Biology and pharmaceutical sciences

BIOLOGY AND

PHARMACEUTICAL

SCIENCES

The word biology is the combination of two greek words i.e. bios: Life and logos: disclosure. Thus biology is science dealing with the study of living things. Living things have four characteristics. They can grow, respire, reproduce and have property of autonomic movements. Livings things may be found from plant or animal origin. Thus the branch dealing with plants known as botany(Gk botane: plant) and the branch dealing with animals (Gk zoon: animal) known zoology.

General biology includes study of plants, animals, includes

Bacteria & viruses, Fungi, Algae, Bryophyta, Pteridophyta, Gymnosperms, Angiosperms and their life processes.

Bacteria Microscopic 0.2mm or less Present everywhere

Economic importance-Useful aspect

Products in our day to day life are the result ofbacteria

Curd

Cheese

Antibiotics

Streptomycin

Amoxicillin

Economic importance-Harmful aspect

Diseases in human being

Tuberculosis - Mycobacterium tuberculosis Syphilis- Tryponema pallidum

Gonorrhoea- Neisseria gonnorhoea

Diphtheria- Corynebacterium diphtheriae Tetanus- Clostridium tetani

Whooping cough- Bordetella pertussis Anthrax-Bacillus anthracis

Food poisoning (Botulism)-Clostridium botulinum

Diseases in plants Citrus canker- Xanthomonascitri

Viruses Causes diseases only in plants &

humans

In humans-e.g. cough & cold(caused by 100 different

viruses), measles, mumps, AIDSetc

In plants- e.g. yellow vein mosaicof bhindi, Papaya mosaic, leafroll of papaya etc

FUNGI Non green plants

Grow on dead & decaying organic matter and absorbfood from it

Microscopic form to large ones with big fruiting bodies Common example is mushroom

Microscopic form Macroscopic form

Forms which you have seen

Edible mushroom Poisonous mushroom like toadstool

Bread mould-Aspergillus, Penicillium, Mucor etc

On the leaves of sarso, muli etc as black roundedspots

Yeast -baking, brewing (bread, beer, wine) Antibiotics- Penicillin & Cephalosporin Cheese- Roquefort & Camembert

Economic importance- useful aspect

In market differentforms of mushroom are

available which areedible

Packed button mushroom

Truffles

Economic importance- useful aspect

Soy sauce , tofu, tofu

tempeh , misotempeh

Economic importance- useful aspect

Ganoderma lucidumtea, powder, tooth pasteUsed in cancer treatment

Economic importance- harmful aspect

Crop diseases- e.g.potato blight (cause ofirish famine in 1845)

Dandruff in humanbeings-Malassezia furfur

Economic importance- harmful aspect

Athelets foot-Trichophyton sp.

Ring worm-Trichophyton sp.

ALGAE

Largest producer ofcarbohydrate

Range from microscopicto giant forms

Some forms are ediblelike Ulva (sea lettuce)

Agar agar extractedfrom algae Gelidium-used as a solidifying

agent in culture medium

Sometimes colourof sea & snowshows the colour ofalgae

(Chamydomonasnivalis)

Causes water bloom(Forms a layer on thesurface of dirty water)

BRYOPHYTAMarcantia

Amphibiousplant

Grows on landas well as water

Anthoceros

PTERIDOPHYTA Grows in moist andshady places.e.g.

Ferns

Lycopodium

GYMNOSPERMS

Do not produce flowers butform seeds Seeds are naked. Fruits notformed E.g. Cycas, Pinus, Ephedra

Terpentine oil is extracted fromPinus

Chilgoza is the seed of Pinusgerardiana

Cycas (sago palm) is a sourceof sago

Ephedra is a source of medicineEphedrine

ANGIOSPERMS

Flowering plants

Produce seeds in fruit

The study of botany has paramount importance as human being totally depends upon the living world for his food, clothing and shelter.

Food is basic need of life without which no one can survive. Food may be plant or animal origin like pulses, cereals, vegetables, eggs, meat etc.

Increased population creates food problem because the population increases in a geometric ratio while food increases arithmetically.

• Biology is such a very vast subject and is intimately connected with several other sciences.

BRANCHES OF BOTANY1.Morphology: (Gk morphe: form) structure of an organ

or organism as whole which includesa)External morphology: external structures of plant and

mainly dealing with size and shape.b) Internal morphology which includes:i. Cytology or cell biology: This deals with study of

cells. ii. Histology: This deals with structure and

arrangement of tissues. iii.Anatomy: This deals with internal gross structure of

plants and animals.

2. Physiology: This branch deals with life processes of growth, respiration, excretion, nutrition etc. in animals and plants.

3. Ecology: deals with the study distribution and abundance of plants, the interactions among and between members of plant species and their interaction with their environment.

4. Genetics: deals with studies of heredity and variation in plants.

5. Taxonomy: science that finds, describes, classifies, identifies, and names plants on the basis of external features, internal features & showing relatedness.

6. Palaeontology: This deals with study of ancient organisms through animals or plant fossils.

• Biology is closely related with the following under disciplinary subjects:

a)Biochemistry: it involves study of chemistry of living organisms.

b)Biophysics: It deals with study of principles of physics as seen in organism and has applications in the field of space biology, soil sciences and radiation biology.

c)Biometry: This deals with study of collection and analysis of biological data, available in genetics and physiology.

d)Aerobiology: This deals with the scientific and muti-disclipinary approach focused on transport of organism and biologically significant materials and also with their sources, release in atmosphere and allergic properties.

• Applied Biology: Application of biological knowledge practically for the human welfare is known as Applied biology.

• Applied biology is divided in following subclasses.1.Agriculture: Dealing with cultivation of crop plants

for better yields. 2.Horticulture : Dealing with cultivation of flower and

fruits yielding plants. 3.Fisheries: Dealing with the study of culture,

development and propagation of fishes as foods. 4.Forestry: Dealing with the study of exploration and

conservation of forests.5. Medicine: Dealing with the study of causes and

cures of diseases.

• Applied Botany/ Economic Botany: This deals with the study of economically valuable plants and their products, wherein botanical knowledge is utilized for the well being of mankind. .

• Plants are known to constitute the environment right from the dawn of human race. Human beings at the most primitive stage of their development were totally dependant on plants as their main source of food, cloth and shelter.

• With the increased complexity of civilization human life has become more dependant on plants as will revealed by the superficial study of economically important plants.

• It is needless to say that human life has become more comfortable, secure and healthy to great extent due to plants.

• Applied botany has been divided into following subclasses.

1.Pharmaceutical botany: it is botanical study of drugs, spices and poisonous plants.

2.Plant pathology : Deals with diseases of plants, along with their diagnosis, cure and prevention.

3.Plant breeding: Deals with hybridization of crossbreeding of plants, produce new or improved varieties of plants.

4.Pharmacognosy: Dealing with the study of crude drug mainly of plant origin, with special reference to their cultivation, collection preparation for market, standardization and storage.

5. Bacteriology: A branch of microbiology dealing with study of bacteria.

6. Agricultural botany or agronomy: it is botanical study of the plants of agricultural importance.

Relevance of Biology and pharmaceutical sciences• By going through classification of biology and the

subjects closely related to biology, it is observed that various disciplines intimately associated with pharmaceutical sciences have liaison (link) with each other.

• Pharmacy or pharmaceutical sciences deals with study of drugs. Drugs may be obtained from animal, mineral or synthetic sources. The two earlier sources are part and parcel of biology.

• By cumulative study of all disciplines of biology, we can study plants and animals in most respects. Approximately 90 % of drugs are obtained from plants or animals.

• Thus biological studies helps us to understand plant or animal drugs properly. The scientific knowledge of plant habitat and cultivation provide us various methods of cultivating medicinal plants with better yield.

• Studies of non-living contents of cells under cytology tells us about the chemical constituents which are present in plants and animals, due to which they are used as curative substances.

• Several plants of fungal origin like penicillium, ergot and algal growth like agar and chondrous have provided several antibiotics, alkaloids and pharmaceutical aids, respectively.

• Pathological plant products like gum, resins and excretory products tannins, latices, essential oils have given us high valuable drugs.

• It is due to Phytochemistry that we are able to get many compounds having high therapeutic potential like glycosides, steroids, enzymes etc.

• Relevance of animals to pharmaceutical sciences is not inferior to any extent as compared to plants.

• Insects have offered numerous pharmaceutical aids like shellac, honey, bees-wax and and colouring agents (cochineal).

• Many organs of animals are used for extraction of hormones & other biological products viz. adrenaline, insulin, thyroid, liver –oils, etc.

• Apart from that, several animals as whole or their organs are utilized for pharmacological standardization, evaluation & experimental trials of drugs.