Shoolini University researcher files patents turning tribal herbal wisdom into modern healthcare solutions
Solan, Aug 20,
In what experts are calling a milestone for sustainable healthcare, science has met tribal tradition. For the first time, centuries-old tribal remedies from the northwestern Himalayas are being scientifically validated and transformed into modern health solutions—ensuring both global medical relevance and livelihood opportunities for Himalayan communities.
Dr. Radha, Assistant Professor and In-Charge of the Herbarium and Drug Museum at the School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Shoolini University, has in 2025 filed four patents for pioneering plant-based health products and eco-friendly extraction methods developed from Himalayan medicinal plants.
Among these innovations is a nutrient-enriched jam crafted from Bombax ceiba flowers blended with apple pulp. Rich in dietary fibre, phenols and flavonoids, the jam carries antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits while remaining free of artificial preservatives and colourants. Another application covers a ready-to-serve herbal drink made from Bombax ceiba flower extract, combining traditional cooling and restorative qualities with modern food science.
Two other patents involve eco-friendly antimicrobial extractions. From Prinsepia utilis leaves, Dr. Radha has developed extracts that fight harmful bacteria, including drug-resistant strains—marking the first time the Himalayan plant has shown such effects. Another innovation involves Tinospora cordifolia leaves, preserving antimicrobial compounds to offer a natural alternative to conventional antibiotics.
“This research is a step toward building scientific evidence for traditional knowledge that has been passed down orally for generations. By combining field documentation with laboratory analysis, we have developed plant-based health products and eco-friendly extraction methods that transform tribal remedies into validated functional foods and natural antimicrobial solutions, benefiting both modern healthcare and local Himalayan communities,” said Dr. Radha.
These patents address urgent challenges like antimicrobial resistance, while also safeguarding indigenous knowledge. Importantly, they promise livelihood opportunities for Himalayan tribes through cultivation and conservation of medicinal plants.
The breakthrough builds on Dr. Radha’s landmark ethnobotanical study—Ethnoveterinary Medicines Used by the Tribal Migratory Shepherds of Northwestern Himalaya—which documented over 1,600 medicinal and edible plant species used by the Gaddi, Kinnaura and Jaunsari tribes of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The research, supported by the Advanced National Research Foundation (ANRF) and conducted with partners including the Botanical Survey of India (Dehradun), Dr. Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry (Nauni), Stanford University, East Carolina University, and the University of Vigo, Spain, also highlights the urgent need to conserve endangered Himalayan species like Picrorhiza kurroa, Gentiana kurroo and Lilium polyphyllum.
Dr. Radha is a leading ethnobotanist and innovator whose work bridges traditional knowledge of Himalayan tribes with modern science. An Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany at Shoolini University, she has spent over eight years documenting and validating medicinal and edible plants used by tribal communities in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Awarded twice as Young Woman Scientist Award, a prolific researcher and innovator, she holds over 45 patents, more than 75 copyrights, and has published over 120 research papers in reputed national and international journals. She has also authored multiple books on wild edible plants, including the acclaimed Wild Edible Plants of District Sirmaur, Himachal Pradesh, with a forthcoming title Ethnobotany of Tribal India.
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