Prof. Dr. Esra Küpeli is a Professor of Pharmacognosy at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Gazi University, Turkey. She received her B.Sc. in Pharmacy and Ph.D. in Pharmacognosy from Gazi University. Her academic career is distinguished by extensive experience in natural product research, drug discovery, and pharmacological evaluation of medicinal plants.   She has made significant contributions to scientific publishing through her service on editorial boards and as a peer reviewer for numerous international journals, including Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Molecules, Current Neuropharmacology, Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Her editorial expertise covers manuscript evaluation, reviewer coordination, and decision-making across multidisciplinary fields related to pharmacognosy and natural products.   Prof. Küpeli has supervised 58 funded research projects and 15 graduate theses, and has authored more than 300 SCI-indexed publications, along with national journal articles and international book chapters. She is an active member of the Society for Medicinal Plant and Natural Product Research (GA) and the Phytochemical Society of Europe (PSE).   Her scientific achievements have been recognized by several prestigious awards, including TÜBİTAK scholarships, the Gazi University Honor Award, the Scientific Encouragement Award, and the Science Award from the Pharmacy Academy of the Association of Turkish Pharmacists. Her research integrates pharmacognosy, phytochemistry, and pharmacology, with a particular focus on bioassay-guided isolation of natural products, wound healing, anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities, neuropharmacology, gynecological and metabolic disorders, and anticancer drug discovery.

Neuroactive Phytochemicals in Mood and Sleep Disorders: Translational Insights into Antidepressant, Anxiolytic, Sedative and Hypnotic Mechanisms Mood and sleep disorders constitute a major and escalating global health burden, while current pharmacotherapies remain limited by delayed therapeutic onset, partial response rates, tolerance, and adverse effect profiles. In this context, medicinal plants and their secondary metabolites have gained renewed scientific attention as multi-target neuroactive agents with potential advantages in safety, tolerability, and mechanistic breadth. This lecture will present an integrative and translational overview of the antidepressant, anxiolytic, sedative, and hypnotic properties of medicinal plants, linking ethnopharmacological knowledge with contemporary neurobiological evidence. Emphasis will be placed on major classes of phytochemicals—including alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids, phenolic compounds, and saponins—and their interaction with central nervous system targets. Mechanistic pathways to be discussed include modulation of monoaminergic neurotransmission (serotonergic, noradrenergic, dopaminergic systems), GABA_A receptor facilitation, glutamatergic regulation, HPA axis normalization, anti-neuroinflammatory activity, antioxidant effects, mitochondrial support, and upregulation of neurotrophic factors such as BDNF. Particular attention will be given to the concept of phytochemical multitarget synergy and its implications for network pharmacology in complex psychiatric disorders. Preclinical data and selected clinical findings will be critically evaluated to address efficacy, safety, standardization, bioavailability, and herb–drug interaction considerations. Furthermore, the translational challenges of moving from traditional use and experimental models to evidence-based clinical application will be examined. By integrating traditional medicinal knowledge with molecular neuroscience and clinical psychopharmacology, this presentation aims to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding the therapeutic potential of plant-derived metabolites in mood and sleep disorders, while outlining strategic directions for future phytopharmacological research and novel drug discovery.  Keywords: Medicinal plants; Phytochemicals; Antidepressant activity; Anxiolytic effects; Neuropharmacology; Translational phytotherapy.