International Journal of Pharmacognosy and Chinese Medicine ISSN: 2576-4772 Decoding Epigenetic Mechanisms as Vital Tools for Maintaining Pharmacological Potency of Herbal Medicines Int J Pharmacogn Chinese Med Decoding Epigenetic Mechanisms as Vital Tools for Maintaining Pharmacological Potency of Herbal Medicines Kimatu JN* Department of Life Sciences, South Eastern Kenya University, Kenya *Corresponding author: Josphert N Kimatu, Department of Life Sciences, South Eastern Kenya University Kenya, Email: jkimatu@seku.ac.ke Abstract Studies have confirmed that heritable phenotypic variation in plants does not necessarily need to be based on the DNA sequence. Epigenetic studies have shown that the genomic DNA sequence might remain the same while gene expression changed by environmental conditions. This results in different morphologies and divers’ chemical products from same species of a plant. Thus, in this paper we highlight that the herbal medicine industry should always be considering the habitat of a plant and its growing conditions as it does affect the pharmacological potency of the metabolites produced. The various aspects studied in this paper show that there is a need of optimizing the production sites of herbal medicinal plants because ecological factors influence epigenetic gene expression changes. This eventually affects the quality, quantity and efficacy of the secondary metabolites or drugs synthesized by the plants. Traditional herbalists have learnt this phenomenon by experience. Therefore, the value and exploitation of herbal medicine for modern human maladies shall greatly benefit by understanding the ecological influence of epigenetic mechanisms on medicinal potency. Keywords: Metabolites; Plant Ecology; Chinese Medicine; Drugs; Metabolism; Climate Change Introduction Epigenetic regulations of the genome involve different chemical modifications at the molecular level that cause changes in gene expressions. These changes in gene expression can be inherited so as to ensure the survival of the species in future. Studies by Douma, et al. [1] showed that plants have strategies which enable them to mitigate short-term negative impacts in the environment without compromising future fitness. There are several known types of epigenetic mechanisms that organisms use to regulate gene expression in relation to the environment. These include cytosine DNA methylation, histone modification chromatin folding and RNA interference [2]. Broadly speaking, these mechanisms are being utilized by plants for defense against pathogens and for survival in case of other biotic and abiotic stresses. Some of the metabolites produced by plants under divers’ conditions have been utilized by the herbal industry for treating many illnesses. Although there are studies on biotic interactions and their links to epigenetic and phenotypic variation, there is little study on the relationship between the environment and variations in the biochemical products produced due to epigenetic polymorphisms in plants [3]. This review focuses on this dimension and relates it to the quality and potency of the products in herbal medicine. Ecologist and molecular biologists have showed the effects Review Article Volume 3 Issue 4 Received Date: October 03, 2019 Published Date: October 22, 2019 DOI: 10.23880/ipcm-16000184