Monograph of Tobacco (nicotiana Tabacum)

The use of tobacco dates back to the ancient civilizations of the Americas, where it played a central role in religious occasions. The peoples smoked tobacco in cigars and pipes and chewed it with lime, for its pleasurable euphoriant effects. In the 16 th century, Europeans spread the use of tobacco in North America, while the Spanish bring it into Europe. In the 1559, Jean Nicot, the French ambassador to Portugal, wrote about the medicinal properties of tobacco and sent seeds to the French royal family, and promoted the use throughout the world. Because of his great work on tobacco plant, his name was given to its genus, Nicotiana, and its active principle, nicotine. The Materia Medica of India provides a great deal of information on the Ayurveda, folklore practices and traditional aspects of therapeutically important natural products tobacco one of them. Tobacco is processed from the leaves of plants in the genus i.e. Nicotiana. Nicotine tartrate used as a pesticide as well as in medicines. It is commonly used as a cash crop in countries like India, China, Cuba and the United States. Any plant of the genus Nicotiana of the Solanaceae family is called tobacco. The tobacco products are manufactured from the leaves, cured & dried and used in cigars and cigarettes, snuff, and pipe and chewing tobacco. Tobacco plants are also used in bioengineering and as ornamentals plant. The pharmacological activities of Nicotiana tabacum is mostly due to its content of nicotine which stimulates the nicotine receptors leading to release of substances such as acetylcholine, nor-epinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, vasopressin and growth hormone. Nicotine is a major component of tobacco has been demonstrated to accelerate angiogenesis and wound healing in genetically diabetic mice. The ethnomedical uses include the use of the decoction of leaves as antispasmodics, diuretics, emetics, expectorants, sedatives, and in rheumatic swellings, anesthetics, antibacterial, antimicrobial, anthelmintic, anticonvulsants and for anti-fungal activities. Other use includes; treatment of asthma by Indians, treatment of worms in Africa, treatment of wounds in Columbia and treatment of dysmenorrheal in Cuba among others. The plant Nicotiana tobaccum also have the great activities on peripheral nervous system, central nervous system, cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, exocrine glands, Hematopoietic system, algesia, Alzheimer and on body weight.