AIAPGET Ayurveda Dravyaguna Vijnana Syllabus

How many Rasas (tastes) are there and name them in order of strength of perception?

Six (Shadrasa): Madhura (sweet), Amla (sour), Lavana (salty), Katu (pungent), Tikta (bitter), Kashaya (astringent).

What are the three types of Vipaka (post-digestive taste) and which rasas yield them?

Madhura vipaka (from Madhura & Lavana rasa), Amla vipaka (from Amla rasa), Katu vipaka (from Katu, Tikta & Kashaya rasa).

What are the two main types of Virya and the eight-fold (Ashtavidha) Virya concept?

Two-fold: Shita (cold) and Ushna (hot). Ashtavidha Virya: Shita, Ushna, Snigdha, Ruksha, Guru, Laghu, Mridu, Tikshna.

Define 'Prabhava' in Dravyaguna with the classic example.

Prabhava is the specific, inexplicable action of a drug that occurs despite identical Rasa, Vipaka, and Virya. Example: Danti and Chitraka have similar properties but only Danti acts as a purgative (virechana).

What is 'Anukta Dravya Vijnana' and why is it important?

It is the knowledge to determine the properties (rasa-guna-virya-vipaka) of drugs not mentioned in classical texts, by applying inference from taste and observed effects — important for identifying new/unlisted drugs.

What is the role of 'Karma' classification (e.g., Deepana, Pachana) in dravya study?

Drugs are grouped by therapeutic action — e.g., Deepana (appetizer), Pachana (digestive), Anulomana, Sramsana, Bhedana, Rechana (purgatives of increasing strength) — guiding clinical selection.

Differentiate Deepana and Pachana.

Deepana kindles agni (digestive fire) without necessarily digesting ama; Pachana digests ama/undigested matter without necessarily stimulating agni. Example: Mishreya is Deepana, Nagakeshara is Pachana.

What is 'Namarupa Jnana' in the context of plant identification?

Namarupa Jnana is the correct knowledge of a drug's name (nama) and morphological form (rupa) — the foundation of authentic identification of medicinal plants.

What are the classical sources/methods used for identification of plants in Ayurveda?

Aptopadesha (authoritative texts/experts), Pratyaksha (direct observation of morphology), Anumana (inference), and use of synonyms (paryaya), regional/folk names, and Nighantus (Ayurvedic lexicons).

What is a 'Nighantu' and name two important Ayurvedic Nighantus.

A Nighantu is an Ayurvedic glossary/lexicon of drugs with synonyms and properties. Examples: Bhavaprakasha Nighantu and Dhanvantari Nighantu (also Raja Nighantu, Madanapala Nighantu).

What is 'Pharmacognosy' and how does it relate to drug authentication?

Pharmacognosy is the study of crude drugs of natural origin; it provides scientific methods (morphological, microscopic, chemical) to identify, authenticate, and ensure quality of Ayurvedic raw drugs.

List the four main parameters used in pharmacognostic authentication of a crude drug.

Morphological (organoleptic) evaluation, Microscopic evaluation, Physical (physico-chemical) evaluation, and Chemical evaluation.

What does organoleptic (morphological) evaluation of a crude drug assess?

Evaluation using sense organs — color, odor, taste, size, shape, texture, and fracture of the drug for preliminary identification.

Define 'macroscopy' and 'microscopy' in crude drug evaluation.

Macroscopy is examination of morphological/organoleptic characters with the naked eye; microscopy is the study of histological/cellular characters of powdered or sectioned drug under a microscope.

What are commonly determined physico-chemical constants for crude drug standardization?

Ash value (total, acid-insoluble, water-soluble), extractive values (water-soluble, alcohol-soluble), moisture content (loss on drying), foreign matter, and volatile oil content.

What does 'acid-insoluble ash' indicate in crude drug analysis?

It indicates the amount of silica (sand/earthy matter) present, reflecting contamination with soil/inorganic impurities.

What is 'extractive value' and what does it indicate?

Extractive value is the amount of drug constituents soluble in a given solvent (water/alcohol). It indicates the quantity and nature of active constituents and helps detect adulteration/exhausted drugs.

Define 'adulteration' of crude drugs and name its main types.

Adulteration is substituting or admixing the genuine drug with inferior, spurious, or exhausted material. Types: substitution with substandard/superficially similar drugs, artificially manufactured substitutes, exhausted drugs, addition of harmful adulterants.

What is the difference between 'substitution (Pratinidhi dravya)' and 'adulteration'?

Substitution (Abhava pratinidhi dravya) is the intentional, therapeutically justified replacement of an unavailable drug with a similar-acting one; adulteration is fraudulent/accidental debasement that lowers quality.

Give a classical example of an accepted Pratinidhi (substitute) dravya pair.

For Ativisha, Musta is used as substitute; for Nagakeshara, Padmakeshara; for Pushkaramula, Kushtha — accepted substitutes with similar properties.

What are 'fluorescence analysis' and 'chromatography' used for in standardization?

Fluorescence analysis observes characteristic colors of drug powder under UV light for identification; chromatography (TLC, HPLC, HPTLC) separates and identifies/quantifies chemical constituents for fingerprinting and authentication.

Define 'Phytochemistry'.

Phytochemistry is the branch of science dealing with the study of chemical constituents (phytoconstituents) derived from plants — their structure, biosynthesis, isolation, and biological function.

What is the difference between primary and secondary metabolites in plants?

Primary metabolites (carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids) are essential for basic plant life processes; secondary metabolites (alkaloids, glycosides, tannins, etc.) are not essential for survival but have ecological roles and most pharmacological activity.

Name the major classes of secondary plant metabolites of pharmacological importance.

Alkaloids, Glycosides, Flavonoids, Tannins, Saponins, Terpenoids, Volatile (essential) oils, Resins, and Steroids.

What are alkaloids and give two examples with their source plants.

Alkaloids are nitrogen-containing basic plant compounds, usually with marked physiological activity. Examples: Reserpine (Rauwolfia serpentina/Sarpagandha), Morphine (Papaver somniferum).

What are glycosides and what are their two structural components?

Glycosides are compounds yielding one or more sugars on hydrolysis. They consist of a sugar part (glycone) and a non-sugar part (aglycone/genin), linked by a glycosidic bond.

Name the main types of glycosides based on their aglycone, with one example each.

Cardiac glycosides (Digitalis), Anthraquinone glycosides (Senna/Cassia), Saponin glycosides (Shatavari), Cyanogenetic glycosides (bitter almond), Flavonoid glycosides (rutin), Bitter/iridoid glycosides (Kalmegh).

What are tannins, their basic taste/property, and a key chemical test?

Tannins are polyphenolic, astringent compounds that precipitate proteins (used in tanning). Test: with ferric chloride they give blue-black (gallotannins) or green-black (condensed tannins) color.

What are volatile (essential) oils and how do they differ from fixed oils?

Volatile oils are odorous, volatile terpenoid mixtures that evaporate without residue and leave no permanent grease stain; fixed oils are non-volatile glycerides (esters of fatty acids) that leave a permanent oily stain.

Name the common chemical tests/reagents used to detect alkaloids.

Mayer's reagent (cream precipitate), Dragendorff's reagent (orange-brown), Wagner's reagent (reddish-brown), and Hager's reagent (yellow precipitate).

What is the correlation between Rasa (Ayurvedic taste) and phytochemical constituents, with an example?

Specific tastes broadly correspond to constituent groups — e.g., Tikta (bitter) rasa often corresponds to alkaloids/glycosides, Kashaya (astringent) to tannins, Madhura (sweet) to carbohydrates/sugars, Amla (sour) to organic acids — linking classical and modern pharmacology.