insights on the pharmacological, phytochemical and ethnobotanical aspects of artemisia roxburghiana: a rather less explored but therapeutically important species of lower himalayas

Artemisia roxburghiana wall. ex besser, belongs to the family asteraceae (compositae), is widely used in traditional medicine in asia to treat various ailments like diabetes, rheumatism, malaria, hepatitis and helminths. in the present study, the relevant literature collected from various offline and online sources including scopus, web of science and pubmed, was thoroughly reviewed for phytochemistry, ethnobotany and pharmacology of a. roxburghiana. the literature survey revealed that a. roxburghiana contains a wide range of secondary metabolites like flavonoids, terpenoids, coumarins, steroids and fatty acids. the plant has been reported to be an important source of many bioactive compounds such as artemisinin, scopoletin and taraxeryl acetate. it showed anti-protozoal, anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory and antidiabetic activities in various experimental models. the present review concludes that the plant can be used to treat many human ailments; however, further research is warranted to develop it as a medicine.