European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

PRELIMINARY SCREENING OF PHYTOCONSTITUENTS OF VARIOUS EXTRACTS OF Alpinia speciosa RHIZOME

V. Subhadra Devi*., Dr. M. Gopal Rao and Dr. M. Uma Maheswari

ABSTRACT

For the treatment of various diseases, globally herbal medicines have been used traditionally. In the last decade, the study of plant extract has attracted attention in curing various challenging diseases. In the indigenous system of medicine Alpinia speciosa is one of the plants that is used for many centuries. It is also known as Alpinia zerumbet. Different parts of the plant root, rhizome, seed and flower have medicinal values. The flower of the plant is specifically used as an ornamental plant. The therapeutic action of the plant is due to presence of phytochemical constituents that are present in the plant. The herb is beneficial in treating digestive, spleen, liver and abdominal pains. Many pharmacological activities viz., antiulcer, myorelaxant, antispasmodic, anti inflammatory, anti emetic, antioxidant, and cytoprotective and spasmolytic activity had been reported in different plant extracts. Based on many scientific researches this article is reviewed to reveal the preliminary phytochemical constituents aspects of the herb for the beneficial potential that might be useful for further research.

Keywords: Alpinia speciosa, Zingiberaceae, volatile oils, ethanolic extract.