Value discovery and resource utilization of by-products in production process of medicinal materials are important ways for poverty alleviation with Chinese herbal medicine industry / 中国中药杂志

Poverty alleviation by Chinese herbal medicine industry is an important way to implement the major strategic plan of the government and to effectively alleviate poverty and increase income of poor farmers in areas with high resource's endowment of Chinese medicinal materials. Based on the analysis of the existing achievements and problems in poverty alleviation by Chinese herbal medicine industry, this paper proposes that improving the comprehensive benefits of Chinese herbal medicine industry is an important direction for poverty alleviation in the poverty-stricken areas with the high endowment of traditional Chinese medicine resources in the future. Then, based on the concept of resource recycling of traditional Chinese medicinal materials, the feasibility and strategies of utilizing by-products in the production process of Chinese medicinal materials and expanding the ways of poverty alleviation were analyzed and discussed. The aim of all these works was to provide the support for enhancing the comprehensive competitiveness of the industry in poverty-stricken regions, enlarging the poverty alleviation effect of Chinese herbal medicine industry, and consolidating the achievements of poverty alleviation.

The legislative and regulatory framework governing herbal medicine use and practice in Kenya: a review

Complementary and alternative medicine is an integral component of primary healthcare in Kenya. This is because the infrastructural health setup in the country is inadequate in catering for all the medical needs of the population. This particularly holds true in the rural areas where many rural folk rely on products of herbal origin to offset their healthcare needs. More often than not these products are an elaborate cacophony of several different substances of biological origin and thus need personnel adept in their preparation. Sadly, due to loopholes in legislation and regulation, quacks have a field day in the practice. Moreover, the process of planting, harvesting, preparation and storage of herbs and related products dictates that a significant number of people will ultimately be involved in the whole process. This is likely to set the stage for manipulation and compromise of the safety, quality and efficacy of these products. This state of affairs appears unabated especially in the context of the current legal and regulatory framework governing herbal medicine use and practice in Kenya. Not only are these laws inadequate, they are shrouded in ambiguity, open to interpretation and the authorities mandated to implement them often end up performing duplicate roles. The aim of this review is to critique the legal and regulatory provisions governing herbal medicine use and practice in Kenya. In conclusion, laws and regulations meant to control herbal medicine use and practice in Kenya are wanting. Clear and definitive legislation on herbal medicine use and practice coupled with effective implementation by mandated institutions will go a long way in inspiring confidence to all stakeholders of herbal medicine

Antimicrobial Resistance Evaluation of Organisms Isolated from Liquid Herbal Products Manufactured and Marketed in South Eastern Nigeria.

Objective: To determine the susceptibility and resistance pattern of bacteria and fungi isolates obtained from herbal anti-infective liquid preparations manufactured and marketed in South-East Nigeria to conventional antibiotics. Study Design: Experimental Place and Duration of the study: Pharmaceutical Microbiology and biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Agulu Campus between October 2011 and March 2012. Methodology: Isolation and characterization of contaminating microorganisms were carried out using standard procedures. A total of forty-nine (49) bacteria and forty (40) fungi isolated from the herbal products were examined for susceptibility to conventional antibiotics using the disc diffusion method. The bacterial isolates were tested against ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, gentamicin, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, ceftriazone, sulphamethoxazole, tetracycline and ampicillin were employed while fungi isolates were tested against five common antifungal-griseofulvin, nystatin, ketoconazole, fluconazole and clotrimazole. The Multiple Antibiotic Resistance Index (MARI) of each of the isolated bacteria was obtained following the standard method. Result: The antimicrobial susceptibility-resistance profile of the bacteria isolates revealed that most of the bacteria were sensitive to ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, gentamicin, and ceftriaxone, On the other hand, a good number of the isolates demonstrated high level of resistance to common antibiotics like Ampicillin, amoxycillin-clavulanic acid, trimethoprimsulphamethoxazole, and moderate level of resistance to Tetracycline, and some of the third generation cephalosporins - ceftazidime and cefotazime. Multiple Antibiotic Resistance Index (MARI) evaluation revealed that most of the isolates were resistance to more than fifty percent (50%) of the number of antibiotics used. The fungal isolates were susceptible to nystatin, ketoconazole and clotrimazole, resistance to fluconazole and high resistance recorded against griseofulvin. Conclusion: The results of this study revealed that the herbal medications can serve as a trail of spread of antibiotic-resistance genes.

Traditional knowledge for promotion of socioeconomic inclusion of local communities / Uso do conhecimento tradicional para promover a inclusão socioeconômica de comunidades locais

This paper discusses the key role played by public research institutes for promoting socioeconomic inclusion of local communities based on traditional knowledge and traditional medicine. Nongovernmental organizations and cooperatives have had an important role in raising financial resources, being involved with advocacy of local communities and advancing legislation changes. But strict best manufacturing practices regulations imposed by the Brazilian National Health Surveillance Agency on the requirements for approval and commercialization of drugs based on herbal medicine products call for the involvement of strong public research institutes capable of supporting community-based pharmacies. Thus, public research institutes are pivotal as they can conduct scientific research studies to evidence the efficacy of herbal medicine products and help building the capacity of local communities to comply with current regulations.

O artigo mostra o papel desempenhado por institutos públicos de pesquisa no Brasil na promoção da inclusão socioeconômica de comunidades locais por meio do uso do conhecimento tradicional e da medicina popular. Organizações não-governamentais e cooperativas são importantes para angariar recursos, defender os interesses das comunidades locais e influenciar mudanças no ordenamento jurídico. Entretanto, exigências de cunho legal relacionadas às Boas Práticas de Fabricação e à necessidade de comprovação da eficácia de medicamentos, impostas pela Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária, tendem a demandar a intervenção de um instituto público de pesquisa capaz de auxiliar tais comunidades na aprovação e comercialização de medicamentos produzidos a partir de plantas medicinais. Assim, institutos públicos de pesquisa são essenciais para realizar estudos científicos que comprovem a eficácia das plantas medicinais e para auxiliar as comunidades locais a criarem a infraestrutura necessária para atender às exigências da Agência quanto a Boas Práticas de Fabricação.