Oxidative stress, driven by reactive oxygen, nitrogen, and sulphur species (ROS, RNS, RSS), poses a significant threat to cellular integrity and human health. Generated during mitochondrial respiration, inflammation, UV exposure and pollution, these species damage cells and contribute to pathologies like cardiovascular issues, neurodegeneration, cancer, and metabolic syndromes. Lifestyle factors exert a substantial influence on oxidative stress levels, with mitochondria emerging as pivotal players in ROS generation and cellular equilibrium. Phytochemicals, abundant in plants, such as carotenoids, ascorbic acid, tocopherols and polyphenols, offer diverse antioxidant mechanisms. They scavenge free radicals, chelate metal ions, and modulate cellular signalling pathways to mitigate oxidative damage. Furthermore, plants thriving in high-altitude regions are adapted to extreme conditions, and synthesize secondary metabolites, like flavonoids and phenolic compounds in bulk quantities, which act to form a robust antioxidant defence against oxidative stress, including UV radiation and temperature fluctuations. These plants are promising sources for drug development, offering innovative strategies by which to manage oxidative stress-related ailments and enhance human health. Understanding and harnessing the antioxidant potential of phytochemicals from high-altitude plants represent crucial steps in combating oxidative stress-induced disorders and promoting overall wellbeing. This study offers a comprehensive summary of the production and physio-pathological aspects of lifestyle-induced oxidative stress disorders and explores the potential of phytochemicals as promising antioxidants. Additionally, it presents an appraisal of high-altitude medicinal plants as significant sources of antioxidants, highlighting their potential for drug development and the creation of innovative antioxidant therapeutic approaches.

The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is the center of the diverse food culture comprising fermented and non-fermented ethnic foods and alcoholic beverages. Diverse tribal communities in IHR (Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Laddakh, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, and Tripura) have been long known for their rich culture and food habits. Having strong ritual importance among the ethnic people of the IHR, alcoholic beverages are being consumed in various cultural, social, and religious events for ages. Consumption of in-house prepared alcoholic beverage is the socio-cultural tradition in India as well as across the globe. The processes and ingredients involved in alcoholic beverage preparations vary with raw material availability in different regions. The majority of the fermented drinks are cereal-based with a significant proportion of various plants and fruits as the main raw material, making a beverage more unique in taste. Some plant ingredients used for traditional alcoholic beverages have potential nutraceutical as well as therapeutic properties that are well documented. These properties could constitute an additional economic value for traditional alcoholic beverages commercialization, which, in turn, could promote the local rural economy. Until now, such beverages have only received marginal attention by ethnobotanists and few studies concern traditional fermented beverages in the IHR. In this view, the current review focused on preparation, diversity, cultural, and economic significance and health benefits of ethnic beverages used by tribal communities in the IHR.

Paris polyphylla Smith (family: Melanthiaceae), a high-value medicinal herb endemic to the Himalayan region, has drawn much attention recently due to its immense use in the traditional healthcare system since ancient times. In the present review, an extensive database on P. polyphylla was systematically searched from databases such as Medline/PubMed, Scopus, the Web of Science, and the online service E-library.ru and SCImago (https://www.scimagojr.com/). Information on species, ecology, distribution, trade, ethnopharmacology, pharmacology, biotechnology, and molecular biology was gathered from 1979 to 2023 using 116 research publications. Major steroidal saponins such as Paris saponin I, V, VI, VII, and H have been found substantially effective in anticancer activity, abnormal uterine bleeding, dysfunctional uterine bleeding, and menorrhagia. Traditional breeding and propagation techniques cannot keep up with the worlds growing demand for herbal drugs. Therefore, it is critically necessary to take conservation measures and develop novel techniques for growing and cultivating this economically significant and highly valuable therapeutic herb. The advanced biotechnological approaches like micropropagation and genetic analysis introduced long back are either rare or lacking in the case of P. polyphylla. It contains a wealth of information that will serve as a baseline data source for various stakeholders, researchers working on various research aspects, and policymakers to define appropriate utilization and conservation plans for a high-value commercial medicinal plant called P. polyphylla. The review provides an updated overview and critical assessment of secondary data regarding the past and recent applications and interventions of P. polyphylla.

Paris polyphylla Smith (Melanthiaceae) family, which is native to the Himalayan region, has received a lot of attention recently due to its extensive history of usage in traditional medicine. The production of steroidal saponin from callus suspension cultures of P. polyphylla was observed in the current study. The current study attempted to develop a P. polyphylla plant callus suspension culture through optimization of cultivation technique for callus suspension, quantification of total phenolic components and estimation of the extract’s antioxidant activity. A light-yellow callus was formed within six weeks of cultivating rhizomes on Murashige and Skoog (MS) media supplemented with Thidiazuron (TDZ). Furthermore, the effect of TDZ, Methyl Jasmonate (MeJA), and Yeast Extract (YE) on callus growth, steroidal saponin (dioscin and diosgenin), total phenolic content, total flavonoids, total tannin, and total antioxidant activity was also measured. The medium containing 0.5 μM TDZ depicted the maximum callus biomass (2.98 g fresh weight). Significantly high phenolic and tannin content was observed in the MS medium containing 50 μM MeJA, whereas, no significant increase was observed in total tannin production in any treatment. Three in vitro assays, DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl), ABTS (2,2′-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline- 6-sulfonic acid)) and FRAP (ferric ion reducing antioxidant potential) and FC (Folin-Ciocalteu), were used to assess antioxidant potential of callus. Maximum antioxidant analysis reported in 1.0 μM TDZ (6.89 mM AAE/100 g) containing medium followed by 50 μM MeJA (6.44 mM AAE/100 g). The HPLC analysis showed a high presence of dioscin and diosgenin (5.43% and 21.09%, respectively) compared to the wild sample (2.56% and 15.05%, respectively). According to the results, callus produced on media supplemented with 50 μM MeJA have significant phenolic contents and elevated antioxidant activity; nevertheless, callus growth was greater in the presence of 0.5 μM TDZ. The findings of the current study have commercial implications since greater biomass production will result in active phytochemicals that the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical sectors are in need desperately.