Poor Regions Research Articles

A Centrally Driven Place-Based Economic Development Strategy: A Local Perspective of Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor

We contrast place-based economic development strategies (PBEDS) in Thailand and in economically advanced countries. Through government initiatives, PBEDS focuses on improving economically underdeveloped areas' economic conditions. Thailand's PBEDS began in 1959 to develop the impoverished Northeast region, focusing on agricultural improvements. Since 1970, infrastructure and industrial development zones have been the main strategies to attract foreign investment for export-oriented growth. In economically advanced countries, the primary purpose of PBEDS is to reduce regional economic disparity. However, as they are implemented in Thailand, they increase regional inequality as development is concentrated in and around Bangkok. Thailand's latest PBEDS is the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) project in three eastern provinces. The national government oversaw the EEC and granted the EEC Office special powers to streamline investment approvals, although local governments have no formal role. We contrast Thailand's top-down PBEDS with approaches in other countries that emphasize local decision-making and leveraging regional assets. Thailand's policies focus on national growth, while international evidence suggests that locally-led PBEDS more effectively address regional disparities and increase national output. Thailand should empower local governments, coordinate with them, and invest in poorer regions. At the same time, the EEC may promote growth, but its centralized approach risks misaligning with local needs. A balanced strategy accounting for local contexts could better lift Thailand economically.

The Spatial Distribution and Impacts of Organic Certificates in Southwest China

Organic farming is a good choice for agricultural development in southwest China under the trade-off between environmental protection and agricultural development. However, no researcher has investigated the current state and development of organic agriculture in southwest China. As a result, this paper explored the spatial structure of organic agriculture in southwest China by examining the distribution of organic certificates, as well as the environmental and socioeconomic impacts. The results show a dramatically uneven distribution of certified organics among different provinces, cities, and organic certificate types. On the province scale, Guizhou has the highest number (1174) and density (73.40 per 1010 m2) of organic certificates. On the city scale, Zunyi and Chengdu have the highest densities (218.77 and 342.52 per 1010 m2, respectively). Most of the certified organics are plants, accounting for 76.95%. The spatial distribution of organic farming is influenced by the interaction of several factors, including precipitation, temperature, GDP, highway density, gross agriculture output, agriculture machinery, and rural employed persons. However, the related and determinant factors of organic certificate distribution vary greatly across different regions, spatial scales, economic development levels, and agricultural development statuses. For the entirety of southwestern China, the factors significantly related to the distribution of organic certificates are GDP, highway density, gross agriculture output, agriculture machinery, and rural employed persons. However, these factors are GDP, gross agriculture output, agriculture machinery, and rural employed persons for Sichuan, and gross agriculture output and rural employed persons for Guizhou. Factors constraining the development of organic agriculture in regions with better economic and agricultural conditions are much fewer than in poorer regions. All of the nine selected variables, except global radiation, are significantly related to organic certificate distribution in regions with better economic conditions, while none of them had a significant correlation with organic certificate distribution in poorer regions. Furthermore, climate is no longer a constraint in regions with better agricultural conditions. These findings are of great significance for the development and research of organic agriculture in southwest China. The development of organic agriculture in southwest China requires consideration of both the combination of multiple factors and the stage of regional economic and agricultural development.

Euroscepticism as a syndrome of stagnation? Regional inequality and trust in the EU

ABSTRACT This article advances the literature on the spatial patterns of EU support by arguing that the relationship between regional inequality and EU trust is not linear. We posit that, to fully understand this relationship, we should systematically investigate three dimensions of regional inequality, i.e., regional wealth status, regional wealth growth, and regional wealth growth at different levels of wealth status. Using individual-level survey data for EU27 countries and the UK from 11 Eurobarometer waves (2015–2019), we show that a non-linear association exists whereby poor and rich European regions tend to trust the EU more compared to middle-income regions, and that within-region over-time growth is associated with higher levels of EU trust. We demonstrate that the association between growth and EU trust is more pronounced among poor and middle-income regions compared to rich regions. Our findings have implications about the nature of public Euroscepticism and the ways in which to address it.

Income Leakage Regional Effects: Supply and Demand Shocks during the Pandemic in Brazil and Chile

During the COVID-19 pandemic, regions were affected by a combination of economic crises: weak demand and constrained supply. Several studies have sought to analyse the heterogeneous effects of supply and demand shocks on the labour market, economic growth, and the environment. This study has a different focus, estimating both direct and indirect effects of demand and supply shocks adopted during the pandemic in Brazil and Chile. Afterwards, the paper compares the degree of regional absorption (leakage) of income resulting from each of these shocks, applying an interregional input–output model for each country. The results of this study show that income absorption by the poorest regions is relatively greater in the case of a supply shock. It can be said, therefore, that this type of shock improves the retention of income generated in the poorest regions, favouring the development of these localities and the reduction in regional inequalities. The main reason for this result is that supply policies have restricted essential sectors to a lesser extent, and these sectors are generally less concentrated in large urban centres in both Brazil and Chile. In other words, much of the interregional leakage is driven by the demand for non-essential products, mainly in the richest urban economy centres. Finally, the geographical dimension of regional inequalities leads to the economic benefit of prosperous areas in the country when shocks occur in vulnerable regions, highlighting the centre–periphery pattern in both countries.

Interprovincial inequality between economic benefit and carbon footprint: Perspective from China's Construction industry

Trade between regions not only brings about the exchange of goods and services but also leads to the transfer of emissions. As one of the larger emitting industries, the unequal exchange between environmental costs and economic benefits embodied in trade of the Construction industry has rarely been quantified. This paper applied a multi-regional input-output model to quantify the Construction-related carbon footprint (CF) and carbon emission flows among Chinese provinces. Subsequently, a regional environmental index was built to investigate the unbalanced exchange between Construction-related environmental costs and economic benefits embodied in the interprovincial trade. We found that the provincial per capita CF of Construction was unevenly distributed, with wealthier coastal regions generally having larger CF than poor inland regions. Compared with inland provinces, coastal ones have gained more economic benefits and lower environmental pressure. For example, over 75% of Construction-related carbon emissions in wealthier provinces (Beijing and Shanghai) were outsourced, while 60% of the value-added triggered by these provinces' Construction was retained within the region. However, with the progress of technology and the optimization of trade structure, the REI index decreased by about 30% during 2012–2017. This inequality problem gradually alleviated. Addressing these inequality issues could provide a basis for developing mitigation strategies across different provinces in the Construction industry.

Putting Logos on the World’s Best Running Feet: The Emergence of Apparel Sponsors in Ethiopian and Kenyan Athletics

Since the 1990s, most athletics federations have undertaken sponsorship negotiations with private shoe/apparel corporations. While these deals bring great sums of cash into the sport, some of which trickles down to the athletes, a great deal of it is used to leverage both hard and soft power in different regions of the world. The sponsorship regulations of national athletics federations have been recently politicized because of the ways that they conflict with their individual sponsorship agreements with other companies. Few, however, have examined the historical lineages and concerns for Ethiopian and Kenyan athletes – who come from some of the most cash poor and talent rich regions of the athletics world. This paper charts the historical relations and implications of the changes to commercial development and sponsorship as it pertains to Ethiopia and Kenya to broaden the geopolitical scope on this issue. Drawing on archival material and interviews with athletes and agents, it becomes clear that sponsors had their eyes on far more than outfitting the world’s top distance runners with their logo. Rather, they were after soft power that would enable them greater control in the flow of goods and capital to and within these countries.

Cultivation of Melilotus officinalis as a source of bioactive compounds in association with soil recovery practices.

Melilotus officinalis is a Leguminosae with relevant applications in medicine and soil recovery. This study reports the application of Melilotus officinalis plants in soil recovery and as a source of bioactive compounds. Plants were cultivated in semiarid soil under four different fertilizer treatments, urban waste compost at 10 t/ha and 20 t/ha, inorganic fertilizer and a control (no fertilizer). Agronomic properties of soil (pH, EC, soil respiration, C content, macro- and microelements) were analyzed before and after treatment. Also, germination, biomass, element contents, and physiological response were evaluated. Metabolite composition of plants was analyzed through Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS). Results showed a significant enhancement of the soil microbial activity in planted soils amended with compost, though there were no other clear effects on the soil physicochemical and chemical characteristics during the short experimental period. An improvement in M. officinalis germination and growth was observed in soils with compost amendment. Metabolite composition of plants was analyzed through Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS). Principal Component and Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering models suggest that there is a clear separation of the metabolome of four groups of plants grown under different soil treatments. The five most important discriminative metabolites (annotated) were oleamide, palmitic acid, stearic acid, 3-hydroxy-cis-5-octenoylcarnitine, and 6-hydroxynon-7- enoylcarnitine. This study provides information on how the metabolome of Melilotus might be altered by fertilizer application in poor soil regions. These metabolome changes might have repercussions for the application of this plant in medicine and pharmacology. The results support the profitability of Melilotus officinalis cultivation for bioactive compounds production in association with soil recovery practices.

Genetic Divergence Studies among Indigenous Accessions of Cassia auriculata (L.) Roxb., through Screening and Utilization for Chambal Ravine Rehabilitation

Background: Cassia auriculata, L., is an imperative medicinal and traditional neutral colour leaf hair dye yielding in India. This is a multipurpose and indigenous, perennial leguminous shrub and widely used as traditional medicine to cure diabetics by the rural peoples. Tanner’s cassia is also used as neutral henna and its yields natural golden blonde colouring to hair through the dried leaf powder. Young buds are used for yellow colour dye extraction by textile industries. Screening of high tolerance and best performing genotypes is highly essential in this imperative woody legume shrub to rehabilitate the mass erosion prone gullied and ravine lands for productive purpose of the wasteland and degraded lands. Methods: Thirty different accessions of Cassia auriculata were assembled and numbered from CA-1 to CA-30 from arid and semi-arid regions of Rajasthan (India). The experimental trial was conducted at ICAR-IISWC, Research Centre, Kota-Rajasthan, India during 2019-2022. After evaluation, CA-4 genotype was selected as an elite genotype. The elite genotype was used for high density plantation development with resource conservation for green cover development in non-arable ravine lands. Result: Genetic variation studies of Cassia auriculata indicated that considerable and significant variability, abundant morphometric variations in assembled genotype progenies. Further, genetic divergence analysis was also revealed that nine clusters segregated from 30 genotypes. Thirty genotypes were grouped into nine clusters according overall performance with geographical identity. Finally, C. auriculata (CA-4) genotype was identified and selected as an elite genotype based on its overall superiority in terms of plant growth, higher green biomass, leaf litter biomass, more number branching behaviour and plant coppicing ability which are directly relevant and imperative in soil erosion control, resource conservation and potential rehabilitation effect in resource poor dry regions of non-arable lands.

The fiscal implications of stringent climate policy

Stringent climate policy compatible with the targets of the 2015 Paris Agreement would pose a substantial fiscal challenge. Reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 95% or more by 2050 would raise 7% (1%–17%) of GDP in carbon tax revenue, half of current, global tax revenue. Revenues are relatively larger in poorer regions. Subsidies for carbon dioxide sequestration would amount to 6.6% (0.3–7.1%) of GDP. These numbers are conservative as they were estimated using models that assume first-best climate policy implementation and ignore the costs of raising revenue. The fiscal challenge rapidly shrinks if emission targets are relaxed.

Health Observation of the Capital Airport South Expressway Based on Improved MT-InSAR Technology

Objectives: The Airport South Expressway in China is built in a soft soil area, which may induce great hidden danger to airport traffic safety operations. Technology or Method: A new method to improve Multi-Temporal Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (MT-InSAR) technology, based on a novel time-series InSAR deformation model and an improved parameter estimation algorithm, is proposed for soft soil expressways monitoring. The functional relationship between the deformation and the creep parameters (viscosity and elastic modulus) based on the Maxwell model in one-dimensional linear rheology replaces the traditional InSAR linear model, and the creep physical parameters can be solved simultaneously in the solution process. The least-squares method with inequality constraints (LSIC) is induced to solve the unknown parameters. In total, 19 TerraSAR-X radar satellite images covering the South Expressway were utilized to validate the proposed method. The creep parameters for each pixel along the expressways and the time series deformation sequences from January 2012 to July 2014 were obtained. Results: As the results showed, the maximum settlement along the expressway was up to 125 mm, and the accuracy verification results showed that the modeling accuracy was 1.6 mm, with an improvement of 36.0% compared to the traditional linear model; the internal accuracy of the deformation results was 11.9 mm, accounting for 1.5% of the maximum deformation. Clinical or Biological Impact: Our method can provide data support and a reference for long-term health monitoring and early warning of infrastructure and traffic operation management in poor soil regions.

Breastfeeding knowledge and practice among women in western Maharashtra: A cross sectional study

Introduction: The best and most natural way to nourish newborn babies is through breastfeeding. In a developing nation like India, undernutrition affects people of all ages and is a serious health concern. The advantages of breastfeeding are not well understood, and breastfeeding is also not very common, due to the fact that the majority of people living in poor and rural regions lack access to information and education. Method: The present descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on rural breastfeeding mothers, to assess exclusive breastfeeding knowledge, attitudes and practices. These mother used to visit study site for vaccinate their infants. A total of 156 mothers willing to participate in the study were included according to the predefined criteria. Selection of the participants was done using simple random method. Data was collected through face to face interview using pilot tested, pre structured questionnaire. Result: Out of total 156 mothers, 43 (27.56%) were in the age group of 26 to 30 years, 110 (70.51%) mothers had accurate knowledge exclusively breastfeeding, while 7 (4.48%) mothers had adequate knowledge about the benefits of breastfeeding. Moreover, 85 (54.48%) mothers were exclusive breastfeeding and 88 (56.41%) mothers were breastfeeding their infants less than 8 times a day. Conclusion: Mothers in general are still not well informed about breastfeeding. Most mothers knew the benefits of breast milk for babies; however, knowledge of the benefits of breastfeeding for a mother herself, as well as the practice of exclusive breastfeeding, is still low and strongly related to socio-demographic factors such as maternal age, religion and place of residence.

Perceptions of quality of life by female sex workers from the rural area of the Sertão Produtivo Baiano, Brazil: a phenomenological study.

Paid sexual services performed by women are surrounded by stigma and associated prejudice and shame results in vulnerability, making it very difficult for these women to achieve a good quality of life. Such an environment is exacerbated by intersectionalities that mark the trajectory of women who have the ability and desire to obtain income in sexual practice. They experience inequities in gender, race and class and, above all, bear marks of struggle and survival, being residents of a poor, rural region of Brazil, far from urban centers. The objective of this study was to understand the meanings that female sex workers living in rural areas attribute to quality of life using Sartre's phenomenological perspective. This was a qualitative study from a larger project. For this study, we interviewed 30 female sex workers living in a rural area of the Sertão Produtivo da Bahia region, Brazil. The in-depth interview comprised two guiding questions: (1) 'Tell me what you mean by quality of life, as a sex worker'; and (2) 'Tell me how you experience well-being and quality of life when you are a sex worker and a rural resident'. The narratives resulting from the interviews were organized, categorized and operationalized from the hermeneutics dialectic. The interpretations were anchored in theoretical reference to Sartre's phenomenology. Some meanings were congruent in the women's narratives of their daily lives (described or observed), giving rise to three categories of analysis: the sex workers' concept of quality of life; whether they believed they have good quality of life or not; and what is required to achieve good quality of life. Three categories emerged, organized in a framework, the themes of which refer to the experience of sex workers as poor women living in the countryside: (1) quality of life as a synonym for health, food, and healthy life; (2) difficulties in achieving good quality of life; and (3) without money, there is no quality of life. The fact that these female sex workers come from a poor region of Brazil and live in a rural area far from urban centers leads to unique difficulties for them. They suffer from marginalization and restricted social services as a result of their circumstances, and highly value the freedom to face the difficulties of day-to-day life that their income from sex work provides. Good quality of life for these women is achieved by striving for physical health, food, and well-being (goals made attainable by that income), but can be hindered by violence.

Banking services and financial inclusion in India’s poorest regions

Banking services and financial inclusion in India’s poorest regions

Payment for environmental services: Forest conservation and poverty alleviation in a tropical region of Mexico

Payment for environmental services (PES) is a scheme that seeks to reduce human pressure on forest ecosystems by financially rewarding forest landowners for conserving their forests. However, in Mexico, the program is questioned because it prioritizes communities in the poorest regions over areas with a high risk of deforestation. This study evaluates the effectiveness of the PES program for forest cover conservation and poverty alleviation in a tropical region of Mexico. Deforestation and forest cover maintenance was determined by land use/cover change analysis using GIS. Effect on poverty alleviation was analyzed qualitatively in two communities. In the study area, 4738 ha of tropical and temperate forests were deforested during 2007–2017. The deforestation rate is similar in ejidos and private properties with and without PES. Most ejidos where deforestation occurred correspond to areas with higher economic development. Deforestation and the percentage of the population living in poverty are negatively correlated. Compared to other subsidies, the PES represents very low income, nevertheless, the social perception of the program is positive. Based on the lower percentage of deforestation avoided in the poorest areas and the minimal impact on livelihoods, the current PES approach is not highly effective.

The Portuguese forest and the Common Agricultural Policy

ObjectivesThe article aims to assess the impact of support from the European Union on the prevalence of fires in Portugal. The study has a territorial dimension that identifies the support distribution pattern and the location of forest spaces.MethodsThe study uses several databases on the territory and on the funds of the European Union distributed by the municipalities of the Portuguese mainland. It uses a spatial econometrics model from endogenous variables constructed from a principal component analysis.ResultsThe results infer that support is concentrated in the most prosperous agricultural regions. The poorest regions where the forest surface is proportionally larger receive little support. There is no correlation between European Union support for forests and the prevalence of fires.ConclusionsTo reduce the risk and prevalence of fire, it is necessary to promote an active management of forest areas. To this end, it is necessary to review the way in which support from the Common Agricultural Policy is distributed so that vulnerable territories can receive more support, empowering populations and promoting rural development.

Use of positron emission particle tracking to assess mixing of a graphite-based lithium-ion anode slurry in an Eirich mixer

The mixing of electrode slurries is a key processing step during the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries, and poor mixing can have a profound effect on final cell electrochemical performance. This is complicated by the evolving non-Newtonian rheology of these slurries. In this study, Positron Emission Particle Tracking (PEPT) is used to determine the fluid dynamics and dispersion of a model graphite-based anode slurry in an Eirich EL1 mixer, equipped with a rotating pan, wall scraper and internal rotor. The main processes studied are the wetting of graphite particles and breakup of large graphite agglomerates. For experiments performed at different internal rotor tip speeds, with fixed outer pan speed, the dispersion dynamics change with the lowest rotor speed (2 m/s) leaving a large channel of poor mixing between the rotor region and the rotating pan, whilst the mixing within the vessel is mainly driven by the rotating pan. At higher mixing speeds (6 and 10 m/s) more of the vessel volume is active and there is no longer a poor mixing region observed, with 10 m/s tip speed producing the highest intensity of dispersion. An increasing mixer effectiveness (average dispersion across the mixing vessel) as well as an increasing dispersion co-efficient (rate of mixing) is also observed, which will be use to inform scale-up criteria.

Utilizing Magnetic‐Field Modulation to Efficiently Improve the Performance of LiCoO2||Graphite Pouch Full Batteries

AbstractThe present lithium‐ion battery technology competition almost focuses on finding new materials, while less effort is invested in electrode engineering improvement with low‐cost. This study proposes a simple method of modulating the preferred orientation of crystal phases in LiCoO2 electrode using a ≈500 mT magnetic‐field, cheaply and efficiently improving the performance of LiCoO2||graphite pouch full batteries, including cycling stability, rate performance, and thermal safety performance. Under 3.0 C and 45 °C strict test conditions, LiCoO2‐M⊥||graphite battery even outputs the capacity retention rate of 42.8% after 1000 cycles, while that of pure‐LiCoO2 battery is only 4.4%. Especially, the thermal runaway temperature of the battery needling experiment decreases by considerable 7.7 °C after magnetic‐field modulation. Comprehensive characterizations reveal that vertical magnetic field causes spin alignment of LiCoO2 crystals along the (003) direction. This arrangement effectively improves the Li+ diffusion dynamic and the interface compatibility of the electrode, suppressing the electrode polarization. During the cycling processes, the preferred orientation of LiCoO2 particles forms an enhanced conductive network due to the formation of cross‐linked “Li+ poor regions” on the surface, ultimately achieving significant performance improvement. This work can provide a potential low‐cost strategy for the production of commercial lithium‐ion batteries.

Climate attribution of interpersonal violence: International evidence

Anthropogenic climate change is increasingly threatening interpersonal violence, yet global evidence for related impacts and potential transmission mechanisms remains limited. We examine whether and how climate change, particularly climate extremes, affects interpersonal violence. Using the panel data of 140 countries and regions from 2000 to 2019, we find that hot and wet extremes precipitated increase in homicide rates globally. Economic level, inequality, and resources scarcity were important intermediaries through which climate extremes affected homicide, while the direct effects still dominated the total effects. We then reveal the heterogeneous effects of climate extremes, further suggesting that poor countries and regions with relatively small contributions to climate change were particularly sensitive to climate extremes. These findings elucidate a strong climate-violence link, helping explain implications of facilitating violence prevention and mitigating climate change.

Global Access to Cardiac Surgery Centers: Distribution, Disparities, and Targets.

Global data on cardiac surgery centers are outdated and survey-based. In 1995, there were 0.7 centers per million population, ranging from one per 120,000 in North America to one per 33 million in sub-Saharan Africa. This study analyzes the contemporary distribution of cardiac surgery centers and proposes targets relative to countries' cardiovascular disease (CVD) burdens. Medical databases, gray literature, and governmental reports were used to identify the most recent post-2010 data that describe the number of centers performing cardiac surgery in each nation. The 2019 Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation Global Burden of Disease Results Tool provided national CVD burdens. One-third of the CVD burden was assumed to be surgical. Center targets were proposed as the average or half of the average of centers per million surgical CVD patients in high-income countries. 5,111 cardiac surgery centers were identified across 230 nations and territories with available data, equaling 0.73 centers per million population. The median (interquartile range) number of centers ranged from 0 (0-0.06) per million in low-income countries to 0.75 (0-1.44) in high-income countries. Targets were 612.2 (optimistic) or 306.1 (conservative) centers per million surgical CVD incidence. In 2019, low-income, lower-middle-income, and upper-middle-income countries possessed 34.8, 149.0, and 271.9 centers per million surgical CVD incidence. Little progress has been made to increase cardiac surgery centers per population despite growing CVD burdens. Today's global cardiac surgical capacity remains insufficient, disproportionately affecting the world's poorest regions.

Inhibitory effects of herbal medicines with claimed anticancer indications on cytochrome P450—An evaluation of drug-herb interactions risk

Herbs have the potential to interact with conventional medicines or each other upon concurrent administration. This can be at the level of absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME). With an estimation that 80% of the population in poor regions of the world utilise herbal medicines for primary healthcare, there is a likelihood that some people will take both herbal and conventional medicines. This could present a risk for herb-drug interactions (HDI) at the various levels of the ADME process. Most common HDI have been observed at metabolism level involving inhibition or induction of the major drug metabolising liver enzymes called cytochrome P450s. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effects of Parinari curatellifolia (MC), Fluggea virosa (ST), Garcinia livingstonei (MT), Pterocarpus angolensis (M), Tapinanthus quequensis (MF) and Cussonia arborea (GM) on recombinant CYP1A2, CYP2D6, CYP2C9 and CYP2C19. Plate based fluorescent assays were used to follow enzyme activity. Inhibition was determined at 5 mg/ml and 100 mg/ml of herbal extract, with IC50 determined for herbs that showed potent inhibition. A total of 10 out of 13 extracts showed significant inhibitory effects. Pterocarpus angolensis(bark), Fluggea virossa (leaf), Cussonia arborea(bark), Parinari curatellifollia (root) had very potent effects on CYP1A2 as indicated by an IC50 of <9.9 µg/ml. Based on the worst-case-scenario of complete absorption and exposure, these herbs are predicted to result in HDI if co-administered with medicines which depend on the affected CYPs for metabolism and elimination. Significance of the main findingsThere is a potential threat of drug toxicities due to drug-herb interactions for patients undergoing chemotherapy or taking other medications where co-morbidities exist during chemotherapy. Drugs that are substrates of CYP1A2 should be administered with caution for patients who are taking the herbs which have been studied in this research as risk for drug toxicities may be high. The findings act as a guide to medical doctors and patients in evaluating potential for herb-drug interactions during prescribing medications which are substrates for the studied CYPs.