Medical botany in the system of botanical gardens of Ukraine

Abstract

The study analyzed the historical background and the formation of medical botany as a new scientific discipline at the M.M. Gryshko National Botanical Garden of the NAS of Ukraine. Throughout its entire period of existence (as a department and later as a laboratory), the Medical Botany division has functioned as a center for consolidating the efforts of botanists, florists, resource management specialists, iatrochemists, pharmacologists, clinicians, and other relevant experts from Ukraine. The coordinated work of these specialists has focused on the conservation and enhancement of biological resources, as well as the advancement and institutional development of phytotherapy in Ukraine. The primary scientific direction of the Laboratory of Medical Botany is the mobilization of Ukraine’s medicinal plant resources for disease prevention and enhancing human performance under conditions of ecological stress. This requires targeted research aimed at: forecasting prospects for enriching the raw-material base of medicinal plants through the selection and inclusion of native Ukrainian flora and introduced species that represent valuable sources of biologically active compounds; conducting morphological and phytochemical studies of medicinal plants to determine the potential for their multifunctional use; identifying and investigating plants with antiviral, immunostimulatory, radioprotective, antimutagenic, insecticidal and other biologically active properties; introducing promising species into cultivation; searching for and utilizing unconventional plants as potential sources of biologically active compounds for medicinal, nutritional, technical and other applications; ensuring waste-free technologies for processing medicinal plant raw materials through the use of secondary resources to obtain complex biologically active substances; developing therapeutic and prophylactic products of special purpose, as well as phytopreparations with a broad spectrum of physiological activity; conserving rare and endangered species; and promoting medicinal plants through educational and outreach activities.
The plants of the collection fund are organized according to a systematic principle, taking into account their pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory, choleretic, diuretic, immunostimulatory, sedative, antispasmodic, hemostatic, and other activities, which are determined by the content of biologically active compounds (carbohydrates, alkaloids, glycosides, flavonoids, volatile organic compounds, and others). In 2015, the Collection of Medicinal Plants was designated as a national heritage object.