Fulbright visiting professor from India to lecture on medicinal plants at Alcorn

Fulbright visiting professor from India to lecture on medicinal plants at Alcorn

Fulbright visiting professor from India to lecture on medicinal plants at Alcorn 

Alcorn State University will host a seminar on “Herbs, Spices and Medicinal Plants: A Techno-Ethnological Overview” on March 20, 1:30 p.m., in the Ray Johnson Assembly Auditorium, Ag Extension Complex. Dr. Amit Baran Sharangi, Fulbright visiting professor, Department of Spices and Plantation Crops, Bidhan Chandra Agricultural University (BCAU), West Bengal, India, will serve as a speaker.

“The value of herbs, spices and medicinal plants has been recognized for centuries throughout the globe, said Dr. Sharangi. “Many of the present-day chemicals have been derived from herbs. Subsequently, such molecules have been synthesized. The chemicals are techno-ethnological products of herbals, having a tradition for hundreds of years and prospects for several years to come. It reflects the rich profile of indigenous knowledge especially common in India, China and many eastern countries. Modern researchers need to be attuned to its ethnological base. Western countries are also increasingly opting for these natural healing and flavoring alternatives.”

The participants will walk away with a general understanding of herbs, spices and medicinal plants, which includes an importance and basic understanding of the crops at global perspectives. Information will be provided on the impact of these plants on health and the well-being of a mankind, society and nature, and about the indigenous knowledge base of herbs, spices and medicinal plants that spill from generation to generation.

Dr. Sharangi’s presentation will include the following topics: Herbs: Importance and Scope in India and the U.S., Trends and Current Status of Clinical Trials of Herbal Medicine in the United States; Spices: Importance and scope in india and the U.S.; Medicinal plants: Importance and scope in India and the U.S.; Conservation of Medicinal Plants; Trends in Global Research on Herbs, Spices and Medicinal Plants.

Dr. Sharangi has 15 years of teaching and research experience. His productive experiments on palms related to the process of germplasm collection at Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, India, lead to the release of a variety Kalpamitra. Dr. Sharangi educates graduate students about herbs and spices at BCAU, and explores the feasibility of year-round production of coriander leaves. His paper on medicinal and therapeutic properties of tea ranked among the top 25 articles on ScienceDirect, and his work on spices appeared in Advances in Food Science and Technology. Dr. Sharangi is the author of 12 books, and is collaborating with 19 international and national journals as board member and reviewer. In 2012, he was appointed regional editor of the International Journal of Agricultural Research. Dr. Sharangi has memberships in Scientific Committee and Editorial Review Board on Medical and Biological Sciences, and World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology. He is linked to several advanced training and research institutes in Australia, U.K. and Israel. Dr. Sharangi is the recipient of Endeavour Award (2010) and INSA-Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellowship (2011). He conducted his post doctoral studies at the University of Melbourne, Australia. Currently, he is a Fulbright Visiting Professor at Louisiana State University.

For additional information on the seminar, contact Dr. Girish K. Panicker, CPAg., CCA., associate professor and director of Conservation Research at Alcorn, at [email protected] or 601.877.6598.

Pictured: Dr. Sharangi.