BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES IN MEDICINAL PLANTS DUE TO EXPOSURE TO PESTICIDES

Abstract

Pesticides are essential for agricultural pest management and crop protection, but their use often results in unanticipated biochemical changes in medicinal plants that could jeopardise their safety and effectiveness. This study outlines the current understanding of the biochemical alterations caused by pesticide exposure in medicinal plants, with a focus on alterations in primary and secondary metabolites, oxidative stress responses, and detoxification systems.
Pesticides that can interfere with plant metabolism and significantly change the production of bioactive compounds include insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides. Changes in primary metabolites, such as proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates, may have an effect on the growth and development of plants. More significantly, both quantitative and qualitative alterations are often observed in the secondary metabolites—alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolics, terpenoids, and glycosides—that confer medicinal properties to plants. According to some study, pesticide-induced toxicity may result in a drop in some secondary metabolites, whereas defensive responses may cause them to rise.
Pesticide exposure induces oxidative stress in plants, leading to an excess of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In order to fight oxidative damage, medicinal plants activate antioxidant defence mechanisms, which include enzymatic (superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidase) and non-enzymatic (ascorbic acid, glutathione, phenolic substances) antioxidants. The degree of oxidative stress and the efficiency of the antioxidant response are influenced by the type, concentration, and duration of pesticide exposure.
Additionally, pesticides affect the detoxification processes of plants, particularly the cytochrome P450 monooxygenases, glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), and ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters, which degrade and eliminate toxic chemicals. These biochemical alterations may raise or lower a plant's therapeutic value, depending on how detoxification and metabolic disruption are managed.
Since changing phytochemical profiles may impact therapeutic efficacy, potency, and safety, these alterations have important ramifications for herbal therapy. Furthermore, users of therapeutic plants may be at risk for health problems due to pesticide residues. In order to ensure that medicinal plants continue to provide therapeutic benefits while posing the fewest risks to human health, this study emphasises the need for sustainable agricultural practices, strict pesticide regulations, and additional research to evaluate the long-term biochemical effects on medicinal plants.