African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 8 (8), pp. 1643-1650, 20 April, 2009 Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/AJB ISSN 1684–5315 © 2009 Academic Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Medicinal plants used for the treatment of jaundice and hepatitis based on socio-economic documentation
Arshad Mehmood Abbasi1, Mir Ajab Khan1, Mushtaq Ahmad1, Muhammad Zafar1*, Hamayun Khan2, Niaz Muhammad2 and Shazia Sultana1
1

Department of Plant Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad Pakistan. 2 Department of Sociology, University of Peshawar, Pakistan.
Accepted 14 November, 2008

The present study deals with socio-economic documentation of medicinal plant species against jaundice and hepatitis. A total of 30 plant species belonging to 24 families were reported by local practitioners for the treatment of jaundice and hepatitis. The most important plant species are Adiantum capillus, Boerhaavia procumbens, Equisetum debile, Carissa opaca,Cucumis sativus, Hordeum vulgare, Justacia adhatoda, Morus alba, Morus nigra, Phyllanthus emblica, Phyllanthus niruri, Plantago ovata, Prunus domestica, Punica granatum, Raphnus sativus, Rhus chinensis, Saccharum officinarum and Tamarandus indica. Key words: Medicinal plants, jaundice, hepatitis, Socio-economic documentation. INTRODUCTION From the very beginning of human existence, man has familiarized himself with plants and used them in a variety of ways throughout the ages. In search of food and to cope successfully with human suffering, primitive man began to distinguish those plants suitable for nutritional purpose from others with definitive pharmacological action. This relationship has grown between plants and man, and many plants came to be used as drugs. The growth of knowledge to cure disease continues at an accelerating pace, and number of new plant-derived drugs increase likewise. Herbal medicine is currently experiencing a revival in Western society, along with other complementary therapies such as traditional Chinese Medicines, Osteopathy and Homeopathy (Shinwari and Gilani, 2003). Jaundice is not a disease but rather a sign that can occur in many different diseases. Jaundice is the yellowish staining of the skin and sclera (the whites of the eyes) that is caused by high levels in blood of the chemical bilirubin. The colour of the skin and sclera vary depending on the level of bilirubin. When the bilirubin level is mildly elevated, they are yellowish. When the bilirubin level is high, they tend to be brown (Wahab et al., 2004). Jaundice may result from various diseases or conditions that affect the liver, like Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Hepatitis D, Hepatitis E, Autoimmune hepatitis, Liver cirrhosis, Liver cancer, Hemolytic anaemia and Malaria. There is no unique treatment for jaundice and hepatitis by prescribing modern allopathic and homeopathic medicine. Although different workers have documented medicinal plants from various regions of world, but to our knowledge no systematic investigation on Antiviral application of medicinal plants against jaundice and hepatitis has been made which was based on socio-economic conditions of respondent communities. In this context, the present study is the first milestone with particular emphasis on antiviral application of medicinal plants for jaundice and hepatitis.
METHODS In the present investigation we focused on medicinal plants used to treat jaundice and hepatitis. The study was carried out by interviewing respondents in thirty remote sites. The respondents were old age women, men, and healers themselves and had knowledge on the medicinal use of the plants for the said purpose. To collect data systematically on jaundice treatment questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and discussions were applied, included questions that target the local name of plant, parts used, methods

*Corresponding author. catlacatla@hotmail.com.

E-mail:

mushtaq@qau.edu.pk,

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of preparation and application. A total of 95 informants including 45 female, 40 male and 10 traditional healers were interviewed. Collected data was also cross checked in different areas from local informants either by showing the plant specimen or telling local names to the informants to verify the authenticity of claims. For chemical constituents prior informed consent (PIC) was used in carrying out this work (Table 1). Information on the chemical constituents of the plants reported under present investigation has been compiled from relevant sources (Nadkarni, 1976; Ikram and Hussain, 1978; Tyler et al., 1981; Haq and Rehman, 1990; Haq and Hussain, 1993; Hussein, 1983; Mangrio et al., 1995; Zafar and Ali, 1998; Prajapati et al., 2006). Plants were collected in flowering and fruiting conditions and confirmed by using different herbaria. Specimens were dried, pressed, poisoned and mounted on herbarium sheets. All collected specimens were identified with the help of available literature (Nasir and Ali, 2002) and herbarium, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad Pakistan. After correct identification, the specimens were deposited in Quaid-i-Azam University Herbarium, Islamabad for future references.

Paste Fresh part Powder Extract Juice Decoction 0% 10% 20% 30% 40%

Figure 1. Methods of preparation of the medicinal plants used locally for the treatment of jaundice and hepatitis.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Data obtained from present investigation is compiled in Table 1 and the plants species are arranged in alphabetic order. A total of 30 plant species belonging to 24 families have been reported for the treatment of jaundice and hepatitis. For each plant species botanical name, family, local name, parts used, chemical constituents, preparation and application are provided. The most dominating families were Astraceae with three species, followed by Anacardiaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Moraceae and Poaceae of two species each. Some of the highly utilized plant species include Adiantum capillus, Boerhaavia procumbens, Equisetum debile, Carissa opaca, Cucumis sativus, Hordeum vulgare, Justacia adhatoda, Morus alba, Morus nigra, Phyllanthus emblica, Phyllanthus niruri, Plantago ovata, Prunus domestica, Punica granatum, Raphnus sativus, Rhus chinensis, Saccharum officinarum and Tamarandus indica (Table 1). Different plant parts were used to cure jaundice and hepatitis. Among these fruits were highly utilized followed by leaves, whole plant, roots, seeds, stem and flowers in decreasing order (Table 1). Data presented in Table 1, shows that thirty five medications were used for jaundice and hepatitis that can be divided into two categories: those that prepared from (i) single plant and (ii) from more than one plant species. In majority of the cases these medications were prepared by using water as a medium and administrated along with water and sugar. The method of preparation falls into six categories (Figure 1), plant parts used in the form of decoction (31%), juice (23%), extract (20%), powder (20%), fresh part (6%) and paste (3%). In all the cases mode of application was oral. In regard to the patient conditions, the preparations were use more than two times daily from a week to month till the problem is cured. Jaundice results from various diseases or conditions that affect the liver. Mostly it is due to viral hepatitis A, B, C, D and E, liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. Some of the plant species mentioned in the present study used to

cure jaundice and hepatitis have been investigated for their antimicrobial activities. For example the hexane and alcoholic extracts of P. embilica (fruit), T. indica (fruit) and P. granatum (fruit - pericarp) were found to be antimicrobial while J. adhatoda (leaves, roots), Cichorium intybus (whole plant), Morus alba (fruit) and Myrsine africana (fruit) show no antimicrobial activity (Ahmad et al., 1998). Ethanolic extract from the leaves of Oxalis corniculata have significant nematodical properties (Qarar et al., 1998). Methanolic extracts of Carissa and Rumex were found to be most active against herpes simplex virus, Sindbis virus and poliovirus (Taylor et al., 1996). Crude extracts of P. ovata (seeds) and Raphanus sativus (seeds) show no antibacterial and antifungal activity (Kumar et al., 2006). Aqueous extract of T. indica (fruit) shows positive response against antimicrobial activity, while that of B. procumbens (whole plant) shows no response (Srinivasan et al., 2001). According to Prajapati et al. (2006) R. chinensis shows antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal activities By comparing these plant species recorded to cure jaundice and hepatitis with available pharmacological literature reported from other regions of the subcontinent and world, it appears that there are many medicinal plant species in the area that were not reported in other locations. To our knowledge the use of Adiantum capillus, Argyrolobium roseum, Equisetum debile, Carissa opaca, Phyllanthus embilica, Segeretia brandrethiana, Viola serpens, Plantago ovata, Woodfordia fruticosa, Saccharum officinarum and Prunus domestica to cure jaundice, have never been reported before. Decoction from fresh leaves of A. capillus is taken orally to cure jaundice in the study areas, while (Ahmed et al., 2007; Natale and Pollio, 2007; Ghorbani, 2005; Dastagir, 2001; Inam et al., 2000; Shinwari and Khan, 2000) reported that the same plant is used as aromatic, emollient, febrifuge, astringent, diuretic, emetic, expectorant, tonic, and used to cure diarrhoea, dysentery, cough, asthma, regular menses and respiratory ailments. Leaf

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Table 1. Medicinal plants used locally to treat jaundice and hepatitis.

Botanical name Local name/ family Adiantum capillus veneris L. Sarhaj Adiantaceae Argyrolobium roseum (Comb) Jaub & Spach. Makhni booti Papilionaceae Berberis lycium Royle. Sumbul Berberdiaceae Boerhaavia procumbens L. Itsit Nyctaginaceae

Part used Leaves

Whole plant

Chemical constituents Flavinoids, terpenoids, tannins, mucilage, volatile oil, capillerine, mucin, gallic acid, sugar, kaempferol, quercetol and luteol (Prajapati et al., 2006) Flavonid glycoside (Gupta et al., 2005). Vitexin and D-pinitol (Ram et al., 2007) Alkaloids umbellatine, barberin, barbamine, starch grains and tannins (Tyler et al., 1981)

Preparation and application Fresh leaves are boiled in water along with sugar. One cup of the decoction is taken orally twice a day for a week. Fresh plant material is crushed and mixed along with water and sugar. One cup of juice is taken orally early at morning for two weeks. Fresh leaves are boiled in water and the decoction is given to the patient thrice a day for two to three weeks. Fresh plant material is boiled in water along with sugar. Half cup of the decoction is given to the patient thrice a day for three weeks. One cup of juice from fresh plant material is mixed with sugar and is taken orally twice a day for two weeks. Fresh leaves of C. opaca and roots of S. brandrethiana are boiled in water. One cup of the decoction is taken orally twice a day for two to three weeks. Fresh plant material is boiled along with sugar. Half cup of the decoction is given to the patient thrice a day for two weeks.

Leaves

Equisetum debile Roxb Satgandi booti Equisetaceae Carissa opaca Stapf.ex.Haines. Garanda Apocynaceae

Alkaloids, tricontanol, hentriacontane, sitosterol, ursolic acid, flavone, glucose, fructose and sucrose (Prajapati et al., 2006) Whole plant Moisture, ash, lipid, protein, Na, K, Ca, P, Cb, Cu, Ni, Zn, Cr, carbohydrates, ascorbic acid, folic acid and niacin (Mangrio et al., 1995) Leaves Carissone, palmatic acid, benzyl salicylate, benzyl benzoate, farnesene (Rai et al., 2005)

Whole plant

Cichorium intybus L. Kasni Astraceae

Whole plant

Cucumis sativus L. Kheera Cucurbitaceae

Fruit

Cuscuta reflexa Roxb Nelathri Cuscutaceae Hordeum vulgare L. Jou Poaceae

Whole plant

Seeds

Gummy water, cellulose, inulin, fiber, ash, glycoside, stearin, mannites, tartaric acid, betaine, choline, lactones, esculine, esculetin, cichoriin, umbelliferone, scopoletin, 6,7-dihydroxy caumarin, volatile matter, anthocynin, fatty acid, methyl esters, vanillin, 5hydroxy methyl 2-furfural, 2acetylpyrole, furfural, phenyl acetic acid, 2-(5-hydroxy methyl 2formylpyrol-1-yl)-3-methyl-3pentanoic lactone, and phenylacetaldehyde (Zafar and Ali 1998) Methyl-phytosterol, amyrin, multiflorenol, methylenecycloartenol, cycloartenol, tirucallol, protein, isopentenyl adenosine trialcolhol (Prajapati et al., 2006) Scoparone, melanettin, quercetin, hyperoside, phenolic compounds, and caffeoylquinic acids (Prajapati et al., 2006) Arginine, histidine, lysine, tyrosine, tryptophan, phenylalanine, cystine, methionine, threonine, leucine, isoleucine, valine and glycine (Prajapati et al., 2006)

Fresh fruit is cut into small pieces and is given to the patient thrice a day for a month.

Fresh plant material is cocked and three to four teaspoons of the paste are taken orally once a night for two weeks. Dried seeds are grounded. Powder is mixed with water and sugar is taken orally thrice a day for a month.

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Table 1. Contd.

Justacia adhatoda L. Bahker Acanthaceae

Roots

Morus alba L. Chitta toot Moraceae

Fruit

Morus nigra L. Kalla toot Moraceae

Fruit

Myrsine africana L. Khukan Myrsinaceae

Leaves

Oxalis corniculata L. Gandora Oxalidaceae

Leaves

Essential oils, alkaloids vasicine, vasicinone, deoxyvasicine, maiontone, vasicinolone, vasicol, peganine, sitosterol, glucoside and kaempferol (Prajapati et al., 2006) Ascorbic acid, carotene, vitamin D, glutathione, calcium, copper, zinc, boron, manganese, volatile oil, iron, thiamine, nicotinic acid, riboflavin, drying oil, tannins, penta hydroxyflavone, pentahydroxy benzopherene and maclurin (Haq and Hussain, 1993) Olcancolic acid, apigenin, cyclocommunol, morusin, cyclomorusin, kuwanon C, daucosterol, ursolic acid, 63sitosterol (Wang et al., 2007) Embelin, vilangin methylene bis (2,5-dihydroxy-4-undecyl-3,6benzoquinone, embolic acid, querctiol (Haq and Rehman, 1990) Glyxylic acid, oxalic acid, vitexin, isovitexin, netural lipids, glycolipids, vitamin c, phaspholipids, fatty acids and tocopherols (Prajapati et al., 2006) Alanine, aspartic acid, glumatic acid, lysine, proline, protein, fat, carbohydrates fibers, minerals, iron, niacin, chromium and copper (Prajapati et al., 2006) Phyllanthine, hypophyllanthine, flavonoids quercetin, astralgin, quercitrin, isoquercitrin, rutine and alkaloids (Prajapati et al., 2006) Tannins, essential oil, resin, triterpenic acid, pistacienoic acid, triterpene alcohol and triterpenoic acid (Prajapati et al., 2006) Glycoside, mucilage, tannin, bitter principal, vitamin C, nicotinic acid and fixed oil (Hussein, 1983)

Fresh roots are boiled in water. Half cup of the decoction is taken orally before breakfast for two to three weeks. Fresh fruits are crushed. One cup of the juice is given to the patient twice a day for two weeks.

Fresh fruits are crushed. One cup of the juice is given to the patient twice a day for two weeks.

Fresh leaves are boiled in water. One cup of the decoction is taken orally twice a day for a week.

Fresh leaves are crushed and mixed in water. One cup of the juice is given to the patient twice a day for two weeks.

Phyllanthus emblica L. Aamla Euphorbiaceae

Fruit

Dried fruit of P. emblica and seeds of P. granatum are grounded together along with sugar. Three teaspoons of the powder are dissolved in one cup of water and taken orally thrice a day for three weeks. Fresh roots are crushed and mixed with water. Half cup of the extract is taken twice a day for 10-15 days. Fresh fruits are crushed and mixed in water. One cup of the extract is given to the patient thrice a day for a weak. Two teaspoons of fruit or seeds husk are soaked in water for a night. Two cups of this extract are mixed with sugar and taken orally early at morning before breakfast for 20-25 days. Dried fruit of P. domestica and T. indica are soaked in water for a night. One cup of this extract is given to the patient for two to three weeks.

Phyllanthus niruri L. Bahupatra Euphorbiaceae Pistacia integerrima Stewart ex Brandis Kangar Anacardiacceae Plantago ovata Forssk. Bhatti Plantaginaceae

Roots

Fruit

Fruit, Seeds

Prunus domestica L. Alubokhara Rosaceae

Fruit

D-glactose, D-mannose, Larabinose, D-xylose, L-rhamnose, glucuronic acid, flavonoid, kaempferol, dihydrokaempferol, kaempferide and prudomestin (Prajapati et al., 2006)

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Table 1. Contd.

Punica granatum L. Durni Punicaceae

Fruit, Seeds

Citric acid, sorbitol, mannitol, pelletierine, isoquercetrin, Bsitosterol, friedelin, D-mannitol, estrone, glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltose, oxalic acid and organic acid (Ikram and Hussain, 1978)

Raphanus sativus L. Mooli Brassicaceae

Root

Rhus chinensis Mill. Taiter Anacardiaceae

Fruit, Root

Raphanin, glycosinolates, enzymes, trace elements, acids, aldehydes, anthocyanin, pectin, proteins and vitamin C (Prajapati et al., 2006) Gallotannins, gallotannic acid, gallic acid and m- digallic acid (Prajapati et al., 2006)

Dried fruit of P. emblica and seeds of P. granatum are grounded together along with sugar. Three teaspoons of the powder are dissolved in one cup of water and taken orally thrice a day for three weeks. Dried rind is grounded and two teaspoons the powder are mixed with sugar and taken orally along with water at morning for a week. Fresh roots are cut longitudinally and hanged over a night at open place. These pieces are given to the patient early in the morning for a month. Dried fruits are grounded along with sugar and three teaspoons of the powder are taken orally with water at morning for three weeks. Fresh roots are boiled in water along with sugar. One cup of the decoction is given to the patient at morning for two to three weeks. Dried fruit and seeds of R. chinensis, P. granatum and F. vulgare are grounded. Two teaspoons of the powder are taken orally along with water at morning for a month. Fresh leaves are crushed along with water and sugar. One cup of this extract is given to the patient twice a day for two weeks. Fresh stems are crushed. Two cups of the juice are given to the patient four to five times per day for a month.

Rumex hastatus D. Don, Prodr. Khatimal Polygonaceae Saccharum officinarum L. Gana Poaceae

Leaves

Nepalin, nepodin (Nadkarni, 1976)

and

rumicin

Stem

Silybum marianum L. Ount Katara Asteraceae Tamarindus indica L. Imli Caesalpinaceae

Gaertn. Leaves

Fruit, Roots

Taraxacum officinale Weber. Hand Asteraceae

Rhizome

Abscisic acid, apigenin, glycoside, methyl lapigenin, arabinose, arunodin, benzoic acid, campesterol, coumarin, cylindrin, orientin, fructose, glactose, glucose, phytosterol, saccharans, schaftoside, sucrose, invert sugar, ether, tricin and vicenin (Prajapati et al., 2006) Flavoligrans, silybin, isosilybin, dehyrosilybin, silydianin, silychristin, silymarine (Foster, 1991) Tartaric acid, citric acid, maleic acid, potassium bitartarate, oxalic acid, kerenal, polysaccharides, fkavonoid, glycoside, vetixen, orientin, homoorientin and hordenine (Prajapati et al., 2006) Taraxacin, taraxacerine, cerylalcohol, lactuce-roltaraxacin, choline, inulin, tannin, etereal oil, vitamin C, xanthophylls, potassium and vitamin A (Prajapati et al., 2006)

Fresh leaves are crushed along with water and sugar. Half cup of the Juice is taken orally twice a day for two weeks. Roots and fruit of T. indica and fruit of P. domestica and are soaked in water for a night. One cup of this extract is given to the patient for two to three weeks. Dried rhizomes are boiled along with sugar. One cup of the decoction is taken orally at morning for two weeks.

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Table 1. Contd.

Viola serpens Wall. Phul naqsha Violaceae

Whole plant

Glycoside methyl salicylate, viola quercitrin, alkaloid voiline gum, mucilage, sugar and saponin (Prajapati et al., 2006) Ellagic acid, . sitosterol, polystachoside, ocatocosauol, myricetin-3-glactoside, cyaniding-3, pelargonidin-3, 5- diglucoside and crrysophanol8-0-B-Dglucopyranoside (Prajapati et al., 2006)

Fresh or dried plant material is first boil in water along with sugar. Two cups of this decoction are taken orally at night for one week. Fresh flowers are crushed and mixed with water. One cup of the extract is given to the patient twice a day for two weeks.

Woodfordia fruticosa (L) S. Kurz. Dahvi Lythraceae

Flower

juice of A. roseum is taken orally for jaundice, while Shinwari and Khan (2000) mentioned that the plant is aphrodisiacs and tonic. Leaf decoction of Berberis lycium is used for jaundice in the study areas, while according to several workers (Hussain et al., 2008; Gilani et al., 2006; Shinwari and Gilani, 2003; Matin et al., 2002; Inam et al., 2000; Haq and Rehman, 1990) leaf juice and bark of this plant is used as tonic, cathartic, diuretic, to cure jaundice and dyspepsia. Decoction of fresh plant material of B. procumbens is used for the said purpose in the study areas, while other authors (Savithramma et al., 2007; Shah and Khan, 2006; Katewa et al., 2004; Sing et al., 2002; Khan et al., 2000) reported that leaves and roots of this plant are used for jaundice, swelling, watering of eyes, anaemia, asthma, dropsy, gonorrhoea, stomach disorders, sore throat, to relief pain, typhoid, as cooling, antispasmodic and astringent. Juice of Equisetum debile is taken orally to cure jaundice, while Inam et al. (2000) reported that same plant is diuretic and used for kidney infection treatment. Leaf decoction of Carissa opaca is given to cure jaundice and hepatitis, while Anderson (1988) reported that fruits of this plant are cold and dry. In the study areas, decoction of whole plant of C. intybus is used for jaundice and hepatitis but according to others (Ghourbani, 2005; Zafar and Ali, 1998; Haq and Rehman, 1990) roots and stem of this plant are used for asthma, jaundice rheumatism, dermal wounds, typhoid, dropsy and as depurative, stomachic, astringent and cooling. Paste from whole plant of cuscuta reflexa is taken orally to cure jaundice, while other workers (Sajem and Gosai, 2006; Shinwari and Khan, 1998; Haq and Hussain, 1995; Ansari et al, 1993; Haq and Hussain, 1993; Haq and Shah, 1986) mentioned that this plant is used as alterative, anti dandruff, anthelmintic, carminative, toothache, diuretic, purgative, vermifuge, for decoction of J. adhatoda is taken for jaundice in the present investigation but according to Ahmed et al. (2007), Savithramma et al. (2007), Muthu et al. (2006), Sajem and Gosai (2006), Shah and Khan (2006) and Haq and Hussain (1993) different parts of this plant are used for cough, asthma, bronchitis, dysentery, vomiting, nose bleeding, cold, fever and skin diseases. Leaf juice of O.

corniculata is used for jaundice, while according to others (Shah and Khan, 2006; Inam et al., 2000; Shinwari and Khan, 2000; Arshad and Ikram, 1999) this plant is used for stomach trouble, scorpion sting, jaundice, as refrigrent, cooling, antispasmodic and antisorbutic. Dried fruit powder of P. emblica is used for said purpose in the study areas, while Ahmed et al. (2007), Savithramma et al. (2007), Muthu et al. (2006), Sing et al. (2002) and Shinwari and Khan (1998) reported that fruit, leaves and bark of this plant are used as eye tonic, astringent, cooling, diuretic, laxative, refrigerant, aperients, for asthma, diarrhoea, dysentery, cold and cholera. Seed husk of P. ovata is taken for jaundice, while Shah and Khan (2006), Ahmed et al. (2006), Sultana et al. (2006), Badshah et al. (1996) and Haq and Hussain (1995) reported that leaves and seeds of the plant are used for toothache, diarrhoea, dysentery, ulcer, inflammation, piles and to heal wounds. In the present investigation fruit and roots of R. chinensis are used to cure jaundice and hepatitis, while Rai et al. (1992) and Prajapati et al. (2006) reported that fruit of this plant is used to cure dysentery, diarrhoea, vomiting, cough, haemorrhage, as astringent, and is haemostatic, antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral. Leaf extract of R. hastatus is taken orally for jaundice and hepatitis, while according to Shah and Khan (2006) and Shinwari and Gilani (2003) roots and leaves of the plant are anthelmintic, tonic, laxative, alterative, purgative, astringent, for sore joints and diarrhoea. Decoction of whole plant of Viola serpens is taken orally to cure jaundice and hepatitis, while Ahmed et al. (2006) Shinwari and Khan (2000), Haq and Hussain (1995) and Haq and Rehman (1990) reported that leaves and flowers of this plant are astringent, demulcent, diuretic, diaphoretic, purgative, emollient, refrigerant and purgative. Conclusion In the present investigation, 30 medicinal plant species used to treat jaundice and hepatitis were reported and documented. The use of these plants to treat various illnesses is still needed by the communities, because of

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poor socio-economic conditions the high cost and a difficult access to allopathic medicines. The majority of the reported species are wild and rare. These demand an urgent attention to conserve such vital resources so as to optimize their use in the primary health care system. Now a day, conservation of traditional knowledge is greatly menaced by a lot of factors related to modernization of the region and lack of interest in traditional healers, in transferring it to next generation. It is, therefore, urgent to save the cultural heritage of the natives, by confirming the therapeutically used plants with scientific criteria. In this context, screening for active substances and testing their activities against jaundice and hepatitis causing organisms form an interesting subject for the feature studies. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Financial support form Higher Education Commission (HEC) for “QAU Botanical Garden for evaluation and conservation of medicinal and aromatic plants” is gratefully acknowledged.
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