Introduction and Ethnopharmacological relevance:
In the Indian Vedic literature,
Charakasamhita and Sushritasamhita, the Ajwain is known as Bhootika and in the
charaksamhita commentaries, it is termed as Yavanika. The medicinal role of Ajwain fruit is
claimed to be very important in the treatment of many ailments in humans. The plant Trachyspermum
ammi Linn. is a grassy, aromatic annual plant, which falls in the family Umbelliferae.
This plant is grown in India, Iran, Pakistan, Egypt, etc. for its medicinal benefits.
Tribals of India use it for the treatment of diarrhea, arthritis, colic and gastrointestinal problems.
In the traditional preparations, Indian Vaidya guru’s (Ayurveda Guru’s), the ajwain extract
is used as “Admoda Arka”. The Ayurveda doctors, hakims and Vaidya gurus recommend
ajwain for treating headaches, cold, flu and even during painful menstrual periods.
Aim of the Study:
The review paper has compiled the researches conducted on Trachyspermum
ammi, which will help in presenting a collective data of the authentic researches conducted
on the plant worldwide. It will also present information about the phytoconstituents
which can be useful for building up new researches in near future.
Materials and Methods:
This paper has been prepared by collecting all the information
available on the following platforms and the papers were searched from 1975 to 2019. The databases
and electronic journals were well searched including Wiley, Springer link, Google
Scholar, Science Direct, Pubmed. The key terms used for the search were Ajwain, C. copticum,
Trachyspermum ammi and other synonyms of the plant. The search was also done by the
names of chemical constituents present in the plant and the pharmacological effect of the plant.
Results:
The multiple uses of T. ammi are due to the active constituents present in it. As per
the phytochemical studies on the fruits of T. ammi, the presence of various phytoconstituents
has been found such as saponins, flavonoids, alkaloids, glycosides, fixed oils, thymenes,
cumenes, tannins, amino acids, p-cymene, c-terpinene, steroids, etc.
Conclusions:
This paper is focused on presenting a detailed review on the literature, pharmacological
properties, physicochemical studies and the newest researches on the plant. In this
paper, we have also compiled the traditional uses of the herb used by Indian peopleon recommendations
from their Hakims, Vaidya and use of the herbs by many tribes all across India
and Pakistan.
