Studies on documentation of traditional medicinal plants knowledge and Histochemical studies some medicinal plants from Eestern Ghat’s. India

That all plants are potential sources of medicine has been recognized in Indian literature thousands of years age. It is estimated that 70-80% people worldwide rely on traditional, largely herbal medicine to meet their primary health care needs. Because of their sustained and strategic utility to a large section of people, medicinal plants have become an important national and global resource. The Eastern Ghats of India located between 77 ˚22”-85˚ 20”E and 11˚ 30”-20˚ 0”N, are an assemblage of discontinuous ranges, hill plateaus and gorges adjoining the plains along the Eastern Ghats. We made an extensive survey of the tribal dominated hills of the Eastern Ghats and the ethno medicinal information was collected. Despite a well-documented rich tradition of medicinal plant use in the country, their histochemical studies are still poorly known.  The methods employed in the present study are well established by several workers for their specificity and even superior over many biochemical methods. The methods also combine protocols of cytological, histological and analytical biochemical procedures and an in situ qualitative localization of various cellular chemicals through specific colour reactions: the intensity of colour developed being proportional to the amount of substance present. For this, we choose three species viz. Acampe pramorsa (Roxb.) Blatt&McCann,  Cymbidium aloifolium (L.) SW. and Calanthe triplicate (Willem.)Ames used in folk medicine to determine their histochemical investigation. In general, these plants are used in folk medicine in the treatment of wound healing stomachache, Anti-inflammatory, Paralysis, joining fractured bones, fewer, weakness of eyes, chronic illness, burns, sores etc. For histochemical studies the free hand sections of leaves and bulb were taken and treated with the respective reagent to localize components, viz. starch, protein, tannin, saponin, phenols, glucosides and alkaloids in the tissues. These features are compared with those of species, and their possible significance is discussed.