Traditional and Contemporary uses, Phytochemistry and Pharmacology of Psoralea corylifolia Linn.

Ambesh Jha; Bonju Pokharel; Bishundayal Prasad Patel; Ram Dev Chaudhary

doi:10.51648/jac92

Authors

Ambesh Jha Third professional (BAMS) Student, Ayurveda Campus & Teaching Hospital, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
Bonju Pokharel Third Professional (BAMS) Student, Ayurveda Campus & Teaching Hospital, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
Bishundayal Prasad Patel Head; Department of Dravyaguna Vigyan, Ayurveda Campus & Teaching Hospital, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9795-9976
Ram Dev Chaudhary Senior Consultant gastroenterologist; Provincial Hospital, Madhesh Province Institute of Health Sciences, Janakpurdham, Nepal

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51648/jac92

Keywords:

Bakuchi, Psoralea corylifolia, Leucoderma, Switra, Psoriasis

Abstract

Background: Bakuchi (Psoralea corylifolia Linn.) is an endangered and traditionally
important medicinal plant of the family Fabaceae. It is used worldwide for the treatment
of several ailments due to the presence of various bioactive constituents that are mainly
concentrated in the seeds and fruits of plants. It has been used since time immemorial as
a popular drug for shvitra (leukoderma), kustha (skin diseases), osteopathy, rejuvenation,
aphrodisiac, etc.
Materials and Methods: Primarily, classical texts of Ayurveda including Brihat trayi (The
greater triad), Laghu trayi (The lesser triad), and Nighantu (Lexicons) were reviewed.
Establishing an overview, library resources, and online collections of books and other online
databases such as Pubmed Central, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, ERIC, IEEE Xplore,
ScienceDirect, DOAJ, JSTOR, Henari, Google Scholar, NepJoL were explored with search
words like “Bakuchi”, “Psoralea corylifolia” for its botanical characteristics, traditional and
contemporary uses, pharmacognosy, phytochemical constituents, pharmacology, toxicology,
and agricultural and miscellaneous aspects.
Results and Discussion: It was found that Psoralea corylifolia has been used since the Vedic
period for the treatment of various skin diseases like psoriasis, and vitiligo in Ayurveda and
several metabolic and systemic diseases in Traditional Chinese Medicine, by its various
names and formulations. Furthermore, under appropriate dosages no any toxic effect of the
plant was reported in an animal experiment conducted by Uthirapathy and Ahamad.
Conclusion: The seed of P. corilifolia Linn is commonly used in skin diseases such as
Switra (leukoderma), Vicharchika (psoriasis) whereas anti-oxidant, anti-diabetic, anti-lipogenic, anti-tuberculous, anti-carcinogenic, memory enhancing, anti-venom and
aphrodisiac has also been reported as its major pharmacological activities. Clinical trials
can be further conducted to evaluate the pharmacotherapeutics of P. corylifolia to develop
the well-established evidence-based therapy