A Comprehensive Review on Ethnobotany, Phytochemistry and Pharmacology of Rauvolfia L. (Apocynaceae)

Rauvolfia, commonly known as devil peppers belongs to the family Apocynaceae has recorded as native to tropical areas of the world with about 110 species of smaller to medium-large sized shrubs/trees. The ethnopharmacologial studies were attempted to prove the medicinal values of several species of Rauvolfia by many researchers. Although, there is poor exploration on information on the account on ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacological values of various species of Rauvolfia. This review provides a complete and detailed account of ethnobotany, phytochemistry, pharmacology and conservation approaches by plant tissue culture of all the species of Rauvolfia. The detailed investigation on information on ethnobotany, phytochemistry, pharmacology and conservation approaches of Rauvolfia was collected by using various literatures published as books and Journals with special reference to various electronic databases Google Scholar, SciFinder, Springer Link and Wiley, ACS, Web of Science, Science Direct, Pubmed. The tribals, traditional healers, vaidhyas, indigenous medical practitioners, local people etc., from various parts of the world recognized the importance of medicinal values of various species of Rauvolfia and the same has been documented by various researchers. Although, in the modern world of medicines, the phytochemical investigation of Rauvolfia has been initiated much earlier with much concentration on the isolation and characterization of potential compounds and their biological potentialities. The members of species of Rauvolfia were recorded with various pharmacological activities, hypertension, antimicrobial efficiency, antioxidant properties, anti-inflammatory activity, anti-venomous activity, cytotoxic activity, sedative activity, insecticidal activity, antipsychotic activity, cardioprotective activity, antiparasitic activity, etc.