A Comprehensive Review on <i>Cardiospermum halicacabum</i>

Abstract

Medicinal plants are natural sources of bioactive phytochemical constituents that can be utilized to treat a variety of ailments due to the marked physiological effects they have on the human body. India, with its diverse ethnic groups and unique biodiversity, has a centuries-old ethnobotanical history for health promotion and treatment of illness. Among the medicinal herbs, the plant Cardiospermum halicacabum belonging to the family Sapindaceae is a climber with inflated fruits and seeds with a white heart-shaped pattern. Alcohols, phenols, alkynes, flavonoids, alkanes, and aliphatic esters are the major phytochemical components present in this plant. The phytochemical examination revealed that the herb contains terpenoids, flavonoids, tannins, proteins, saponin, glycosides, carbohydrates, volatile esters, and fatty acids. Cardiospermum halicacabum has been demonstrated to exhibit anti-oxidant, anti-viral, anti-ulcer, anti-diabetic, anti-convulsant, antipyretic, anxiolytic, anti-cancer, anti-bacterial, anti-arthritic, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic and fertility activities. The decoction of this plant is used in the treatment of dysentery, diarrhea, cold, asthma and pertussis. Various traditional uses of the plant include its usage as a refrigerant, emetic, stomachic, diuretic, laxative, wound healing and in treating earache. This review summarizes the wide range of phytochemical constituents, pharmacological activities along with microscopical, macroscopical characteristics and traditional uses of Cardiospermum halicacabum.