Recent developments in herbal drug standard in India

Inherent complex nature of plants makes the standardization of herbal medicines a difficult task. The therapeutic actions of diverse secondary metabolites largely depend on age, genetic factors and geographical location of the plant species 3. The same plant species may show substantial different phytochemical leading to variable pharmacological actions. The heavy metal contamination and adulteration due to microorganisms and pesticides furthers creates difficulties in achieving uniform standards of herbal medicines worldwide. The raw material harvesting seasons, procedure, storage and processing of the same are critical in maintaining the quality of the herbal medicines 4. Another major issue with Indian ASU medicines is the polyherbal nature of the medicine, which makes them difficult for standardization. Non-availability of post-harvest facilities at primary level, lack of testing laboratories at the raw material production site, lack of product traceability are few of the important concerns from quality point of view.