Artemisia indica Willd.: Ethnobotany, Phytochemistry, Pharmacological Attributes, and Safety Profile

Abstract

The present book chapter is about the phytochemistry, pharmacological properties, and ethonobotanical, safety, and toxicological aspects of the species, Artemisia indica. This genus Artemisia belonging to Asteraceae family comprises of more than 400 species, among which A. indica (also called mugwort) is a perennial medicinal herb found majorly in cold temperate zones of Asia including Pakistan, China, India, Thailand, Korea, Japan, etc. It is extensively utilized by the traditional people in many countries for treating Malaria, chronic fever, dyspepsia, ringworms, hepatic diseases, and diarrhea-like health problems. Artemisinin is one of the prime phytochemical components accountable for the potential antimalarial activity, found in this species. Besides this, the plant comprises chiefly sesquiterpenes and davanone in its volatile oil. Modern pharmacological studies have revealed that its crude extracts exhibit a wide range of pharmacological activities such as anti-inflammatory, anthelmintic, anticancer, antidiabetic, antimicrobial, antidepressant, and many more as a result of the existence of several bioactive components in it. Few toxicological evaluation have documented on this species but in depth experiments, safety, and toxicological evaluation are needed to explore medicinal properties of this species more. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022.