| Introduction: |
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| Terminalia chebula is known as Haritaki in Sanskrit because it is sacred to Lord Shiva. In India it is one of the three components of an herbal preparation popularly known as Triphala. T. Chebula is native plant of India and south East Asia. Terminalia chebula has been used in many different cultures as traditional medicine. In Myanmar, medicinal T. chebula fruit is used as a laxative and tonic agent. In China, it is applied as a carminative, astringent and expectorant agent. In Malaysia, medicinal T. chebula fruit is believed to exhibit anti-diarrheic, styptic, antibilious and anti-dysenteric activities. Other scientifically proved pharmacological activities of T. chebula include anticancer, antidiabetic, antimutagenic, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral activities, etc. |
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| Major Chemical Constituents: |
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| Some of the major chemical constituents of Terminalia chebula are triterpenoid glycosides, tannins and polyphenols. |
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| Pharmacological Actions |
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Anti-oxidant activity:1,2,3
One study was conducted to check antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of Terminalia chebula fruit against isoproterenol-induced oxidative stress in rats. The result showed that it has significant antioxidant activity. Results of another study showed that all tested extracts and pure compounds of T. chebula exhibited antioxidant activity at different magnitudes of potency. |
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Anti-microbial activity:4,5,6
Antibacterial activity of Terminalia chebula was tested against Helicobacter pylori. Water extracts of Terminalia chebula inhibited urease activity of H. pylori, which signified antibacterial activity of T. chebula. Gallic acid and its ethyl ester from T. chebula exhibited strong anti-microbial activity against methicillin-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus. In another study, T. chebula extract showed a potent wide spectrum of antibacterial activity against human pathogenic Gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. |
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| Herb Drug interactions: |
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| There are no known herb drug interactions. |
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| Safety: |
| No health hazards or side effects are known in conjunction with the proper administration of designated therapeutic dosages. |
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| Reference |
| 1 |
Suchalatha S and Srinivasulu C, Antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of Terminalia chebula fruit against isoproterenol-induced oxidative stress in rats. Indian journal of Biochemistry & Biophysics, august 2005; 42: 246-249 |
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| 2 |
Hua-Yew CHENG, Ta-Chen LIN, Kuo-Hua YU, Chien-Min YANG, and Chun-Ching LIN, Antioxidant and Free Radical Scavenging Activities of Terminalia chebula. Biol. Pharm. Bull 2003; 26(9): 1331-1335 |
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| 3 |
Hyun-Sun LEE, Nam Hee WON, Kyoung Heon KIM, Hojoung LEE, Woojin JUN, and Kwang-Won LEE. Antioxidant Effects of Aqueous Extract of Terminalia chebula in Vivoand in Vitro. Biol. Pharm. Bull 2005; 28(9): 1639-1644 |
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| 4 |
Malekzadeh F., Antibacterial activity of black myrobalan (Terminalia chebula Retz) against Helicobacter pylori. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents; 18 (1): 85-88 |
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| 5 |
Sato Y, Oketani H,Singyouchi K, Ohtsubo T, Kihara M, Shibata H, Higuti T., Extraction and purification of effective antimicrobial constituents of Terminalia chebula against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Biol Pharm Bull. 1997 Apr; 20(4): 401-4. |
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| 6 |
Phadke SA, Kulkarni SD, Screening of in vitro antibacterial activity of Terminalia chebula, Eclipta alba and Ocimum sanctum. Indian Journal of Medical Sciences 1989; 43 (5): 113. |
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