Luffa echinata Roxb.-A review on its ethanomedicinal, phytochemical and pharmacological perspective

Ayurveda is the most ancient traditional system of medicine in India with sound philosophical, experiential and experimental basis, which is used to treat the human disease[1]. Due to increased side effects, high cost of new drugs, lack of curative treatment at root level and development of new disease, people not only in developing countries but also in developed countries rely on herbal medicines[2]. India has 2.4% of world’s area with 8% of global biodiversity; more than 1.5 million practitioners are using herbs or herbal formulations based on 25 000 medicinally important plants, for the effective management and treatment of human diseases[3]. Though scientific studies have been carried out by scientists on many Indian botanicals, but still numerous drugs have entered the international market through the exploration of ethanopharmacology and traditional medicine[4]. Luffa echinata (L. echinata ) belongs to family Cucurbitaceae which includes about 130 different genera and about 800 species of medicinally important plants[5,6]. Few plants from this family posses ribosomal inactivation proteins (such as MAP30, Luffin A and B) and triterpenes with immunomodulator, antiretroviral, anti-