NIRGUNDI (VITEX NEGUNDO): A REVIEW ARTICLE

Mishra Ankur*, Tiwari R. C. and Srivastava Kumar Alok

ABSTRACT

Traditional medicines were originally used with vast knowledge about the pharmacological activity of numerous plants. Medicinal plants have been widely used to treat a variety of infectious and non-infectious ailments. According to one estimate, 25% of the commonly used medicines contain compounds isolated from plants. Vitex negundo (nirgundi), is a deciduous shrub naturalized in many parts of the world. Some consider it to have originated in India and the Philippines. There is no reference to nirgundi in the Vedas, while several references occur in post-Vedic works. In India, Vitex nirgundo (Nirgundi) is one of the very useful plant in Indian System of Medicine. The genus Vitex contains 270 species distributed around the world. The present review aims to compile information on its, medicinal values it is an interesting source of potential bioactive molecules, as iridoids compounds, flavonoids, diterpenoids derivatives, phytosteroids, with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, Hepatoprotective activity, analgesic and antihistamine.

Keywords: irrioids, flavonoids, phytosteroids, antioxidant, analgesics.