give the importance of alkaloids in pharmacy and medicine
Alkaloid Alkaloids are produced by a large variety of organisms including bacteria, fungi, plants, and animals. They can be purified from crude extracts of these organisms by acid-base extraction. Alkaloids have a wide range of pharmacological activities including antimalarial (e.g. quinine), antiasthma (e.g. ephedrine), anticancer (e.g. homoharringtonine),[6] cholinomimetic (e.g. galantamine),[7] vasodilatory (e.g. vincamine), antiarrhythmic (e.g. quinidine), analgesic (e.g. morphine),[8] antibacterial (e.g. chelerythrine),[9] and antihyperglycemic activities (e.g. piperine).[10] Many have found use in traditional or modern medicine, or as starting points for drug discovery. Other alkaloids possess psychotropic (e.g. psilocin) and stimulant activities (e.g. cocaine, caffeine, nicotine, theobromine),[11] and have been used in entheogenic rituals or as recreational drugs. Alkaloids can be toxic too (e.g. atropine, tubocurarine).[12] Although alkaloids act on a diversity of metabolic systems in humans and other animals, they almost uniformly evoke a bitter taste.[13]
Charaka Charaka (Sanskrit चरक) (6th - 5th century BCE[1][2]) was one of the principal contributors to Ayurveda, a system of medicine and lifestyle developed in Ancient India. He is famous for authoring the medical treatise, the Charaka Samhita. Charaka was resident of Kapisthala (probably the place is now known as Kapurthala) village situated in Panchanada (Punjab). Panchanada was name of Punjab in Mahabharata.[3][4][5][6] He is well known as the "Indian father of medicine".[7]