Abstract

COMPERHENSIVE INSIGHT ON THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL OF LEUCAS ASPERA – A REVIEW

Dr. Shambhulingaiah H. M.* Anjali K., Darshan Gouda, K. Choudamma, Karthik Kumar and Vijayalaxmi M.

ABSTRACT

Leucas aspera is a perennial herb found commonly in tropical regions, It is an herbaceous aromatic weed belonging to the family Lamiaceae (Labiatae), Traditionally it is known as “Thumbai” in Tamil and “Dronapushpi” in Sanskrit, It is used as medicinal plant since ancient times. Extensive Literature survey revels the medicinal importance of L. aspera as one of traditionally the most important aromatic weed, Phytochemical and pharmacological investigations shows the presence of various chemical constituents like terpenes, sterols, glycosides, lignans, flavonoids and long-chain fatty compounds which are responsible for biological activities such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, Antidiabetic, larvicidal, Antivenom and phytotoxic activity, recently eco friendly Ag Nanoparticles of the plant extract has been used in vector borne diseases. all this information is scattered and one cannot get the whole data of plant at a singledestination, This context provoked us to review and organize the literature and in this comprehensive review we explained the taxonomical classification, macroscopic and microscopic description, phytochemistry and phytochemical classification along with pharmacological investigations and also emphasized the current applications and future scope of L. aspera medicinal plant.

Keywords: Leucas aspera, Phytochemical, Herb, Nano particles, Aromatic weed.