Title:Barleria prionitis: Journey from Ayurveda to Modern Medicine
Volume: 8
Issue: 2
Author(s): Komal Pandey, Harshita Gupta and Bhagyashree Kamble*
Affiliation:
- National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Ahmedabad (NIPER-A), Opposite Air Force Station, Palaj, Gandhinagar-382355, Gujarat,India
Keywords:
Barleria prionitis, Procupine flower, Vajradanti, ethnomedicinal uses, iridoids, phytochemistry, formulations.
Abstract: Natural products are a rich source of chemical constituents with wide structural diversity,
along with tremendous therapeutic potential. So that the medicine derived from natural sources such
as plants, microorganisms, marine, etc. are the endowments of nature for the endurance of life. Barleria
prionitis (BP) is one of the medicinal plants, used by people for curing various ailments from
the ancient time. According to literature, almost 300 species of Barleria are known; among them
Barleria prionitis is one of the important species distributed worldwide. Barleria prionitis is an
ayurvedic medicinal plant, eminently known as “Vajradanti” and “Procupine flower” member of the
Acanthaceae family. Barleria is a prickly shrub, found to be enriched with a diverse class of secondary
metabolites such as anthraquinones, terpenoids, flavonoids and iridoid glycosides. Almost
every part of this plant has been screened for various pharmacological activities viz. antiseptic, antifertility,
antihypertensive, diuretic, hepatoprotective and so on. Barleria prionitis is one of the vital
ingredients of many herbal teeth formulations. This review gives insight into the botany,
ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, clinical study, quality control, and
formulations of Barleria prionitis. A compilation of these data might be helpful to the scientists
working on this plant. There are few untapped parameters of Barleria, like pharmacokinetics and
molecular level mechanism studies that can be an important area of research.
