Vernonia anthelmintica Willd. (Asteraceae/Compositae)

Abstract

An annual plant, native to the temperate regions of Garhwal Himalayas, India. It is a highly esteemed remedy for leucoderma and psoriasis, and also used as an anthelmintic in combination with other drugs. It is described as sweet, pungent, digestive, bitter, alterative, astringent, cold, cardiacal, dry, and antiphlegmatic, and a remedy for cough, fevers and intestinal worms. Seeds are used in leucoderma, leprosy, psoriasis, and other skin diseases. As anthelmintic, powdered seeds are given for the removal of Ascaris, and as a stomachic in loss of appetite and dyspepsia. Externally the drug is applied in skin diseases in a variety of forms, such as paste, oil, etc.; a poultice or plaster is used to disperse cold tumors. In Siddha system of medicine, it is used for the treatment of neurological disorders. In traditional Uyghur and Chinese medicines, kaliziri extract has been used to treat leucoderma (vitiligo) for centuries. Seeds contain vernodlin, vernodalol, and vernolic acid, and are rich in Cl, Co, Cr and Zn content, and low in Fe content. Ethanol extract demonstrated marked antioxidant activity, and lowered blood glucose of diabetic rats; the active fraction of the extract given daily to diabetic rats for 45-days significantly reduced glucose, HbA1c, TC, TGs, LDL, VLDL, FFAs, phospholipids and HMG-CoA reductase, and normalized changes in plasma insulin, protein, HDL and hepatic glycogen. Methanol seed extract also significantly inhibited AChE and BChE.