Indian Medicinal Plants: A Source of Anti-tuberculosis Drug

Abstract

Medicinal plants remain an indispensable source of drugs and important constituent for the treatment and control of various diseases worldwide. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB) had infected one quarter of the world population, being revealed by recent estimate (WHO). For the treatment of tuberculosis, use of medicinal plants had been extensively documented in ancient scriptures in India and other civilizations of the world. Being one of the oldest, difficult to eradicate and with the recent emergence of drug resistant tuberculosis to current drugs had necessitated the scientific community to identify novel plants and screen their extracts and constituents for the treatment of tuberculosis. Lack of introduction of new drugs in recent past has also highlighted the need to identify novel drug compounds for the treatment of TB. In the present review article, traditional medicinal plants which are known to exhibit anti-TB activities are highlighted and their role in the treatment of tuberculosis, based on the scientific literature and database available. This will help in holistic understanding of the disease and potential novel treatment regime of the tuberculosis.