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Medicinal plants have bioactive compounds which are used for curing of various human diseases and also play an important role in healing. Phytochemicals have two categories i.e., primary and secondary constituents. Primary constituents have chlorophyll, proteins sugar and amino acids. Secondary constituents contain terpenoids and alkaloids. Medicinal plants have antifungal, antibacterial and anti-inflammation activities. The present study involves medicinal plant Meconopsis aculeta which is locally available in Kashmir Himalaya. The aerial and rhizome parts of the selected medicinal plant were washed, air dried and then powdered for qualitative and quantitative analysis. Different extracts of aerial and rhizome parts were used to find out the phytochemical constituents in the Meconopsis aculeta. The main objective of the research work was to check the presence or absence of the phytochemical constituents and quantitative analysis in different extracts of Meconopsis aculeta. The results of the phytochemical analysis of Meconopsis aculeta showed that the terpenoids, phlobatannins, flavonoids and alkaloids were present. The phytochemical analysis of medicinal plants is very important commercially and has great interest in pharmaceutical companies for the production of the new drugs for curing of various diseases. It is expected that the important phytochemical constituent recognized in Meconopsis aculeta found in Kashmir Himalaya will be very useful in the curing of various diseases of this region.

Aconitum violaceum Jacq. ex Stapf is endemic to the Northern Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan and Nepal. To adapt and endure the rigorous stressful situations, phenotypic features of a specific plant species vary across different climatic conditions and elevations. The aim of this study was to reveal the impact of altitude and environmental conditions on the morphological attributes of a threatened species A. violaceum. Plants at high elevations (Maan-man, 4010m asl) were short; whereas the plants grown at ecological conditions of population-I (Khawous, 3220m asl) showed better growth and development in all morphological attributes. It has been noticed that there is a considerable reduction in the plant height, rhizome, leaf dimension, flower number and leaf number at higher elevations. Regression analysis and Pearson’s correlation coefficient demonstrated a positive relationship between plant height and all other morphological attributes. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that the habitat, ecological conditions and elevations of population-I (Khawous) and Population-II (Numsuru) were proved to be relatively better for the luxuriant growth and development of an endemic plant species A. violaceum. From the observations, it can be inferred that A. violaceum grows successfully at an elevation ranges between 3000 to 3500m ASL. This study provides a comprehensive account of phenotypic variability concerning environmental conditions and suggested a suitable environment for sustainable cultivation of this important medicinal plant species in the Ladakh Himalaya.

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Background:Gymnema sylvestre, a vulnerable plant species, is mentioned in Indian Pharmacopeia as an antidiabetic drugObjective:Study of genetic and chemical diversity and its implications in accessions of G. sylvestreMaterials and Methods:Fourteen accessions of G. sylvestre collected from Central India and assessment of their genetic and chemical diversity were carried out using ISSR (inter simple sequence repeat) and HPLC (high performance liquid chromatography) fingerprinting methodsResults:Among the screened 40 ISSR primers, 15 were found polymorphic and collectively produced nine unique accession-specific bands. The maximum and minimum numbers of amplicones were noted for ISSR-15 and ISSR-11, respectively. The ISSR -11 and ISSR-13 revealed 100% polymorphism. HPLC chromatograms showed that accessions possess the secondary metabolites of mid-polarity with considerable variability. Unknown peaks with retention time 2.63, 3.41, 23.83, 24.50, and 44.67 were found universal type. Comparative hierarchical clustering analysis based on foresaid fingerprints indicates that both techniques have equal potential to discriminate accessions according to percentage gymnemic acid in their leaf tissue. Second approach was noted more efficiently for separation of accessions according to their agro-climatic/collection siteConclusion:Highly polymorphic ISSRs could be utilized as molecular probes for further selection of high gymnemic acid yielding accessions. Observed accession specific bands may be used as a descriptor for plant accessions protection and converted into sequence tagged sites markers. Identified five universal type peaks could be helpful in identification of G. sylvestre-based various herbal preparations.SUMMARY Nine accession specific unique bandsFive marker peaks for G. sylvestre.Suitability of genetic and chemical fingerprinting Abbreviations used: HPLC: High Performance Liquid Chromatography, ISSR: Inter Simple Sequence Repeats, CTAB: Cetyl Trimethylammonium Bromide, DNTP: Deoxynucleotide Triphosphates

Zooplankton are diverse in nature and they are found in almost all water bodies. The present study deals with the study of monthly changes of Zooplankton diversity and physico chemical parameters of Pampoo Pond of Madhupur, Jharkhand, India. Present study was carried out for a period of one-year from July 2019 to June 2020. Present study revealed 15 genera of Zooplankton from the fresh water pond belonging to the four groups namely Cladocera, Rotifera, Copepoda and Ostracoda. Among all four group maximum abundance of Cladocerans (34%) were observed. Five species of cladocerans, five species of copepods, three species of rotifers and two species of ostracods were observed. The population density order observed as cladocerans> copepods> rotifers> ostracods. Physico chemical parameters were analyzed as per methods described in APHA (1998) and was found under standard range. KEYWORDS: Zooplankton diversity, Physico chemical parameters, Pampoo Pond, water quality

Background: Asparagus racemosus, Cissus quadrangularis, Punica granatum and Pueraria tuberosa are employed for their supposed properties in treatment in alleviating symptoms of menopause traditionally from ages. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the estrogenic effect of Asparagus racemosus, Cissus quadrangularis, Punica granatum and Pueraria tuberosa in ovariectomized (OVX) rats. Materials and Methods: Female wistar rats were divided into sham control and ovariectomized (OVX), OVX rats receiving standard drug, raloxifene (5.4 mg/kg) and groups treated with 500 mg/kg and 700 mg/kg of test drug (containing equal quantity of Asparagus racemosus, Pueraria tuberose, Cissus quadrangularis and Punica granatum extracts) daily for 90 days. The vaginal cornification, uterine weight, bone loss, biomechanical, biochemical and histopathological observation were carried out to ascertain the effect of test drug in post-menopausal syndrome. Results: The experimental animals treated with mixture of extract of four drugs showed dose dependent activity. The significant increase in uterine weight, femur BMD, femur hardness, was observed. In addition, increased levels of calcium and phosphorus in serum and significant decreased in urine were observed as compared to control OVX group. The histopathological results also confirm the protective effect of extracts. Conclusion: The present findings strongly suggest that Asparagus racemosus, Cissus quadrangularis, Punica granatum and Pueraria tuberosa possess the potent estrogenic activity in ovariectomized rats and substantiate the ethnic use in treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

An experiment was performed to establish a regeneration protocol for an important medicinal plant, Asparagus racemosus. In the present investigation, nodal and internodal explants were employed for callus induction and axillary shoot formation. Maximum callus induction frequency was found on MS medium fortified with 2,4-D (1.0 mg/L) along with NAA (1.0 mg/L) and BAP (0.5 mg/L). However, individual effects of 2,4-D or NAA with BAP showed least callus induction. The higher concentrations of 2,4-D and BAP decreased the response of explants. However, maximum axillary shoot formation was observed on MS medium adjuvanted with BAP (2.0 mg/L) and NAA (0.5 mg/L).