A Taxonomical, Morphological and Pharmacological Review of Marrubium vulgare L., An Old Medicinal Plant in Iran

Marrubium vulgare L. (common name: Horehound, hoarhound) is one of the medicinal plants which has been used in the treatment of stomach, arrhythmia, asthma, jaundice, lung diseases and liver disorders in Iranian traditional medicine. Other properties are expectorant, antispasmodic, tonic, anti-infective agent and externally, it has been used in ulcers and wounds. Flowers in M. vulgare generally appear in early spring and regularly visited by readily nectar gathering bees. The plant is a good candidate for phytoremediation of Hg contaminated soils. Previous phytochemical studies showed the presence of alkaloids, lactones, steroids, flavonoids, tannins, phenylpropanoid esters, and diterpenoids in M. vulgare. In this review we focused on the several aspects of taxonomy, morphology, chemical composition and traditional medicine of horehound.