Herbal bioactives in treatment of inflammation: An overview

Inflammation, an important event of cellular defensive system, can be triggered by a variety of factors such as pathogens, allergens, damaged cells and toxic compounds. Inflammation indicates tissue remodeling and repair, and is characterized by redness, heat, swelling, pain and loss of function.Conventional treatment approaches for treatment of inflammation/mediated disorders are associated with various side effects. Herbal remedies are comparatively safe with few side effects. Therefore, the current review summarizes different phytoconstituents which have exhibited their anti-inflammatory potential in various preclinical studies.Google, PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus database have been searched for potentially relevant literature on plant based anti-inflammatory agents. Search was performed using different key words such as “inflammation”, “herbal drugs”, “anti-inflammatory drugs”, “phytomedicine for inflammation” and “plant derived drugs for inflammation”. Further studies were screened through assessment of abstracts and previously published review articles.A number of natural products are reported to exhibit anti-inflammatory property in various preclinical and clinical studies and some of them are currently available as herbal formulations. Prominent phytoconstituents exhibiting anti-inflammatory activity include shagoal (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), curcumin (Curcuma longa L.), boswellic acid (Boswellia serrata Roxb.), quercetin (Allium cepa L.), rosmarinic acid (Rosmarinus officinalis L.), berberine (Coptis chinensis Franch) and catechin (Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze).Phytoconstituents have been reported to exhibit anti-inflammatory property by targeting enzymes and modulating inflammatory mediators and/or by other pathways. Although various preclinical studies have demonstrated promising results against inflammation, however, further research is required to ensure their safety and efficacy in human beings.