PHYTOCHEMICAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE OF GENUS URTICA - A REVIEW

Genus Urtica belongs to family Urticaceae and commonly known by name of nettles. The plant Urtica has been used as a folk medicine and as a food source from a long time. It has been used frequently for its medicinal properties since the Bronze age (3000 - 2000 B.C.) as a traditional herbal remedy in treatment of variety of diseases as rheumatism gouts, nephritis, haematuria, jaundice, menorrhagia, anemia, eczema, arthritis. It has been used for a long time as first-aid remedy in treatment of infirmities in case of bites and stings, burns, hives and breast feeding problems. Phytochemicals evaluation of the plant revealed presence of various chemical compounds like phytosterols, saponins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, tannins, proteins and amino-acids that showed beneficial potential of the plant to get commercially cultivated and get used for the natural drugs and medicine. The plant has been reported to have various pharmacological activities as antioxidants, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-ulcer, anti-viral, immuno-modulatory, hepatoprotective, anti-diabetic, anti-colitis and anticancer effect.