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Introduction
Traditional healers across the globe utilise a diverse array of botanical species in their Indigenous practices to promote and sustain the health of their respective communities. In recent times, there has been a resurgence of pharmacological interest in phytotherapeutic agents derived from various botanical components or extracts utilized by indigenous ethnic groups. About 40% or more of the therapeutic agents currently used in Western Ghats by the locals are derived or at least partially derived from natural resources, particularly from medicinal plants. Further, the majority of pharmacologically potent compounds obtained from plants have been identified, discovered and purified through follow-up research to substantiate the authenticity of folklore data and ethnomedicinal applications. Consequently, there exists a substantial rationale to elucidate the types of botanical specimens utilised by individuals, the methodologies of their application, and the specific contexts in which these plants demonstrate their effectiveness against various diseases. Furthermore, ayurveda, unani, and sidda, the aboriginal system of native medicines, describe numerous plant species in detail.1
Ethnopharmacology refers to the roles and influences of traditional plants and trees in pharmacological research and drug development. In general, traditional therapeutic usage of plants and trees is referred to as ethnomedicines. Medicinal preparations play a very significant role in pharmacological ailments in humans and animals because of the existence of phytochemical elements. Bioactive phytochemicals are found in all parts, including leaves, fruits, vegetables, and roots, and they offer resistance to a broad spectrum of diseases owing to the implication of essential components and secondary metabolites. Such indispensable secondary components include flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, and phenolics. So far, a wide variety of medicinal plants have been studied, including the production of secondary metabolites from plant tissue culture approaches; some examples include Catharanthus roseusalkaloids, which have effective anti-cancer activity, Caralluma adscendens, which is a potent appetite suppressant, and so on.2-3
The plant Diospyrosbuxifolia (Blume) Heirn., (Ebenaceae family) has a pantropical distribution and includes the genera Diospyros, which have around 500 to 600 species. The species of the genus Diospyros have long been extensively employed in traditional medicine to treat various illnesses. So far, the active main chemicals from Diospyros species have been naphthoquinones, triterpenoids, and tannins.4-6
Diospyros spp. are often tree shrubs or subshrubs...