International Journal of Research in Biological Sciences

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1 Available online at International Journal of Research in Biological Sciences Universal Research Publications. All rights reserved ISSN Original Article MEDICINAL PLANTS USED IN UNANI SYSTEM OF MEDICINE FOR VARIOUS DISORDERS TEHSIL JOGINDER NAGAR (H.P) NEELAM KUMAR Centre of Excellence in Dravyaguna and Medicinal Plants Research Institute in Indian System of Medicine, Joginder Nagar, District Mandi (H.P) Received 29 March 2014; accepted 04 May 2014 Abstract Plants have been used by the local people of India since time immemorial to cure various disorders. The present study aimed to explore and document the medicinal important plants from the tehsil Joginder Nagar, District Mandi of Himachal Pradesh, used in Unani System of Medicine in curing various disorders. The study has been carried out in different areas of tehsil Joginder Nagar during April 2012 to March 2013, because it is repository of medicinal important floral diversity due to suitable environmental conditions. Maximum rural and some urban populations are dependent for their health care on Unani system of Medicine due to low cost and safe health care solution. The present study records 65 plant species of 63 genus and 47 families belonging to two distinct taxonomic groups i.e. angiosperms and gymnosperms. All plants collected during study period have been used to cure various disorders and are provided along with their Botanical name, Family name, Local name, Unani Name. A checklist has been prepared after comparing with the existing literature of Unani System of Medicine and especially with the list of medicinal plant used in Unani System of Medicine for various diorders: tonic for stomach and intestine, antipyretic, emetic, affecting the function of liver, aphrodisiac, delay ejaculation, increase the viscosity of seminal fluid and diuretic, given in Hamdard Pharmacopoeia of Eastern Medicine Universal Research Publications. All rights reserved Keywords: Medicinal plant, Indian System of Medicine, Aphrodisiac, Emetic and Antipyretic. 1. Introduction Plants are one of the most important sources of medicines. In India, about plant based formulations are used in traditional medicines and about 20,000 medicinal plants have been recorded but only plants are used by the traditional practitioners for curing various disorders (Pandey, 2013). India has six recognized systems of medicine i.e. Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Yoga, Naturopathy and Homoeopathy. Plants are also used in the number of modern medicines (Ravishankar & Shukla, 2007). The Unani system of medicine originated in Greece and believed to have been established by Hippocrates ( BC). Hippocrates is known as the father of this system of medicine. This system of medicine has been introduced by the Arabs in India. India has rich wealth of important medicinal flora due to variable climatic conditions. Unani system of medicine is practiced in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Srilanka. According to the principles of Unani medicine, disease is a natural process and its symptoms are the reactions of the body to the disease. Unani medicine is based on the Humoral Theory. Disease occurs whenever the balance of humors is disturbed. In Unani medicine, single drugs or their combinations in raw forms are preferred over compound formulations. (Anonymous, 1998; Ravishankar & Shukla, 2007). Himachal Pradesh spreads over areas of Sq Kms in the lap of Western Himalaya region between 30 22' N to 33 12' N and 75 45' E to 79 04' E, having a variety of medicinal plants in wild states due to favourable environmental conditions. The present study was undertaken to collect and making permanent record of medicinally important floristic diversity of tehsil Joginder Nagar, District Mandi of Himachal Pradesh. It is situated between 31 50' N and 76 45' E and bears the richest and most varied flora due to variable altitudinal and climatic conditions. Before 1925, this area was called Sukrahatti which was then renamed as Joginder Nagar after Raja Joginder Sen of Mandi (Sood, et. al., 2009). Maximum people of rural areas depend on forest for their livelihood and numbers of people also use various plants for their health care. About 27% populations depend on forest for 41

2 their livelihoods in India (Anonymous, 2006). Various such types of studies have been carried out on diversity of medicinal and aromatic plants in different regions of Himachal Pradesh [Ahluwalia, 1952; Rastogi, 1960; Sood, et. Al, 2009; Uniyal and Chauhan, 1971], but many biodiversity rich areas are still unexplored. Keeping in view the importance of phytodiversity and demands of medicinal plant in the pharmaceutical industries and especially in the Indian system of Medicine, this study was carried out in order to conserve the knowledge about medicinal plants of tehsil Joginder Nagar. 2. Materials and Methods The field trips were arranged during the period of April 2012 to March 2013 in different areas of Tehsil Joginder Nagar. The plant specimens collected during field visits were pressed and dried using blotting papers for about two to three weeks at room temperature. The collected plant specimens were dipped in the solution of 2% mercuric chloride for minutes in order to provide protection against insects and fungal attack. After poisoning, the plants were mounted on the herbarium sheets. The collected specimens were identified with the help of the various flora and books (Sood et. al, 2009; Polunin and Stainton, 1984 and Chatterjee and Pakrashi, 1991; Collett, 1902) and carefully matched with the specimens kept at herbarium of Botanical Survey of India, Dehradun. All the plant specimens were arranged alphabetically and enumerated along with their Botanical name, Family name, Local name, Unani name. A checklist has been prepared after comparing with the existing literature of Unani System of Medicine and especially with the list of medicinal plant used in Unani System of Medicine for various disorders: tonic for stomach and intestine, antipyretic, emetic, affecting the function of liver, aphrodisiac, delay ejaculation, increase the viscosity of seminal fluid and diuretic, given in Hamdard Pharmacopoeia of Eastern Medicine (Anonymous, 1997). 3. Results The present study records 65 plant species of 63 genus and 47 families belonging to two distinct taxonomic groups i.e. angiosperms and gymnosperms. Out of these 47 families, 46 belong to angiosperms and one belongs to gymnosperms. Among the dominant families, Solanaceae represented with maximum number of species i.e. 5; followed by Asteraceae with 4 species; with 3 species; Alliaceae, Apocynaceae, Brassicaceae, Combretaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Mimosaceae, Rubiaceae and Zingiberaceae with two species each and remaining 35 families were with single species only (Fig. S1). All plant specimens were collected from the area of tehsil Joginder Nagar. All plant species were provided with Botanical name, Family name, local name and Unani name (Table-S1 and Table-S2). An analysis of the species shows (64 species) % angiosperms, (1 species) and 1.54 % gymnosperms (Fig. S2). Out of 46 families of angiosperms 40 (56 species) were Dicotyledons and 6 (8 species) were Monocotyledons. All collected species (65) were used in Unani System of Medicines in curing various disorders of which Fig.S1. Distribution of families with number of species. Fig.S2. Taxonomic group with number of families. Fig. S3. Number of plants used for various disorders. 21 plant species were act as tonic for stomach and intestine, 13 as antipyretic, 9 as emetic and 11 species affecting the function of liver, 15 species as aphrodisiac, 7 for delay ejaculation, 9 for increase the viscosity of the seminal fluid and 9 act as diuretic (Fig. S3). There are number of species which have dual actions:- (a). Abies pindrow, Achyranthes aspera, Cannabis sativa, Ficus religiosa, Piper longum and Zingiber officinale: tonic for stomach and intestine and aphrodisiac; (b). Berberis aristata, Carica papaya, Cinnamomum zeylanicum and Terminalia chebula: tonic for stomach and intestine and also affecting the function of liver; (c). Withania somnifera, Ficus religiosa, Bombax ceiba, and Asparagus racemosus: Aphrodisiac and increase viscosity of the seminal fluid; (d). Bombax ceiba, Papaver somnifera and Tamarindus indica: Delay ejaculation and increase viscosity of the seminal fluid; (e). Acacia concinna and Berberis aristata: Aphrodisiac and affecting the function of liver; (f). Bombax ceiba and Cannabis sativa: 42

3 Tab le. S1. List of plants used in Unani system of Medicine. S.N. Botanical Name Family Local Name Unani Name Tonic for stomach and intestine Antipyretic 1 Abies pindrow Royle Pinaceae Tosh Talispatra Acacia concinna DC. Mimosaceae Shikakai 43 Emetic Affecting the function of Liver Shika Achillea millefolium Linn. Asteraceae Kashmiri Akarkara Biranjasif Achyranthes aspera Linn. Amaranthaceae Puthkanda Chirchita Aegle marmelos Correa. Rutaceae Bel Belgiri Allium cepa Linn. Liliaceae; Alliaceae Piyaz Piyaz Allium sativum Linn. Alliaceae Lasun, Lasan Lehsun Alstonia scholaris R. Br. Apocynaceae Saptaparni Chhatiyun Amomum subulatum Roxb. Zingiberaceae Bari Elachi Elaichi Kalan Aristolochia indica Linn. Aristolochiaceae Isharmul Zaravand Hindi Berberis aristata DC. Berberidaceae Kashmal, Panjolu Zarishk Butea monosperma(lam.) Kuntze Palas Palas Cannabis sativa Linn. Cannabinaceae Bhang Bhang Capsicum annuum Linn. Solanaceae Mirch Mirch Surkh Carica papaya Linn. Caricaceae Papita, Papeeta Papeeta Centipeda minima (Linn.) A. Br. & Aschers. Asteraceae Nak-Chiknu, Nagdowana Nakchikni Cinnamomum zeylanicum Breyn. Lauraceae Dalchini Tuj Qalmi Crinum asiaticum Linn. Amaryllidaceae Sukhdarshan Sukhdarshan Cuscuta reflex Roxb. Cuscutaceae Akashbel, Amarbel Tukhm-e-Kasoos Cynodon dactylon Pers. Poaceae Dubh-Ghas Kabbar Emblica officinalis Gaertn. Euphorbiaceae Amla, Ambla Amla Eugenia jambolana Lam. Myrtaceae Jamun Jamun Ficus religiosa Linn. Moraceae Pipal, Peepal Pipal Fumaria parviflora Lam Holarrhena antidysenterica (Linn.) Wall. Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standley Luffa acutangula (Linn.) Roxb. Mallotus philippensis Muell. Arg. Melia azedarach Linn. Papaveraceae; Fumariaceae Pitpapra Shahtra Apocynaceae Keor, Kurchi Inderjo Tulkh Cucurbitaceae Laucki Karvi Laoki Cucurbitaceae Kali Tori, Jhinga Tori Karvi Tori Euphorbiaceae Kambal, Kaambal Kameela Meliaceae Drek Burg-e-Bakayen Nicotiana tabacum Linn. Solanaceae Tambaku,Tamaku Tambaku Piper longum Linn. Piperaceae Magha Piplamool Plantago major Linn. 33 Pongamia pinnata Pierre Plantaginaceae Isafghol Bartang Karanja Karanjwa Punica granatum Linn. Punicaceae Daadu, Anar Anar Dana Randia dumetorum Poir. Rubiaceae Rada Mainphal Raphanus sativus Linn. Brassicaceae Muli Tukh-e-Muli Rosa damascena Mill. Rosaceae Gulab Gul-e-Surkh Rubia cordifolia Linn. Rubiaceae Manjith, Majit Majith Sisymbrium irio Linn. Brassicaceae Khubkalan Khaksi Solanum surattense Burm. f. Solanaceae Kant-Kari, Kateli Khatai Khurd Terminalia bellirica Roxb. Combretaceae Behara Bahera Terminalia chebula Retz. Combretaceae Harad Halila Zard, Halila Siah Tinospora cordifolia (Wild.) Miers. Ex Hook. F. & Menispermaceae Giloy, Gulja Gilo Thoms 44 Valeriana wallichii DC. Valerianaceae Mushkbala, Sugandhbala Asaroon Viola odorata Linn. Violaceae Banaksha Banafsha Vitis vinifera Linn. Vitaceae Muwaiz Angur Munaqqa Zingiber officinale Rosc. Zingiberaceae Adrak Zanjibil

4 Tab le. S2. List of plants used in Unani system of Medicine. S.N. Botanical Name Family Local Name Unani Name Aphrodisiac Aphrodisiac and delay ejaculation; (g). Aristolochia indica and Valeriana wallichii: Affecting the function of liver and diuretic; (h). Allium cepa: Emetic and increase the viscosity of seminal fluid; (i). Butea monosperma: Antipyretic and delay ejaculation; (j). Raphanus sativa: Emetic and diuretic; (k). Centipeda minima: Emetic and affecting the function of liver; (l). Holarrhena antidysenterica: Aphrodisiac and emetic. Four species that act in more than two disorders:- (a). Berberis aristata: Tonic for stomach and intestine, antipyretic and affecting the function of liver; (b). Bombax ceiba: Aphrodisiac, delay ejaculation and increase the viscosity of the seminal fluid; (c). Cannabis sativa: Tonic for stomach and intestine, aphrodisiac and delay ejaculation; (d). Ficus religiosa: Tonic for stomach and intestine, aphrodisiac and Increase the viscosity of seminal fluid (Anonymous, 1997). Delay ejaculation 4. Discussion Plants have been used by the local people since time immemorial to cure various disorders. Plant diversity is one of the major resources that fulfill the needs of human beings directly as well as indirectly i.e food, fodder, fibers and medicines etc. Almost 70% of modern medicines in India are derived from wild sources. (Verma & Singh, 2008) and utilization of herbal medicines is increasing in developing and as well as developed countries. Natural floral diversity is under various threats due to over exploitation, urbanization, habitat destruction, increased demand of herbal material in pharmaceutical industries and climate changes. Various studies have been carried out on phyto-diversity [Hooker ( ); Collet (1902)] and on diversity of medicinal and aromatic plants in different regions of Himachal Pradesh [Ahluwalia, 1952; Sood, et.al, 2009; Uniyal and Chauhan, 1971], but many biodiversity 44 Increase the viscosity of the seminal fluid 1 Abies pindrow Royle Pinaceae Tosh Talispatra Achyranthes aspera Linn. Amaranthaceae Puthkanda Chirchita Albizzia lebbeck Benth. Mimosaceae Sirin, Siris Tukhm-e-Siran Allium cepa Linn. Liliaceae; Piyaz Alliaceae Piyaz Ambroma augusta Linn. Sterculiaceae Ulatkambal, Olatkambal Ulatkambal Anacyclus pyrethrum DC. Asteraceae Akarkara Aqarqara Aristolochia indica Linn. Aristolochiaceae Isharmul Zaravand Hindi Asparagus racemosus Satawar, Satawar, Liliaceae Willd. Sansharpali Shaqaqual Misri Bombax ceiba Linn. Bombacaceae Semal, Simbal Senbhal, Mochras Borassus flabellier Linn. Arecaceae Tar, Tal Tar Butea monosperma(lam.) Kuntze Palas Chunia Gond Cannabis sativa Linn. Cannabinaceae Bhang Bhang Celastrus paniculatus Willd. Celastraceae Malkangani Malkangi Centipeda minima (Linn.) Nak-Chiknu, Asteraceae A. Br. & Aschers. Nagdowana Nakchikni Cicer arietinum Linn. Chana Chane-ka-Chilka Datura metel Linn. Solanaceae Kala Dhatura, Dhattura Tukhm Dhatura Ficus religiosa Linn. Moraceae Pipal, Peepal Pipal Hedera helix C. B Clarke, non Linn. Araliaceae Dakari Banda Holarrhena antidysenterica (Linn.) Wall. Apocynaceae Keor, Kurchi Inderjo Afiyun, Post Papaver somniferum Papaveraceae Afim Khashkhash, Linn. Khashkhash Piper longum Linn. Piperaceae Magha Piplamool Portulaca oleracea Linn. Portulacaceae Kulfa, Chlai Khurfah Raphanus sativus Linn. Brassicaceae Muli Muli Saxifraga ligulata Engl. Saxifragaceae Patharchat, Pashanbed Pakhan Bed Sesamum orientale Linn. Pedaliaceae Til Kunjad Sonchus arvensis Linn. Asteraceae Sahadevi-bari Sadhi Bhangra Symplocos racemosa Roxb. Symplocaceae Lodhra Lodh Pathani Tamarindus indica Linn. Caesalpiniaceae Imli Tukhm-e-Imli Valeriana wallichii DC. Valerianaceae Mushkbala, Sugandhbala Asaroon Withania somnifera Dunal Solanaceae Asgandh Asgand Zingiber officinale Rosc. Zingiberaceae Adrak Zanjibil Diuretic

5 rich areas are still unexplored including tehsil Joginder Nagar. The selected study area shows great medicinal important floral diversity due to suitable climatic conditions. So there is need to explore and document medicinally important floral diversity, because large proportions of the world s population depend on herbal medicine for their health care. 5. Conclusion The present study records 65 plant species of 63 genus and 47 families belonging to two distinct taxonomic groups i.e. angiosperms and gymnosperms. Out of these 47 families, 46 belong to angiosperms and one belongs to gymnosperms. All collected plant species have been used in Unani System of Medicine to cure various disorders i.e. tonic for stomach and intestine, antipyretic, emetic, affecting the function of liver, aphrodisiac, delay ejaculation, increase the viscosity of seminal fluid and diuretic. People of rural areas totally depend on biodiversity for their food, fuel, fodder, timber, medicines and other purposes. According to WHO, 80% of the world population depends on herbal medicines for their health care, especially in developing countries (Verma & Singh, 2008). The floral diversity is under various threats due to over exploitation and increased demand of herbal raw material in pharmaceutical industrialization, habitat destruction and climate changes. The selected study area shows great medicinal important floral diversity. So, there is need to explore and document the information of medicinal important floristic diversity of unexplored areas for coming generations. Acknowledgement The author is thankful to the Director and other scientific staff of Botanical Survey of India, Dehra Dun for their help in identification of plant species. I would like to thank Mr. Munish Sharma, Mrs. Bandu Sharma and Dr. S. N Bundela, for their help and moral support to complete this work. References 1. Ahluwalia, KS, Medicinal Plants of Kangra Valley. Indian Forester 1952, 78(4): Anonymous, Hamdard Pharmacopoeia of Eastern Medicine. Sri Satguru Publications: A division of Indian Books Centre Delhi 1997, India. 3. Anonymous, National Formulary of Unani Medicine, Part- II. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homopathy, Govt. of India, New Delhi Anonymous, India: Unlocking opportunities for forest dependent people. World Bank 2006, New Delhi. 5. Chatterjee A and Pakrashi S, The Treatise on Indian Medicinal Plants. Vol.-1. Revised (2005) Publication and Information Directorate C.S.I.R., New Delhi. 6. Collett, H, Flora Simlensis. Thacker Spink and Co. Calcutta and Shimla, Reprint (1971) Bishan Singh. Mahendra Pal Singh Cannaught Place Dehra Dun, India. 7. Hooker, JD, The Flora of British India Vol. I-VIII. Lalit Mohan Basu, Allahabad Pandey, MM, Rastogi, S and Rawat, AKS, A Review Article: Indian Traditional Ayurvedic System of Medicine and Nutritional Supplementation. Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013, Vol. 2013, Article ID Polunin, O & Stainton, A, Flowers of the Himalaya. Oxford University Press, Delhi Rastogi, MA, Medicines from the wild. A case study of the Great Himalayan Park. The Indian Magazine of Her People and Culture 1960, Ravishankar, B and Shukla, VJ, Indian System of Medicine: A brief profile. Afr. J. Trad. CAM 2007, 4(3): Sood, S K, Sharma, SK, Kumar, N and Kumar, H, Ethnobotanical Studies on Tree, Shrubs and Climbers of Himalaya. Satish Serial Publishing House, Delhi Uniyal, MR. and Chauhan, NS, Medicinal Plants of Uhal Valley in Kangra Forest Division, H.P. J. Res Ind. Med. 1971, 6(3): Verma, S and Singh, SP, Current and future status of herbal medicines. Veterinay World 2008, 1(11): Source of support: Nil; Conflict of interest: None declared 45