The UFA (Universal Film Studios) Fabrik in the German city of Berlin is a unique experiment in urban living. The former film studio is now home to a comm

A dedicated group of botanists, ayurvedic practitioners and pharmacologists are showing rural Keralites that all the medicines they need, grow in their own backyards

To most Indians, turmeric or haldi is a part of growing up, a magic cure-all for the excesses of childhood. A classic "grandmother's remedy", the virulent yellow powder or paste has been applied to the scrapes and cuts of generations of children. But in the US, two scientists were granted a patent to use this plant extract in its powder form for healing wounds. The scientists claimed they were the first to use turmeric (Curcuma longa) for this purpose.

NGOs all over southern India are helping to revive the system of local medicinal plants and herbs, holding out the promise of not just cheaper and more effective healthcare for villagers, but also commercial profits

Bhargava adds: "Unfortunately, neem is not the only case where we have lost out. We (at the CCMB) discovered a protein called seminal plasmin (published in Nature and widely publicised in the late

Director, Malaria Research Centre, Delhi

21.8.85 USP 4531114 Terumo Corporation, Japan: HOT WATER EXTRACTS OF THE NEEMBARK, active against mouse L-5178Y cells and transplanted sarcoma 180 tumours; use: anti-cancer properties

Director, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad