Perspective of Andrographis paniculata in Neurological Disorders

Andrographis paniculata (Burm. F.) Wall. Ex Nees (family Acanthaceae) also known as Kalmegh (Figure 1), is extremely bitter in taste and it is often referred to as the “the king of bitters”. This plant has been used as bitter tonic, stimulant, and aperients in Ayurvedic and other traditionally known health care systems widely practiced in India and other Asiatic countries. Amongst numerous plants of the Andrographis genus, Andrographis paniculata is the only one widely used for medicinal purposes, and it is also pre-clinically and clinically the most well studied one. Andrographolide (Figure 2) is quantitatively the major bioactive secondary metabolite of the plant [1], and it is now often considered to be a structurally and functionally novel therapeutic lead potentially useful for treatments for inflammatory diseases and cancer [2-9]. However, diverse types of medicinally used Andrographis paniculata extracts contain other structurally analogous labdane diterpenoids, oxygenated flavonoids, and numerous other bioactive secondary plant metabolites. Some of the major medical conditions commonly treated with such extracts is diabetes, liver disorders, common cold, dyspepsia and other diseases of the gastrointestinal tract [10]. Therapeutic efficacies in pre-clinical and clinical settings are summarized in Figure 3.