A miracle plant for the herbal pharmacy; Henna (Lawsonia inermis)

Abstract

Lawsonia inermis is a plant that is widely distributed across the Sahel and Central Africa. It also exists in the Middle East. It is a much-branched glabrous shrub or small tree of about 2-6 m high, which may be spiny. Lawsonia inermis plant is cultivated in Africa and Asia for both medicinal and industrial (dyeing) purposes. Just as people use it for staining hair, nails and beard, it is pointed that Lawsonia inermis is used for various fields in medicine. Hepatoprotective and immunomodulatory effect, antimicrobial, anthelminthic, antifungal, antitrypanosomal, abortifacient, antioxidant and anticancer activity of Lawsonia inermis were reported from all over the world by previous studies. The early studies about Lawsonia inermis against to Ehrlich Tumors in mice in Turkey were started by Dr. Emin Zümrütdal from Adana Numune Training and Research Hospital and his colleagues at University of Cukurova Adana, Turkey. This study aimed to review the available literature on some of the ethno-botanical uses of seeds, leaves and roots of Lawsonia inermis plant. © 2012 Asian Network for Scientific Information.