CONSERVATION STRATEGY FOR CRITICALLY ENDANGERED SPECIES OF THE THAR DESERT: COMMIPHORA WIGHTII (ARN.) BHANDARI

摘要

Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari, (Burseraceae) is commonly known as guggul. This plant has got tremendous medicinal importance in treatment of various diseases and disorders since ages. It provides oleo gum-resin mentioned by Sushruta (3000 years ago) as being a valuable drug. Its oleo gum-resin contains guggulsterone E and Z, which are active principles of this taxon and used in the treatment of cardiac diseases and disorders (Chander et al., 2003; Ramawat et al., 2008). Random amplification of polymorphic DNA based analysis indicates that the plant has low genetic diversity (Haque et al., 2010). This may be due to geographic isolation, restricted gene flow between the fragmented populations, poor seed setting and its apomictic nature (Gupta etal., 1996). Due to slow rate of natural propagation, low seed germination percentage, indiscriminate use by local people as well as commercial exploitation for its uses, this plant has reached on such a population level that it has been included in Red data Book of IUCN under the category critically endangered species (Nayar and Shastry, 1987).