2015, Pages 143–149
Chapter 15 – Use of Ayurvedic Medicinal Plants as Immunomodulators in Geriatrics: Preclinical Studies
- Available online 4 February 2015
In
this century there has been an increased interest globally in
identifying immune modulator compounds that are pharmacologically potent
and have low or no side effects, for use in treating diseases involving
immunological disorders. As plants produce significant amounts of
chemicals that are considered to be immunosuppressants or
immunostimulators, they represent a potential source of new compounds
with immunological activity. Conventional herbal medicines form an
essential part of the healthcare system in India. Ayurveda, the oldest
medical system in the world, contributes potential leads to finding
active and therapeutically useful compounds from plants. Seeing the
growing interest in assessing the immunological capacity of herbal
medicine, in this chapter we discuss 20 rarely reviewed plants reported
to have immunomodulatory properties. Some of the plants reviewed are
part of multiherbal preparations while others are used individually. We
will focus on Indian medicinal plants that have immunomodulatory
properties examined by the modern system of basic science research.
Keywords
- Indian medicinal plants;
- Ayurveda;
- immune modulation
