A REVIEW ON PHARMACOLOGY OF ACORUS CALAMUS – AN ENDANGERED MEDICINAL PLANT

Abstract

In Ayurveda many medicinal plants are described and are widely used by traditional practitioners for curing and controlling various diseases. Acorus calamus  is one of the important herbs known for its medicinal properties.  It is a perennial, aromatic herb with creeping rhizomes commonly known as sweet flag and contains a wide variety of phytoconstituents having different medicinal properties.The active constituents such as phenyl propanoids, sesquiterpenes and monoterpenes as well as xanthone glycosides, flavones, lignans, steroids obtained from the plant has been proved to show various pharmacological activites such as insecticidal, larvicidal, antibacterial, mutagenic, cytotoxic, hepatoprotective, anticonvulsant, neuroleptic, smooth muscle relaxant and smooth muscle stimulant activity. This review is done to reveal the scope and application of Acorus calamus in the pharmaceutical and agricultural field to bring out more drugs and natural products out of it and also deals with various marketed product of Acorus calamus.