Abstract

MEDICINAL PLANTS SECONDARY METABOLITES USED IN PHARMACEUTICAL IMPORTANCE-AN OVERVIEW

*Ramasubramania Raja. R M. Sreenivasulu

ABSTRACT

Medicinal plants are the most important source of life saving drugs for the majority of the world‟s population. Plants have formed the basis of sophisticated traditional medicine system that has been in existence thousands of years in countries such as China and India. The compounds which synthesized from the secondary metabolisms are socalled secondary metabolites. Secondary metabolites are formed in only specific organisms, or groups of organisms, are expression of the individuality of species. Secondary metabolites are not necessarily produced under all conditions, and in the vast majority of cases the function of these Compounds and their benefit to the organism are not yet known. It is this area of secondary metabolism that provides most of the pharmacologically active natural products. This review deals with the production of secondary metabolites in valuable medicinal herbs with different pharmacological activity like Anti malarial, anti diabetic, Hepatoprotective, Anti ulcer, anti inflammatory including Antimicrobial activity.

Keywords: Hepatoprotective, Antimicrobial activity, Anti malarial, anti diabetic.