Abstract
The high altitude of the Himalayan cold desert represents a valuable habitat of natural resources. The extreme climatic condition manifested by intense mutagenic UV-radiation, physiological drought, desiccation and strong winds, makes the survival of plants really difficult. As a consequence of this atmospheric stressor, the plants produce unique metabolites which play a preventive role in intrinsic mechanism of sustenance. Many plant species of this region have been investigated in search of novel antioxidants and antimicrobials. Plants synthesize several antioxidants that aid in antioxidant defense system, thereby protecting plants against damage caused by active ROS. These compounds include chlorophyll derivatives, alkaloids, essential oils, phytosterols, phenolics and polyphenolics. Some of the antioxidants that have been isolated from plants include curcumin, quercetin, ascorbic acid, resveratrol amongst many other compounds. Additionally, the emergence of resistance to multiple antimicrobial agents has become a major threat to public health. Hence, fresh efforts towards new drug identification and development are greatly needed. Plants have long been used in traditional Indian medicine for numerous therapeutic benefits and low toxicity. Considering the growing interest in quest for search of plant based antimicrobials and antioxidants; an effort has been carried to systematically record the antioxidants and antimicrobial potential of plants of Himalayan region.
Highlights
The northern part of India, especially Himalayan terrain is a hot spot of medicinal plants
Glucosinolates present in many species of Brassicaceae family are sulphur and nitrogen containing secondary metabolites. They are abundant in broccoli, mustard and Brussels sprouts and have antifungal, antimicrobial, anticancer, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity [33]
For example fabatin which has been extracted from the fava beans contains 47 peptide residues that have shown antimicrobial activity against P. aeruginosa and E. coli [34]
Summary
The northern part of India, especially Himalayan terrain is a hot spot of medicinal plants. High altitude medicinal plants (HAMP) are amongst the least well studied organisms of terrestrial ecosystems This is largely due to misconceptions about poor biodiversity, small number of individuals per species, reduced surface inaccessibility, and relative simplicity of these habitats. These plants are capable of growing successfully at altitudes surpassing 5000 m mainly because of specialized physiological processes that include synthesis of special lipids which alter the flexibility and water permeability of cell membranes, anti-freeze carbohydrates and other unique secondary metabolites [3,4]. These conditions induce the biosynthesis of UV protection and free radical scavenging compounds in these plants
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