Herbal Drug Substitution By Abhava Pratinidhi Dravya

1.2. Herbal Drug Substitution
The drug which is used as a substitute of the original drug in its absence is referred as Abhava Pratinidhi Dravya in classical texts. This concept about the usage of a substitute drug was well mentioned by Acharya Bhavamishra in his classical work Bhavaprakasha. Bhavaprakasha is an important treatise on Ayurveda being counted as one of the LaghuTrayi (Three minor treatises), others being Madhav Nidan and Sharangdhar Samhita. It is comprehensive in nature containing all important aspects of Ayurveda doctrine and applied blended together. The work is entirely composed of Sanskrit verses of different metres whereas verses of other texts have also been incorporated. The text had about 10268 verses, distributed among three khandas (sections) and 80 prakaranas (chapters).
The concept of substitution is sometimes misinterpreted as adulteration. Adulteration is the practice of replacing an original drug partially or fully with other drugs which is substandard in its properties and therapeutic values. Abhava Pratinidhi Dravyas are substitute drugs utilize for the drugs which are not available. According to Ayurvedic literature, the main requirement for an appropriate Pratinidhi
Phytochemical analysis of plants has been supported enormously by the development of rapid and accurate methods of screening plants for particular chemicals. The phytochemical methods are widely used to screen and analyse bioactive phytochemicals, not only for the quality control of crude drugs, but also for the elucidation of their therapeutic mechanisms. There is a growing interest in correlating phytochemical constituents of a plant with its pharmacological