Pharmacognostical Studies on Artemisia Annua

With increasing demand in the field of herbal medicines and cosmetics, it has become necessary and pertinent to probe into the area of systematic knowledge about herbal drugs. There is a need for the application of this knowledge in authentification, detailed study and practical utilization of crude drugs. The present paper deals with the taxonomy, anatomy, powder study pertaining to organoleptic, microscopic, fluorescence and physical constant evaluations of Artemisia annua 1. INTRODUCTION Pharmacognosy is the study of the structural, physical, chemical and sensory characters of crude drugs of animals, plants and mineral origin. The search for biologically active compounds from natural source has always been of great interest to researchers looking for new source of drugs useful in infectious diseases. Higher plants have played a vital role as the source of important therapeutic agents. Only a small percentage of higher plant species have so far been exploited and much remains to be done. A. annua belongs to the family Asteraceae. Literature survey of this plant indicates its high medicinal value. Artemisia annua L. (annual wormwood, sweet wormwood, sweet annie), a highly aromatic annual herb of Asiatic and eastern European origin, is widely dispersed throughout the temperate region. The species has naturalized in the United States and is sold on a limited scale as a dried herb for the floral and craft trade where it is used as an aromatic wreath. The plant has traditionally been grown in India China as a medicinal and, more recently in Europe for its aromatic leaves which are used in flavoring beverages. Recent research in the Peoples Republic of China with traditional herbal medicine has brought attention to A. annua, the source of Qinghaosu (artemisinin), a compound that shows promise as an anti-malarial agent Artemisinin has also been reported to be a potent plant inhibitor with potential as a natural herbicide Artemisinin and its derivatives, artemether and artesunate, have been studied for their efficacy as antimalarial agents. In in vitro trials conducted in China, all three compounds have been effective against the erythrocytic stages of two chloroquine-resistant Hainan strains of Plasmodium falciparum, the malarial parasite, at lower minimum effective concentrations than chloroquine, the most commonly used drug. Artemisinin and its derivatives have effectively treated malaria and cerebral malaria in human subjects with no apparent adverse reactions nor side effects With P. falciparum developing resistance to chloroquine and pyrimethamine/sulfonamide alternative treatments based on new compounds such …