What is it about?
Abstract: There is a growing trend of herbal medicines in India as well as other parts of the world. The use of herbal medicines alone or alongside prescription drugs for disease management is quite common now. We hereby carry out a review of dominant species of Selinum mainly S. vaginatum C.B. Clarke and S. wallichianum (DC.) Raizada & H.O. Saxena which are potent source of herbal medicine and whose potential is still not exploited. They are found in Northern Himalayas in the states of Kash-mir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand in India, and also distributed in adjoining countries like China, Nepal, and West Pakistan. It is a perennial, primitive, high altitude, therapeutic herbal plant belonging to family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) traditionally used for various diseases like epilepsy, seizures, and hysteria, etc. The aim of this review was to provide a summary on botanical characterization, tradition-al uses, phytochemistry and pharmacological activity of Selinum spp. The available information will be further tapped for commercial use of this plant without endangering its status. Based on the available evidence on the species pharmacology and chemistry, we highlight in which their therapeutic potential can be properly harnessed for possible integration into the country’s healthcare system and be further passed on globally.
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Why is it important?
Many medicinally active species of Selinum are available all over the world. Phytochemicals from these species are being characterized and tested for their biological activities and these may be beneficially used for the treatment of dif-ferent types of ailments. These plants can be a potential source of many antibacterial, anti-fungal, insecticidal, anti-oxidant, anti- repellent, anti-cancerous, anti-feeding, anti-inflammatory and anti-plasmodial compounds, etc. This re-view article summarizes botany, pharmacological, pharmacognostic and pharmaceutical properties of natural compounds in Selinum spp. found in India and their uses. It also highlights the importance of this plant in Indian medici-nal system for exploitation as a potent drug and the current status of Selinum spp. with a comprehensive summary of various natural compounds, uses and recent findings of re-search into its processing, phytochemistry and pharmacolo-gy. T
Perspectives
There is a need for bioassay-guided identification to pinpoint bioactive com-pounds. Furthermore, there is also a need for more advanced research on their chemistry and pharmacological properties both in vivo and in vitro. Additionally, further investigation is needed to provide more effective and persuasive evidence for other traditional uses of this species in the treatment of various kinds of diseases and ailments such as dysentery, diarrhea and irregular menstruation etc. The data available thus far, together with phytochemistry and pharmacology potential of this plant, brings to light the therapeutic potential of Selinum spp., which can be used as an alternative medi-cine for some of the important ailments affecting humans. There is very little reported on the pharmacological activity correlated or assigned to a particular chemical component. It needs to be mentioned here that no clinical trials have been conducted so far and hence no dose administration has been determined. At the same time, no toxicity or related adverse effects have been reported till date. The present review gives only a preliminary insight into the uses and pharmacological activities of Selinum spp. in India, and while such activities can support the therapeutic potential of this plant, clinical trials are a must to establish the same.
Ravi Srivastava
University of Lucknow
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This page is a summary of: Status of Selinum spp. L. a Himalayan Medicinal Plant in India: A Review of Its Pharmacology, Phytochemistry and Traditional Uses, Current Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, January 2019, Bentham Science Publishers,
DOI: 10.2174/1389201020666181227150829.
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