Description

Since primeval times, plants have been utilized as a potent source of medicine to treat many life-threatening diseases. One of the potential ways to evaluate the importance of a medicinal plant is to identify its active chemical constituents and pharmacological activities. Thus, the present study involves a thorough discussion about the general description, phytochemistry and medicinal properties of five different plants: Gymnema sylvestre, Momordica charantia, Coccinia cordifolia, Trigonella foenum-graecum and Lagerstroemia speciosa. All five selected plants belong to different families but possess similar pharmacological activities such as anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-nociceptive, hypolipidemic and so on. Here, the authors have reviewed all reported chemical constituents as well as the pharmacological activities of the examined plants.