology

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 149.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access