Lippia javanica (Burm.f.) Spreng.: Traditional and Commercial Uses and Phytochemical and Pharmacological Significance in the African and Indian Subcontinent.

Lippia javanica (Burm.f.) Spreng.: Traditional and Commercial Uses and Phytochemical and Pharmacological Significance in the African and Indian Subcontinent. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2017;2017:6746071 Authors: Maroyi A Abstract Lippia javanica occurs naturally in central, eastern, and southern Africa and has also been recorded in the tropical Indian subcontinent. The potential of L. javanica as herbal or recreational tea and herbal medicine and its associated phytochemistry and biological properties are reviewed. The extensive literature survey revealed that L. javanica is used as herbal tea and has ethnomedicinal applications such as in colds, cough, fever, malaria, wounds, diarrhoea, chest pains, bronchitis, and asthma. Multiple classes of phytochemicals including volatile and nonvolatile secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, amino acids, flavonoids, iridoids, and triterpenes as well as several minerals have been identified from L. javanica. Scientific studies on L. javanica indicate that it has a wide range of pharmacological activities which include anticancer, antiamoebic, antidiabetic, antimalarial, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiplasmodial, and pesticidal effects. Although many of the traditional uses of L. javanica have been validated by phytochemical and pharmacological studies, there are still some gaps where current knowledge could be improved. Lippia javanica is popular as both herbal and recreational tea, ...
Source: Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Category: Complementary Medicine Tags: Evid Based Complement Alternat Med Source Type: research