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Pune District Education Association’s

Shankarrao Ursal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences & Research Center

Approved by Pharmacy Council of India, New Delhi | Permanently Affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University (PU/PN/Pharm/384/2009) | MSBTE Code: 2143 | Recognised by Government of Maharashtra | DTE Code: 6385
Affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), Pune

Pharmacognosy

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Pharmacognosy

Dr. Vipul Viswanath Dhasade

Head of Department

The Department of Pharmacognosy bridges traditional herbal medicine with modern drug discovery by studying bioactive natural products derived from plant, animal, marine, and microbial sources.

The department aims to train students in identification, extraction, isolation, standardization, and pharmacological evaluation of phytopharmaceuticals with strong emphasis on evidence-based herbal drug development.

Special focus is given to herbal formulation development, quality control of crude drugs, and validation of traditional medicinal claims using modern analytical techniques.

Academic Programs & Curriculum

  • Study of crude drugs, pharmacognostic evaluation, and plant morphology.
  • Extraction and chemistry of secondary metabolites including alkaloids, glycosides, flavonoids, tannins, and volatile oils.
  • Advanced phytochemical techniques such as chromatography (TLC, column chromatography).
  • Analytical method development and validation using HPTLC, HPLC, and spectroscopic techniques.
  • Plant tissue culture and biotechnological approaches in natural product research.
  • Training in regulatory guidelines for herbal medicines (AYUSH, WHO standards).
  • Quality assurance of herbal drugs and nutraceutical products.

State-of-the-Art Laboratory Infrastructure

  • Phytochemistry Lab: Soxhlet apparatus, steam distillation, and extraction units.
  • Microscopy Unit: Digital microscopes, microtomes, and anatomical study systems.
  • Analytical Lab: HPLC, UV-Visible spectrophotometer, IR spectroscopy setup.
  • Medicinal Plant Garden: Over 65 medicinal plant species for practical learning.
  • Herbarium Repository: More than 250 authenticated herbarium specimens.

Research Focus Areas

  • Enhancement of the solubility of poorly water-soluble drugs and APIs.
  • Development of novel drug delivery systems for antiviral drugs, especially for AIDS treatment.
  • Design of novel drug delivery systems using natural excipients, including Ocimum basilicum.
  • Formulation development for colitis and colon cancer.
  • Development of microemulsions and transdermal patches.
  • Taste masking of extremely bitter drugs using ion-exchange resins.
  • Formulation and development of floating drug delivery systems.
  • Prediction of in vivo and in vitro formulation properties using QSPR.
  • QSAR studies.
  • Development and validation of stability-indicating RP-HPLC assay methods for APIs and drugs in pharmaceutical dosage forms.
  • Physicochemical characterization of monoclonal antibodies using size-exclusion chromatography, Lowry's method, SDS-PAGE, and UV spectrophotometry.
  • Development and validation of analytical methods for APIs and drugs in pharmaceutical dosage forms using UPLC, HPLC, and HPTLC.
  • Development and validation of an RP-HPLC method for residual glycine estimation in pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.
  • Development and validation of biochemical assays for vaccine quality control.

Industry Collaboration & Career Opportunities

  • Active collaborations with herbal pharmaceutical and Ayurvedic industries.
  • Training for careers in Herbal R&D, QC/QA, Regulatory Affairs, and Natural Product Development.
  • Opportunities in nutraceutical, cosmeceutical, and phytopharmaceutical industries.