Commiphora wightii (Arnott) Bhandari—A Natural Source of Guggulsterone: Facing a High Risk of Extinction in Its Natural Habitat

Neeraj Jain, Rajani S. Nadgauda

Plant Cell and Molecular Biology, Indian Institute of Advanced Research, Gandhinagar, India..

DOI: 10.4236/ajps.2013.46A009                

Abstract

The plants are the primary producers and an indispensible source of food and nutrition, medicine and fuel/biofuel. Unsustainable overharvesting and indiscriminate felling of plants due to ever increasing needs of population pressure are causes of great concern. The IUCN includes, the species facing a high risk of extinction in the wild as threatened, and “endangered” is one of the sub-categories under “threatened” category. Commiphora wightii (Arnott) Bhandari is an arid region plant, highly valued for its medicinally important guggul gum-resin as a source of guggulsterone. It is listed in IUCN’s Red Data List of threatened plants and now it is becoming endangered. Its population is fast depleting in its natural habitat, primarily due to over-exploitation, unsustainable and destructive methods of gum-extraction coupled with natural dry-arid habitat, slow growth and poor regeneration of the plant. Several other reasons have also been indicated for its declining population. Therefore, it demands severe measures for its conservation before we completely lose this important medicinal plant. A lot of research and study is underway but has vast scope for improvement, requiring efforts to supplement with such information that would aid transgenic development and breeding programmes for production and cultivation of improved varieties. The article presents the importance of this plant and its conservation in a nut-shell.

Keywords

IUCN; Conservation; Commiphora wightii; Somatic Embryogenesis; Threatened

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	S. Natesh and H. Y. Mohan Ram, “An Update of Green Medicine,” Journal of Indian Botanical Society, Vol. 78, 1999, pp. 13-23.
[2]	D. M. Barve and A. R. Mehta, “Clonal Propagation of Mature Elite Trees of Commiphora wightii,” Plant Cell Tissue and Organ Culture, Vol. 35, No. 3, 1993, pp. 237-244. doi:10.1007/BF00037276
[3]	C. S. Reddy, S. L. Meena, P. H. Krishna, P. D. Charan and K. C. Sharma, “Conservation Threat Assessment of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari—An Economically Important Species,” Taiwania, Vol. 57, No. 3, 2012, pp. 288-293.
[4]	S. Kumar and V. Shanker, “Medicinal Plants of Indian Desert: Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari,” Journal of Arid Environments, Vol. 5, 1982, pp. 1-11.
[5]	H. Lal and P. K. Kasera, “Status and Distribution Range of Guggal: A Critically Endangered Medicinal Plant from the Indian Thar Desert,” Science & Culture, Vol. 76, No. 11-12, 2010, pp. 531-533.
[6]	K. G. Ramawat, M. Mathur, S. Dass and S. Suthar, “Guggulsterone: A Potent Natural Hypolipidemic Agent from Commiphora wightii—Problems, Perseverance, and Prospects,” In: K. G. Ramawat and J. M. Merillon, Eds., Bioactive Molecules and Medicinal Plants, Springer, Heidelberg, 2008, pp. 101-121. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-74603-4_5
[7]	C. K. Atal, O. P. Gupta and S. H. Abag, “Commiphora mukul: Source of Guggul in Indian Systems of Medicine,” Economic Botany, Vol. 29, No. 3, 1975, pp. 208-218. doi:10.1007/BF02873167
[8]	K. C. Dalal and M. A. Patel, “Guggal,” In: K. L. Chadha and R. Gupta, Eds., Advances in Horticulture, Vol. 11-Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Malhotra Publishing House, New Delhi, 1995, pp. 491-501.
[9]	B. B. L. Yadava, K. V. Billore, J. G. Joseph and D. D. Chaturvedy, “ Cultivation of GUGGULU,” Central Council in Ayurveda and Siddha (Ayush), New Delhi, 1999, pp. 1-87.
[10]	P. K. Kasera and J. Prakash, “Ecology and Cultivation Practices of Guggul (Commiphora wightii): An Endangered Medicinal Plant of the Thar Desert in India,” In: D. K. Majumadar, J. N. Govil, V. K. Singh and R. K. Sharma, Eds., Recent Progress in Medicinal Plants, Vol. 9— Plant Bioactives in Traditional Medicine, Stadium Press LLC, Houston, 2005, pp. 403-423.
[11]	P. Gupta, K. R. Shivanna and H. Y. Mohan Ram, “Apomixis and Polyembryony in the Guggul Plant, Commiphora wightii,” Annals of Botany, Vol. 78, No. 1, 1996, pp. 67-72. doi:10.1006/anbo.1996.0097
[12]	J. Prakash, P. K. Kasera and D. D. Chawan, “A Report on Polyembryony in Commiphora wightii from Thar Desert, India,” Current Science, Vol. 78, No. 10, 2000, pp. 1185-1187.
[13]	R. S. Mertia, N. K. Sinha, B. K. Kandpal and D. Singh, “Evaluation of Indian Myrrh (Commiphora wightii) Landraces for Hyper Arid Thar Desert,” Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences, Vol. 80, No. 10, 2010, pp. 869-871.
[14]	S. D. Sabins and K. S. S. Rao , “Rare and Endangered Endemics of South Eastern Kutch,” Assessment of Threatened Plants of India, Proceedings of Seminar, Dehra Dun, 14-17 September 1983, pp. 71-77.
[15]	B. V. Shetty and V. Singh, “Flora of Rajasthan,” Vol. 1, Botanical Survey of India, Kolkata, 1993, p. 445.
[16]	V. Soni and P. L. Swarnakar, “Conservation Strategies for Commiphora wightii. An Important Medicinal Plant Species,” Medicinal Plant Conservation, Vol. 12, 2006, pp. 40-42.
[17]	B. B. L. Yadava, “Commiphora wightii (Gum-Guggul) Present Status in India: An Overview,” Herbal Tech Industry, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2011, pp. 24-28.
[18]	M. Dixit and S. V. S. Rao, “Observation on Distribution and Habitat Characteristics of Guggul (Commiphora wighti) in the Arid Region of Kachch, Guajarat, India,” Tropical Ecology, Vol. 41, No. 1, 2000, pp. 81-83.
[19]	R. Deng, “Therapeutic Effects of Guggul and Its Constituent Guggulsterone: Cardiovascular Benefits,” Cardiovascular Drug Reviews, Vol. 25, No. 4, 2007, pp. 375-390.
[20]	R. B. Singh, M. A. Niaz and S. Ghosh, “Hypolipidemic and Antioxidant Effects of Commiphora mukul as an Adjunct to Dietary Therapy in Patients with Hypercholesterolemia,” Cardiovascular Drugs and Therapy, Vol. 8, No. 4, 1994, pp. 659-664. doi:10.1007/BF00877420
[21]	V. Singh and R. P. Pandey, “Biodiversity of Desert National Park, Rajasthan,” Botanical Survey of India, Kolkata, 2006, p. 344.
[22]	S. N. Tripathi, V. V. S. Sastri and G. V. Satyavati, “Experimental and Clinical Studies on the Effects of Guggul (C. mukul) in Hyperlipidemia and Thrombosis,” Journal of Research in Indian Medicine, Vol. 2, No. 2, 1968, p. 10.
[23]	G. V. Satyavati, C. Dwarkanath and S. N. Ttripathi, “Experimental Studies on the Hypocholesterolemic Effect of Commiphora mukul Engl. (Guggul),” Indian Journal of Medical Research, Vol. 57, No. 10, 1969, pp. 1950-1962.
[24]	A. D. Bhatt, D. G. Dalal, S. J. Shah, B. A. Joshi, M. N. Gajjar, R. A. Vaidya, A. B. Vaidya and D. S. Antarkar, “Conceptual and Methodologic Challenges of Assessing the Short-Term Efficacy of Guggulu in Obesity: Data Emergent from a Naturalistic Clinical Trial,” Journal of Postgraduate Medicine, Vol. 41, No. 1, 1995, pp. 5-7.
[25]	N. L. Urizar and D. D. Moore, “GUGULIPID: A Natural Cholesterol-Lowering Agent,” Annual Review of Nutrition, Vol. 23, 2003, pp. 303-313. doi:10.1146/annurev.nutr.23.011702.073102
[26]	P. K. Kasera, J. Prakash and D. D. Chawan, “Effects of Different Seed Sowing Methods on Seedling Emergence in Commiphora wightii, an Endangered Medicinal Plant,” Annals of Forestry, Vol. 10, No. 1, 2002, pp. 176-178.
[27]	G. N. Chaturvedi and R. H. Singh, “Experimental Studies on Anti-arthritic Effect of Certain Indigenous Drugs,” Indian Journal of Medical Research, Vol. 53, No. 1, 1965, pp. 71-80.
[28]	J. N. Sharma and J. N. Sharma, “Comparison of the Anti Inflammatory Activity of Commiphora mukul (an Indigenous Drug) with those of Phenylbutazone and Ibuprofen in Experimental Arthritis Induced by Mycobacterial Adjuvant,” Arzneimittel-Forschung, Vol. 27, No. 7, 1977, pp. 1455-1457.
[29]	K. B. Ishnava, Y. N. Mahida and J. S. S. Mohan, “In Vitro Assessments of Antibacterial Potential of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari Gum Extract,” Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy, Vol. 2, No. 7, 2010, pp. 91-96.
[30]	M. Gupta, S. N. Tripathi and D. Prasad, “Effect of Extract of Gum Guggulu on Estrogen Induced Hyerlipidaemia in Chicks,” Journal of Research in Indian Medicine, Vol. 9, No. 2, 1974, pp. 4-11.
[31]	I. Kimura, M. Yoshikawa, S. Kobayashi, Y. Sugihara, M. Suzuki, H. Oominami, T. Murakami, H. Matsuda and V. V. Doiphode, “New Triterpenes, Myrrhanol A and Myrrhanone A, from Guggul-Gum Resins, and their Potent Anti-Inflammatory Effect on Adjuvant-Induced Air-Pouch Granuloma of Mice,” Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry Letters, Vol. 11, No. 8, 2001, pp. 985-989. doi:10.1016/S0960-894X(01)00111-1
[32]	D. Xiao and S. V. Singh, “Z-Guggulsterone, a Constituent of Ayurvedic Medicnal Plant Commiphora mukul Inhibits Angiogenesis in Vitro and in Vivo,” Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, Vol. 7, No. 1, 2008, pp. 171-180. doi:10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-07-0491
[33]	R. K. Sinha and S. Sinha, “Ethnobiolgy (Role of Indigenous and Ethnic Societies in Biodiversity Conservation, Human Health Protection and Sustainable Development),” Surabhi Publications, Jaipur, 2001, p. 335.
[34]	D. M. Thappa and J. Dogra, “Nodulocystic Acne: Oral Gugulipid versus Tetracycline,” Journal of Dermatology, Vol. 21, No. 10, 1994, pp. 729-31.
[35]	R. Raghunathan and R. Mitra, “Pharmacognosy of Indigenous Drugs,” Vol. 1, The Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences, New Delhi, 1999, pp. 354-375.
[36]	P. O. Szapary, M. L. Wolfe, L. T. Bloedon, A J. Cucchiara, A H. DerMarderosian, M. D. Cirigliano and D. J. Rader, “Guggulipid for the Treatment of Hypercholesterolemia: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” The Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 290, No. 6, 2003, pp. 765-772. doi:10.1001/jama.290.6.765
[37]	A. Nohr, B. Rasmussenb and J. Straandc, “Resin from the Mukul Myrrh Tree, Guggul, Can It Be Used for Treating Hypercholestrolaemia? A Randomized Controlled Study,” Complementary Therapies in Medicine, Vol. 17, No. 1, 2009, pp. 16-22. doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2008.07.001
[38]	M. S. Bagul, H. Srinivasa, N. S. Kanaki and M. Rajani, “Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Two Ayurvedic Formulations Containing Guggul,” Indian Journal of Pharmacology, Vol. 37, No. 6, 2005, pp. 399-400. doi:10.4103/0253-7613.19080
[39]	V. N. Sumantran, A. A. Kulkarni, A. Harsulkar, A. Wele, S. J. Koppikar, R. Chandwaskar, V. Gaire, M. Dalvi and U. V. Wagh, “Hyaluronidase and Collagenase Inhibitory Activities of the Herbal Formulation Triphala Guggulu,” Journal of Biosciences, Vol. 32, No. 4, 2007, pp. 755-761. doi:10.1007/s12038-007-0075-3
[40]	A. T. Dutt, S. Ghosh and R. N. Chopra, “Chemical Investigation of Gum Resin from Blasmodendron mukul,” Indian Journal of Medical Research, Vol. 30, No. 2, 1942, pp. 331-334.
[41]	Anonymous, “The Wealth of India: A Dictionary of Indian Raw Materials and Industrial Products,” Vol. II CSIR, New Delhi, 1950, p. 427.
[42]	V. D. Patil, U. R. Nayak and Sukh Dev, “Chemistry of Ayurvedic Crude Drugs—I: Guggulu (Resin from Commiphora mukul)—1: Steroidal Constituents,” Tetrahedron, Vol. 28, No. 8, 1972, pp. 2341-2352. doi:10.1016/S0040-4020(01)93577-X
[43]	S. Bose and K. C. Gupta, “Structure of C. mukul -Part II. Structure of the Degraded Gum,” Indian Journal of Chemistry, Vol. 2, 1964, pp. 156-158.
[44]	M. O. Fatope, S. K. S. Al-Burtomani, J, Ochei, A. O. Abdulnur, M. Z. Al-Kindy and Y. Takeda, “Muscanone: A 3-O-(1'',8",14"-Trimet Hylhexadecanyl)Naringenin from Commiphora wightii,” Phytochemistry, Vol. 62, No. 8, 2003, pp. 1251-1255. doi:10.1016/S0031-9422(02)00686-6
[45]	V. D. Patil, U. R. Nayak and S. Dev, “Chemistry of Ayurvedic Crude Drugs—III: Guggulu (Resin from Commiphora mukul)-3 Long-Chain Aliphatic Tetrols, a New Class of Naturally Occurring Lipids,” Tetrahedron, Vol. 29, No. 11, 1973, pp. 1595-1598. doi:10.1016/S0040-4020(01)83402-5
[46]	K. K. Purushothaman and S. Chandrasekaran, “Guggulsterols from Commiphora wightii (Burseraceae),” Indian Journal of Chemistry, Vol. 14B, No. 10, 1976, pp. 802-804.
[47]	A. G. Bajaj and S. Dev, “Chemistry of Ayurvedic Crude Drugs,” Tetrahedron, Vol. 38, No. 14, 1982, pp. 2049-2054.
[48]	N. Verma, S. K. Singh and R. C. Gupta, “Simultaneous Determination of the Stereoisomers of Guggulsterome in Serum by High Performance Liquid Chromatography,” Journal of Chromatography, Vol. 708, No. 1-2, 1998, pp. 243-248.
[49]	A. Jain and V. B. Gupta, “Chemistry and Pharmacological Profile of Guggul-A Review,” Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, Vol. 5, No. 4, 2006, pp. 478-483.
[50]	B. Mesorb, M. R. Nesbitt and C. R. Pandey, “High Performance Liquid Chromatographic Method for Fingerprinting and Quantitative Determination of E- and Z-Guggulsterones in Commiphora wightii,” Journal of Chromatography, Vol. 720, No. 1-2, 1998, pp. 189-196.
[51]	UNDP, “Rajasthan Red Listed Medicinal Plants,” 2008, pp. 22-23. http://www.frlht.org
[52]	http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/31231/0
[53]	K. V. Billore, “Some Threatened Medicinal Plants of Rajasthan and Their Conservation,” The Indian Forester, Vol. 115, No. 8, 1989, pp. 595-599.
[54]	P. J. Parmar, “Loss of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari in Indian Desert,” Bulletin of Botanical Survey of India, Vol. 45, 2003, pp. 77-90.
[55]	J. R. Bhatt, M N. B. Nair and H. Y. Mohan Ram, “Enhancement of Oleo Gum Resin Production in Commiphora wightii by Improved Tapping Technique,” Current Science, Vol. 58, No. 7, 1989, pp. 349-357.
[56]	S. Kshetrapal and R. Sharma, “Studies on the Effect of Various Plant Extracts on the Sprouting Behaviour of the Cuttings of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari and C. agallocha Engl.,” Journal of Indian Botanical Society, Vol. 72, 1993, pp. 73-75.
[57]	S. Sriram and K. C. Dalal, “Studies on Floral Biology in Commiphora wightii,” Ninth Workshop of All India Coordinated Research Project on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (Tribal Data Book), 1991, pp. 393-397.
[58]	S. Kumar, S. S. Suri, K. C. Sonie and K. G. Ramawat, “Establishment of Embryonic Cultures and Somatic Embryogenesis in Callus Culture of Guggul-Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari,” Indian Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol. 4, No. 2003, pp. 69-77.
[59]	P. Gupta, K. R. Shivanna and H. Y. Mohan Ram, “Pollen-Pistil Interaction in a Non-Pseudogamous Apomict, Commiphora,” Annals of Botany, Vol. 81, No. 5, 1998, pp. 589-594. doi:10.1006/anbo.1998.0598
[60]	A. Kulhari, A. Sheorayan, S. Kalia, A. Chaudhury and R. K. Kalia, “Problems, Progress and Future Prospects of Improvement of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari, an Endangered Herbal Magic, through Modern Biotechnological Tools: A Review,” Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution, Vol. 59, No. 6, 2012, pp. 1223-1254. doi:10.1007/s10722-012-9854-2
[61]	P. K. Kasera, J. Prakash and J. K. Shukla, “Conservation of Commiphora wightii and Leptadaenia reticulata—Two Important Endangered Medicinal Plants of Indian Desert” In: B. R. Pandit, Ed., Emerging Areas in Plant Sciences, Department of Life Sciences, Bhavnagar University, Bhavnagar, 2001, pp. 36-40.
[62]	Sharma, G. P. and A. S. Raghubanshi, “Effect of Lantana camara L. Cover on Local Depletion of Tree Population in the Vindhyan Tropical Dry Deciduous Forest of India,” Applied Ecology and Environmental Research, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2007, pp. 109-121.
[63]	I. Haque, R. Bandopadhyay and K. Mukhopadhyay, “Intraspecific Variation in Commiphora wightii Populations Based on Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS-5.8 S-ITS2) Sequence of r-DNA,” Diversity, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2009, pp. 89-101.
[64]	N. K. Sinha, R. S. Mertia, B. K. Kandpal, R. N. Kumawat, P. Santra and D. Singh, “Morphological Characterization of Guggal (Commiphora wightii) Provenances from Extremely Arid Parts of India,” Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2012, pp. 63-69. doi:10.1080/14728028.2012.669579
[65]	S. Kumar, N. Jain and R. Nadgauda, “An Explant Dependent, High Frequency, Repetitive Somatic Embryogenesis and Plant Regeneration in Commiphora wightii,” Journal of Tropical Medicinal Plants, Vol. 10, No. 2, 2009, pp. 195-207.
[66]	“Education and Awareness in the Save Guggul Movement,” IUCN News. 31 July 2010. http://iucn.org/news_homepage/news_by_date/?5797/cecsave- guggul-movement
[67]	V. Soni, “Conservation of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari: An Endangered Medicinal Shrub, through Propagation and Planting, and Education Awareness Programs in the Aravaalli Hills of Rajasthan, India,” Conservation Evidence, Vol. 7, 2010, pp. 27-31.
[68]	K. C. Dalal, M. A. Patel, N. V. Upadhyay, D. H. Patel, R. B. Patel, B. V. Hirpara, C. Patel, P. B. Patel and R. Gupta, “Germplasm Collection and Therapeutic, Botanical, Agricultural, Chemical, and Clinical Aspects of the Endangered Indigenous Plant, Guggul Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari-a Status cum Review Report, In: Presentation of Tribal Data: Eighth Workshop of All India Coordinated Research Project on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants,” Faizabad, 1989, pp. 67-79.
[69]	P. K. Kasera and D. D. Chawan, “Cultivation and Evaluation of Medicinal Plants under Desert Conditions of North-West India,” Final Technical Progress Report, ISMH Project, J. N. Vyas University, Jodhpur, 2001, pp. 65.
[70]	I. I. Chaudhari, “Scope of Plant Introduction in Agriculture and Forestry of West Pakistan,” The Pakistan Journal of Forestry, Vol. 9, 1959, pp. 208-211.
[71]	H. Lal and P. K. Kasera, “Seed Germination Improvement in Commiphora wightii (Guggal) Through Potassium Nitrate Pre-treatment-a Critically Endangered Plant from the Indian Desert,” International Journal of Plant Science, Vol. 3, No. 8, 2012, pp. 174-180.
[72]	R. R. Shah, D. B. Patel, D. H. Patel and K. C. Dalal, “Hormonal Effect on Germination of Guggal Cuttings,” Indian Drugs, Vol. 20, No. 11, 1983, pp. 435-437.
[73]	P. Singh, M. L. Sharma and S. Mukherjee, “Effect of Indole Butyric Acid on Sprouting in Plant Cuttings in Commiphora wightii (Arnott) Bhandari,” Indian Drugs, Vol. 26, 1989, pp. 515-516.
[74]	R. S. Mertia and M. Nagarajan, “Successful Rooting in Cuttings of Commiphora wightii (Arnott) Bhandari,” Annals of Arid Zone, Vol. 39, No. 1, 2000, pp. 87-88.
[75]	J. Prakash, P. K. Kasera and D. D. Chawan, “Multiplication of Commiphora wightii through an Air-Layering Technique in Indian Desert,” Science and Culture, Vol. 67, No. 1-2, 2001, pp. 65-67.
[76]	C. V. S. Gunnatilleke and I. A. U. N. Gunnatilleke, “Phytosociology of Sinharaja—A Contribution to Rain Forest Conservation in Sri Lanka,” Biological Conservation, Vol. 31, No. 1, 1985, pp. 21-40. doi:10.1016/0006-3207(85)90032-1
[77]	B. I. Kalpesh and J. S. S. Mohan, “Intraspecific Isozyme Variation in Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari: A Traditional Hypocholestrolaemic Medicinal Shrub from Gujarat, India,” Journal of Herb, Spices and Medicinal Plants, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2008, pp. 25-40. doi:10.1300/J044v13n02_03
[78]	I. Haque, R. Bandopadhyay and K. Mukhopadhyay, “Population Structure of the Endangered and Endemic Medicinal Plant Commiphora wightii,” Molecular Biology Reporter, Vol. 37, No. 2, 2009, pp. 847-854.
[79]	S. Samantaray, K. A. Geetha, K. P. Hidayath and S. Maiti, “Identification of RAPD Markers Linked to Sex Determination in Guggal [Commiphora wightii (Arnott.)] Bhandari,” Plant Biotechnology Reports, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2010, pp. 95-99. doi:10.1007/s11816-009-0113-8
[80]	V. Soni, “Efficacy of in Vitro Tissue Culture versus Stem Cuttings for Propagation of Commiphora wightii in Rajasthan, India,” Conservation Evidence, Vol. 7, 2010, pp. 91-93.
[81]	A. Yusuf, T. S. Rathore and N. S. Shekhawat, “Micropropagation of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari-a Threatened Medicinal Plant of Semi-Arid Region,” Indian Journal of Plant Genetics Research, Vol. 12, No. 3, 1999, pp. 371-375.
[82]	T. Kant, S. Prajapati and A. K. Parmar, “Efficient Micropropagation from Cotyledonary Node Cultures of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari, an Endangered Medicinally Important Desert Plant,” Journal of Plant Development, Vol. 17, No. 1, 2010, pp. 37-48.
[83]	N. Singh, A. Garg, K. Yadav and S. Kumari, “Influence of Growth Regulators on the Explants of Commiphora mukul (Hook ex Stocks) Engl. Under in Vitro Conditions,” Researcher, Vol. 2, No. 7, 2010, pp.41-48.
[84]	A. K. Parmar and T. Kant, “Efficient Micropropagation and Evaluation of Genetic Fidelity of in Vitro Raised Plants of commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari—A Medicinally Important red Listed Species of Arid Regions,” Journal of Plant Development, Vol. 19, No. 1, 2012, pp. 29-40.
[85]	A. Jain, G. R. Rout and S. N. Raina, “Somatic Embryogenesis and Plant Regeneration from Callus Culture of Phlox paniculata Linn.,” Scientia Hoticulturae, Vol. 94, No. 1-2, 2002, pp. 137-143. doi:10.1016/S0304-4238(01)00369-7
[86]	S. Kumar, M. Mathur, A. K. Jain and K. G. Ramawat, “Somatic Embryo Proliferation in Commiphora wightii and Evidence for Guggulsterone Production in Culture,” Indian Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 5, No. 2, 2006, pp. 217-222.
[87]	M. Mathur, A. K. Jain, S. S. Dass and K. G. Ramawat, “Guggulsterone Production in Cell Suspension Culture in Commiphora wightii Grown in Shake Flask and Bioreactors,” Biotechnology Letters, Vol. 29, No. 6, 2007, pp. 979-982. doi:10.1007/s10529-007-9342-5
[88]	S. S. Suri and K. G. Ramawat, “Effect of Calotropis Latex on Laticifers Differentiation of Calotropis procera,” Biologia Plantarum, Vol. 38, No. 2, 1996, pp. 185-190. doi:10.1007/BF02873844
[89]	S. Kumar, S. S. Suri, K. C. Sonie and K. G. Ramawat, “Development of Resin Canals during Somatic Embryogenesis in Callus Cultures of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari,” Indian Journal of Biotechology, Vol. 3, No. 2, 2004, pp. 267-270.
[90]	M. Mathur, A. K. Jain, S. S. Dass and K. G. Ramawat, “Optimization of Guggulsterone Production in Callus Culture of Commiphora wightii (Arn.) Bhandari,” Indian Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 6, No. 4, 2007, pp. 525-531.
[91]	Y. S. Tanwar, M. Mathur and K. G. Ramawat, “Morphactin Influence Guggulsterone Production in Callus Culture of Commiphora Wightii,” Plant Growth Regulators, Vol. 51, No. 1, 2007, pp. 93-98. doi:10.1007/s10725-006-9151-1
[92]	S. Suthar, S. Thul, A. K. Kukreja and K. G. Ramawat, “RAPD Markers Reveal Polymorphism in Commiphora wightii, an Endangered Medicinal Tree,” Journal of Tissue Culture Research, Vol. 8, No. 2, 2008, pp. 1477- 1480.
[93]	S. S. Dass and K. G. Ramawat, “Elicitation of Guggulsterone Production in Cell Cultures of Commiphora wightii by Plant Gums,” Plant Cell Tissue and Organ Culture, Vol. 96, No. 3, 2009, pp. 349-353. doi:10.1007/s11240-008-9493-7
[94]	S. S. Dass and K. G. Ramawat, “Calcium Deprivation Greatly Enhances Guggulsterone Accumulation in Cell Cultures of Commiphora wightii,” Current Science, Vol. 96, No. 2009, pp. 1022-1024.
[95]	S. S. Dass Y. S. Tanwar and K. G. Ramawat, “Commiphora wightii Callus Cultures—A New Source of Anthocyanin,” Journal of Herb and Medicinal Toxicology, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2008, pp.17-20.
[96]	S. Shisodia, B. Kuzhuvelil, D. S. Harikumar, K. G. Ramawat and B. B. Agarwal, “The Guggul for chronic Diseases: Ancient Medicine, Modern Targets,” Anticancer Research, Vol. 2, No. 6A, 2008, pp. 3647-3664.