Recent Advances in Extraction, Phytochemical Analysis and Bioactivity of Nonfood Plants with Well Established Relationships with Humans

Dear Colleagues, As we know, medicinal and aromatic plants are important mainly because they contain plant secondary metabolites (such as essential oils, alkaloids, glycosides, saponins, tannins, vitamins, and other bioactives). While plant secondary metabolites are produced by pathways derived from primary metabolites, they do not play a direct role in the growth and development of the plant cells but, rather, have roles associated with plant protection and defense mechanisms. Medicinal and aromatic plants have been used by humankind for a long time. Every traditional medicine system (e.g., Ayurveda, Siddha medicine, Unani, ancient Iranian medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, traditional African medicine, and traditional Korean medicine) may include hundreds to thousands of medicinal plants used for various forms of herbal medicine or for the production of extracts and pure chemicals that are being used by modern medicine for treatment, or prevention of various diseases. However, there are some medicinal and aromatic plant species that have established special relationships with humans; these plants and their products have been utilized by humankind for centuries or millennia and are still some of the most utilized species and sources for plant natural products in modern times. This Special Issue will focus on “Recent Advances in Extraction, Phytochemical Analysis, and Bioactivity of Non-Food Plants with Well-Established Relationships with Humans”. These include tobacco (Nicotiana sp), hops (Humulus lupulus), hemp (Cannabis sativa), coffee (Coffea arabica), cacao (Theobroma cacao), tea (Camellia sinensis), cinchona (Cinchona officinalis), and opium poppy (Papaver somniferum). Dr. Valtcho Jeliazkov Dr. Filippo Maggi Prof. Dr. Tessema Astatkie Guest Editors