Medicinal herbs are moving from fringe to mainstream use with a greater number of people seeking remedies and health approaches free from side effects caused by synthetic chemicals. Most people believe that herbs are harmless plants, but when these are taken concurrently with drugs, interactions are possible. In this review article, we have discussed several popular herbs, and attempted to provide a comprehensive review that summarizes drug-herb interactions. Mustering systematic information about drug-herb interactions will be a Herculean task. The hurdles in evaluating herbal drugs include lack of standardization, insufficient quality control, overall under-reporting, etc. The challenges posed in evaluating and improving the safety of herbal drugs are the need for standardization and quality control, official compendia, dissemination of information, additional research, pharmacovigilance and regulations. With concentric efforts to surmount these challenges, the wealth of traditional knowledge can be put to judicious use in the form of herbal remedies and that it finds a rightful place in the health care system.

Psidium guajava L, belonging to the Myrtacea family, has been reported to have anti-diarrheal, hepatoprotective, hypoglycemic, lipid lowering, antibacterial and antioxidant activities. It contains important phytoconstituents such as tannins, triterpenes, flavonoid:quercetin, pentacyclic triterpenoid:guajanoic acid, saponins, carotenoids, lectins, leucocyanidin, ellagic acid, amritoside, beta-sitosterol, uvaol, oleanolic acid and ursolic acid. In view of the immense medicinal importance of the plant, this review is an effort to compile all the information reported on its phytochemical and pharmacological activities. The present review is an attempt to generate interest among the masses regarding its immense potential in preventing and treating several common diseases.

Aromatherapy is the practice of using volatile plant oils, including essential oils, for psychological and physical wellbeing. Aromatherapy is a therapeutic remedy that has helped millions of people down the years. Aromatherapy has a variety of helpful properties, which include antibiotic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, antifungal agents and so on. Essential oils, unlike prescription drugs, work only on those areas that are 'broken', which means they do not go on the healthy tissues and work there. They travel around the body, look for illnesses and target those alone. Aromatherapy is often used in conjunction with massage therapy, acupuncture, reflexology, herbology and other holistic healing therapies.

India is a repository of herbal medicines, and there are evidences of herbs being used in the treatment of diseases and for revitalizing various body systems in almost all ancient civilizations. Plants have traditionally served as man's most important weapon against pathogens. Herbal medicines are widely used by all sections of the community, either as folk remedies or as medicaments in the indigenous as well as modern system of medicine. The present survey was conducted to record the medicinal herbs that tribes use for the treatment of viral hepatitis. Data were collected by interviewing local traditional therapists and tribes of the region. A total of 14 medicinal plants were obtained. Information on local names, plant parts, chemical constituents and dosage used were also recorded and reported in this paper. The present study aims to draw the attention of researchers towards the need of future critical study.

In the present study, the effects of a natural superdisintegrant vis-à-vis isolated mucilage of Plantago ovata and synthetic superdisintegrants like sodium starch glycolate (SSG) and croscarmellose sodium (Ac-di-sol) were compared in the formulations of fast dissolving tablets (FDT). FDTs of aceclofenac (model drug) were prepared by direct compression method using microcrystalline cellulose as direct compressible vehicle. Those tablets were evaluated for weight variation, hardness, disintegration time, drug content, friability and dissolution. Swelling index was also investigated with an aim to compare the swelling property of mucilage of Plantago ovata with SSG and Ac-di-sol. Among all the super disintegrants, Plantago ovata mucilage showed the highest swelling index. Hence, the present study revealed that this natural superdisintegrant (Plantago ovata mucilage) showed better disintegrating property than the most widely used synthetic super disintegrants like SSG and Ac-di-sol in the formulations of FDTs.

The leaves of Neolamarckia cadamba (Roxb.) Bosser (Rubiaceae) are reported to have good medicinal values in traditional system of medicines. The present study deals with pharmacognostical examination of morphological and microscopical characters of Neolamarckia cadamba leaves including determination of leaf constants, ash values, foaming index and extractive values.

The present study was designed to screen antimicrobial activity of Capparis zeylanica Linn. The coarse material of C. zeylanica roots was successively extracted with petroleum ether, chloroform and ethanol using Soxhlet and macerated to form water extract. All extracts were screened for its antibacterial and antifungal activity using agar well diffusion method. The microorganisms used for antibacterial and antifungal activity were Bacillus pumillus (NCIM-2752), Staphylococcus aureus (NCIM-2901), Bacillus subtilis (NCIM-2063), Escherichia coli (NCIM-2256), Klebsiella pneumoniae (NCIM-2957), Proteus vulgaris (NCIM-2027), Candida albicans (MTCC-3018) and Aspergillus niger (MTCC-404). Gentamicin 5 mg/ml and Clotrimazol 5 mg/ml were used as standards. The extracts showed antimicrobial activity were subjected to minimum inhibitory concentration assay by two-fold dilutions method. Petroleum ether, chloroform, ethanol and water extract exhibited in-vitro antibacterial activity. None of the extracts showed antifungal activity.

Free radical scavenging potential of the aqueous extract of roots of Baliospermum montanum Muell-Arg, a medicinal plant, was evaluated by using diphenyl-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) assay and nitric oxide (NO) scavenging assay. The in vitro antioxidant activity of the plant extract was determined by DPPH and NO scavenging activity method. In the DPPH method, antioxidants present in the plant extract reacted with DPPH, which is a stable free radical, and converted it to 1,1-diphenyl-1,2-picryl, hydrazine. The results were expressed as IC ₅₀ . Ascorbic acid, which was used as a standard, showed an IC ₅₀ of 19.90 ± 2.3 μg/ml, whereas the plant extract showed an IC ₅₀ of 26.22 ± 0.8 mg/ml. In the second method, NO generated from sodium nitroprusside in aqueous solution at physiological pH interacted with oxygen to produce nitrite ion, which was measured at 540 nm. Ascorbic acid, the standard, showed an IC ₅₀ of 5.62 ± 2.5 μg/ml; the plant extract showed an IC ₅₀ of 36.66 ± 2.8 μg/ml. In the present study, aqueous extract of B. montanum showed remarkable and concentration-dependent free radical scavenging activity comparable to that of a standard such as ascorbic acid in the studied models; significant results were observed in the estimated parameters, thereby indicating that B. montanum has promising free radical scavenging activity.

The roots of Kalimusli (Curculigo orchioides) were fractionated with different solvents and screened for their antimicrobial and antitumor activity. Antifungal activity was screened using agar plate method, and antibacterial activity of the extracts was determined by disk diffusion method. Antitumor activity was screened against a human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7). Methanolic extract showed maximum activity due to the saponins present.

Copal resin (CR) was investigated for its physicochemical properties, which are yellowish cream in colour with acid value 129.82 ± 2.38, saponification value 172.60 ± 4.03, ester value 42.78 ± 3.19, softening point 88-92°C, glass transition temperature (Tg) 85.29°C, refractive index 1.534-1.536 and moisture content (loss on drying) 0.699 ± 0.08% w/w. The free films, prepared in alcohol by solvent evaporation technique, were brittle with high tacking property. Addition of 1% w/w propylene glycol improved the mechanical properties (tensile strength, percent elongation and Young's modulus) of CR films, whereas glyceryl monostearate, sorbitan mono-oleate and sorbitan monolaurate in 15% w/w reduced the tackiness significantly. Water vapour transmission rate of CR film was 2.16 ± 0.31 × 10 ^-5 g cm/cm ² and 4.13 ± 0.18 × 10 ^-5 g cm/cm ² at relative humidity (RH) of 43% and 93%, respectively. CR films show good swelling property in phosphate buffer (pH 7.4). Present investigation proposes the film-forming natural material with its potential as a coating material for sustained release and colon-targeted drug delivery.

Aquilaria agallocha Roxb, family Thymelaeaceae, is an evergreen plant of India, China and Tibet, commonly described as aloe wood or agar wood. Traditionally, bark, root and heartwood are used for their medicinal properties as a folk medicine to treat inflammation, arthritis, vomiting, cardiac disorders, cough, asthma, leprosy, anorexia, headache and gout. The present study was carried out to investigate the antioxidant activity of ethyl acetate extract of Aquilaria agallocha (EAA). EAA was tested in vitro at different concentrations for inhibitory effect on nitrite-induced oxidation of haemoglobin in human blood hemolysate. Results indicate a strong antioxidant effect of EAA in a concentration range of 500-3500 µg/ml. However, pro-oxidant activity was observed at higher concentrations of these compounds.

To study the effect of alcohol extract of roots of Baliospermum montanum on neutrophil phagocytic function. The different concentration of (25,50,100 mg/ml) extract of roots of Baliospermum montanum was subjected to study its effect on different in vitro methods of phagocytosis such as neutrophil locomotion, chemotaxis, immunostimulant activity of phagocytosis of killed Candida albicans and qualitative nitroblue tetrazolium test using human neutrophils. This preliminary study revealed that Baliospermum montanum extract has stimulated, chemotactic, phagocytic and intracellular killing potency of human neutrophils at different concentrations. From the results obtained, it can be observed that the alcohol extract of Baliospermum montanum stimulates cell-mediated immune system by increasing neutrophil function.

In order to scientifically appraise some of the anecdotal, folkloric, ethno medical uses of Pisonia aculeata Linn. (Nyctaginaceae), the present study was undertaken to examine the antitumor activity of Pisonia aculeata leaves extract on Ehrlich Ascites Carcinoma (EAC) in mice. Tumor was induced in mice by intraperitoneal injection of Ehrlich Ascites Carcinoma cells (1X10 ⁶ cells/mouse). Ethanol extract of Pisonia aculeata (EEPA) was administered to the experimental animals at the doses of 250 & 500 mg/kg/day, p.o. The antitumor effect of the extract was evaluated by using survival time, hematological parameters, increase in body weight, solid tumour volume and peritoneal cell count. Oral administration of EEPA increased the survival time and inhibits the weight gain of the tumor bearing mice. After 14 days of inoculation, the extract also reduces the solid tumor volume developed by the EAC cells. The findings of this study indicate that the EEPA possesses significant antitumor activity on dose dependent manner.

Various extracts of the leaves of Tridax procumbens Linn were screened for hemostatic activity by studying the clotting time of 10 human volunteers employing Lee-White's method performed in vitro. Out of the ethanolic extract, fresh leaf juice and petroleum extract, ethanolic extract showed positive activity. The experiment was successfully tested for statistical significance by employing the paired t-test.