Traditional Herbal Therapy for the Human Immune System

Drawing on indigenous and scientific knowledge of medicinal plants, Traditional Herbal Therapy for the Human Immune System presents the protective and therapeutic potential of plant-based drinks, supplements, nutraceuticals, synergy food, superfoods, and other products. Medicinal plants and their products can affect the immune system and act as immunomodulators. Medicinal plants are popularly used in folk medicine to accelerate the human immune defence and improve body reactions against infectious or exogenous injuries, as well as to suppress the abnormal immune response occurring in immune disorders. This book explains how medicinal plants can act as a source of vitamins and improve body functions such as enhanced oxygen circulation, maintained blood pressure and improved mood. It also outlines how specific properties of certain plants can help boost the immune system of humans with cancer, HIV, and COVID-19. Key features: Provides specific information on how to accelerate and or fortify the human immune system by using medicinal plants. Presents scientific understanding of herbs, shrubs, climbers and trees and their potential uses in conventional and herbal medicine systems. Discusses the specific role of herbal plants that act as antiviral and antibacterial agents and offer boosted immunity for cancer, H1N1 virus, relieving swine flu, HIV and COVID-19 patients. Part of the Exploring Medicinal Plants series, this book is useful for researchers and students, as well as policy makers and people working in industry, who have an interest in plant-derived medications.

Contents Preface.......................................................................................................................ix About the Editor.........................................................................................................xi Contributors............................................................................................................ xiii Disclaimer...............................................................................................................xvii Chapter 1 Plant-based Potential Nutraceuticals for Improving the Human Immune System..................................................................1 Azamal Husen and Muhammad Iqbal Chapter 2 Antibacterial Properties of Medicinal Plants: Recent Trends, Progress, and Challenges.................................................................... 13 Limenew Abate, Archana Bachheti, Rakesh Kumar Bachheti, and Azamal Husen Chapter 3 Antiviral Activity of Medicinal Plants: Current Understanding, Prospects, and Challenges......................................... 55 Venkateish V P, Nivya V, Vani V, Baskaran V, and Madan Kumar P Chapter 4 Conventional Medicinal Plants: Boosting the Immune System in Humans............................................................................... 75 Antul Kumar, Anuj Choudhary, Harmanjot Kaur, Asish Kumar Padhy, and Sahil Mehta Chapter 5 Medicinal Plants for Strong Immune System and Traditional Skin Therapy in South Africa: An Overview ................ 123 Learnmore Kambizi and Callistus Bvenura Chapter 6 Traditional African Medicinal Plants for a Strong Immune System.......173 Anywar Godwin Chapter 7 Traditional Brazilian Medicinal Plants for a Strong Immune System................................................................................. 199 José Crisólogo de Sales Silva, Solma Lúcia Souto Maior de Araújo Baltar, and Maria Lusia de Morais Belo Bezerra Chapter 8 Traditional Himalayan Plants: Nature’s Gift for Maintaining a Strong Immune System.................................................................. 211 Antul Kumar, Anuj Choudhary, Harmanjot Kaur, Atul Arya, Baljinder Singh, and Sahil Mehta Chapter 9 Traditional South Indian Herbal Plants for a Strong Immune System.................................................................................245 Mani Divya and Sekar Vijayakumar Chapter 10 Sacred Medicinal Plants and their Use by Indigenous People for Strengthening the Immune System.................................. 255 Jamal Akhtar and Fouzia Bashir Chapter 11 Molecular Features of Potential Herbal Products in Enhancing Human Immune System.................................................. 301 Chandrabose Selvaraj, Chandrabose Yogeswari, and Sanjeev Kumar Singh Chapter 12 Specific Plant Nutrients and Vitamins that Fortify Human Immune System................................................................................. 363 Kirubel Teshome Tadele and Gebeyanesh Worku Zerssa Chapter 13 Role of Specific Spices in Fortifying the Human Immune System.................................................................................397 Yashdeep Srivastava, Swati Upadhyay, Mohd Ahmad, Deepak Kumar Verma, and Vinod Kumar Mishra Chapter 14 Specific Fruits and Berries for a Strong Human Immune System.......411 Rakesh Kumar Chapter 15 Natural Immunity Boosters and Anticancer Medicinal Plants......... 431 Swati Agarwal, Sonu Kumari, and Amrendra Kumar Chapter 16 Potential of Medicinal Plants as Immunity Booster against COVID-19............................................................................. 455 Saumya Pandey Index....................................................................................................................... 475

Azamal Husen served as Professor & Head, Department of Biology, University of Gondar, Ethiopia and is a Foreign Delegate at Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita, Ethiopia. He specializes in biogenic nanomaterial fabrication and application, plant responses to environmental stresses and nanomaterials at the physiological, biochemical and molecular levels, herbal medicine, and clonal propagation for improvement of tree species, and has published over 200 research articles. He is contributed to R&D projects of World Bank, ICAR, ICFRE, JBIC etc. He is on the advisory board of Cambridge Scholars Publishing, UK. Husen has been on the Editorial Board and the panel of reviewers of several reputed journals. He is a Fellow of the Plantae group of the American Society of Plant Biologists, and a Member of the International Society of Root Research, Asian Council of Science Editors, and INPST. He is Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Plant Physiology, and a Series Editor of Exploring Medicinal Plants (Taylor & Francis Group, USA); Plant Biology, Sustainability, and Climate Change (Elsevier, USA); and Smart Nanomaterials Technology (Springer Nature, Singapore).