The Role of Medicinal Plants and Molecular Approaches in Enhancing Herbal Medicine Research and Biodiversity Conservation

Medicinal plants have been integral to traditional health systems worldwide, offering essential therapeutic agents and contributing significantly to modern pharmaceutical development. This review explores the growing global demand for herbal medicines, the industrial uses of medicinal plants, and concerns surrounding their sustainable utilization. It discusses the complexity of medicinal plant identification, challenges in trade standardization, and the evolution of taxonomy from traditional morphological methods to advanced molecular techniques. The emergence of DNA barcoding has revolutionized species authentication, enabling accurate, efficient, and consistent identification, thereby supporting ecological, evolutionary, and conservation research. By integrating phylogenetic analyses and functional trait studies, DNA barcoding provides deeper insights into species assembly and environmental interactions. This review emphasizes the necessity for sustainable management practices, robust authentication systems, and continued research to safeguard medicinal plant diversity while meeting increasing industrial and ecological demands.