An overview on anti-inflammatory properties and chemo-profiles of plants used in traditional medicine

Plant drugs have been the major source for treatment of diseases for a long time. They have been used in traditional medicine on the basis of experiences and practice. With the advent of modern systems of medicine need has been felt to investigate the active constituents present in these plants. Various molecules have been isolated, characterized and tested for their related pharmacological activities. The active molecules have provided significant leads in the development of more effective synthetic molecules. Inflammation is the major condition associated with various diseases. Rheumatoid arthritis is one of the challenging disorders associated with inflammatory conditions. Various molecules have been isolated from plant drugs which have been proven very effective in such conditions. For example: a potent anti-inflammatory analgesic molecule Aspirin was developed from Salicin, a compound isolated from bark of Salix alba Linn. This paper provides an overview on the recent findings on some plants having anti-inflammatory activity and chemical constituents isolated from them.