This book offers a comprehensive and authoritative review of the biological and ecological roles played by specialized metabolites (secondary metabolites) in the life cycle of plants, and it also covers the latest biotechnological advances in metabolite production and various industrial applications.

Divided into three parts, the book starts with an outline of the diverse biological effects of specialized metabolites on plant-microbe and plant-insect interactions, soil health, reproduction, and human welfare. In this first part, readers will find topics such as the Importance of Plant Secondary Metabolites in modern therapy, melatonin and inflammatory and immune-modulated diseases, antimicrobial and antiprotozoal potential of specialized metabolites, the use of plant specialized metabolites in aromatherapy, the role of tannins in cardiovascular diseases, a pharmacological perspective on isoflavones and noncommunicable diseases, algal secondary metabolites, and plant specialized metabolites used as aphrodisiacs. In Part II, chapters present an overview of the ecological roles played by plant specialized metabolites in pollination, plant defence, agriculture and weed management, among others. In the third and final part of this book, readers will discover the latest biotechnological approaches for bioactive compound production and identification, including the discovery of bioactive specialized metabolites based on metabolomic approaches, and a perspective on the industrial applications of plant specialized metabolites.

Given its breadth, this book is of interest to botanists, biotechnologists, phytochemists, industrialists, environmentalists, biologists and all those involved in the production and use of secondary/specialized metabolites.

Offers a comprehensive review of plant specialized metabolites Covers various specialized metabolites' biological and ecological roles Explores the latest advances in specialized metabolite production and identification

Autorentext

Professor Dr. Jean-Michel Mérillon received his M.Pharma. (1979) and Ph.D. (1984) from the University of Tours, France. He joined the University of Tours as assistant professor in 1981, and became associate professor in 1987. In 1993 he moved to the faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Bordeaux (France), accepting a position as full professor. He has been the director of the research group on biologically active plant substances for over 15 years, at the Institute of Vine and Wine Sciences (University of Bordeaux, France), which comprises 25 scientists and research students. The group has been working on phenolic compounds from vine and wine for many years, mainly complex stilbenes and their involvement in health. He is involved in developing teaching on plant biology, natural bioactive compounds, and biotechnology. Prof. Mérillon has published more than 190 research papers in internationally recognized journals, and has co-edited books and reference works on secondary metabolites and biotechnology (h-index = 61). In 2004, he founded the technology transfer unit Polyphenols Biotech, providing support for R&D programs for SMEs and major groups from the cosmetic, pharmaceutical, agricultural, and health-nutrition sectors. He is currently the manager of this unit.

Prof. Dr. Kishan Gopal Ramawat is Former Professor and Head of the Botany Department, M.L. Sukhadia University, Udaipur, India, and can look back on longstanding research experience. He received his Ph.D. in Plant Biotechnology in 1978 from the University of Jodhpur, India, and afterwards joined the university as a faculty member. In 1991 he moved to the M.L. Sukhadia University in Udaipur as Associate Professor and became Professor in 2001. He served as the Head of the Department of Botany (20012004, 20102012), was in charge of the Department of Biotechnology (20032004), and was a member of the task force on medicinal and aromatic plants of the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, New Delhi (20022005), and coordinated University Grants Commission-Departmental Research Support (UGC-DRS) and Department of Science and Technology-Fund for Improvement of S&T Infrastructure (DST-FIST) programs (20022012).

Prof. Ramawat had done his postdoctoral studies at the University of Tours, France, from 19831985, and later returned to Tours as visiting professor (1991). He also visited the University of Bordeaux2, France, several times as visiting professor (1995, 1999, 2003, 2006, 2010), and in 2005 Poland in an academic exchange program (2005). Through these visits in France, Prof. Ramawat and Prof. Mérillon established a strong connection, which has resulted in productive collaborations and several book and reference work publications.

Prof. Ramawat has published more than 180 wellcited peer-reviewed papers and articles, and edited several books and reference works on topics such as the biotechnology of medicinal plants, secondary metabolites, bioactive molecules, herbal drugs, and many other topics. His research was funded by several funding agencies.

In his research group, Prof. Ramawat has supervised doctoral thesis of 25 students. He is an active member of several academic bodies, associations, and editorial boards of journals.

Klappentext

Inhalt
An Introduction to Specialized Metabolites from Plants, Their Biological and Ecological Roles, and Biotechnological Interventions to Improve the Production.- Importance of Plant Secondary Metabolites in Modern Therapy.- Secondary Metabolites: Treasure Trove for Future Medicine.- Melatonin and Inflammatory and Immune-Modulated Diseases: New Applications of a Metabolite Also Produced by Plants.- Antiprotozoal Activity of Secondary Metabolites.- Antibacterial and Antifungal Potential of Plant Secondary Metabolites.- Diverse Ecological and Biological Roles of Secondary Metabolites of Saussurea costus(Falc.) Lipsch.- Aromatherapy: Therapy with Fragrances of Lavender Essential Oil.- Role of Hydrolyzable and Condensed Tannins in Cardiovascular Diseases.