Ethnobotany and Ethanopharmacology of Butea Monosperma (Lam) Kuntze- A Compressive Review

In traditional medicine, there are many natural crude drugs that have the potential to treat many disease and disorders, one of them is Butea monosperma (Lam.) Taub (Syn. Butea frondosa; Family Fabaceae) popularly known as 'palas', and commonly known as ‘Flame of forest’. Butea monosperma is a tree of tropical and subtropical climate found throughout the drier parts of India, often gregarious in forests, open grasslands and wastelands. It grows on a wide variety of soils including shallow, gravelly sites, black cotton soil, clay loams, and even saline or waterlogged soils. It is an erect, medium sized tree of 12-15 m high, with a crooked trunk and irregular branches. There are various species of Butea monosperma available over the world. The leaves 3 foliate, large and stipulate. Number of constituents belonging to imides, lactones, flavonoids, sterols, and alkaloids has been reported from various species of Butea. Butea monosperma is considered as a good source for products such as fodder, fuel, fibre, timber, gum or resin, dyestuff and traditionally in number of ailments. Pharmacologically Butea monosperma has been reported for various activities such as anthelmintic, anticonceptive, anticonvulsive, antidiabetic, antidiarrhoeal, antiestrogenic and antifertility, antiinflammatory, antimicrobial, antifungal, antibacterial, antistress, chemopreventive, haemaggultinating, hepatoprotective, radical scavenging, thyroid inhibitory, antiperoxidative and hypoglycemic effects and wound healing activities. The present review discusses the morphology, ethanobotany, phytochemical constituents, and traditional uses of each part of plants as well products of plant and pharmacological activities of each part of plant in details.