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1. Introduction
The genus Cinnamomum belonging to the family Lauraceae comprises 270 species which occur naturally in Asia and Australia. About 20 species occur in India. The etymology is derived from the Greek word “Kinnamomon” (meaning spice). The Greeks borrowed the word from Phoenicians, indicating that they traded with the East from early times. The specific epithet “tamala” is after a local name of the plant in India. Cinnamomum tamala Nees and Eberm. is an evergreen, medium-sized tree (attaining 8–12 meters height and a girth of 150 cm), found in India along the North-Western Himalayas, in Sikkim, Assam, Mizoram, and Meghalya [1]. It is also found in tropical and subtropical Asia, Australia, Pacific region, and South Asia [2, 3]. It is distributed from near Indus to Bhutan [4]. Natural stands of C. tamala are mostly found in shady moist habitats. The leaves, known as tejpat, tejpatta, or tejpata in Hindi, tamalpatra in Marathi, and Indian Cassia in English, are usually olive green in color, may have some brownish spots and have three veins down the length of the leaf. The leaves of Cinnamomum tamala are used extensively in the cuisines of India (particularly in the Moghul cuisine of North India) and as spice in the food industry because of its special aroma [5], that is, clove-like-taste and pepper like odour. It also acts as an insect repellent. In Kashmir they are used as a substitute for paan (betel leaves). It is also used in industries as fragrance component in soaps, detergents, cosmetics and perfumes, and toothpastes. The leaves of this tree have medicinal properties and are used in treatment of numerous ailments [6, 7]. It is used as food, fodder, medicine, and timber in Uttarakhand Himalayan region [8].
Ayurveda describes the use of leaves of tejpatta in the treatment of ailments such as anorexia, bladder disorders, dryness of mouth, coryza, diarrhoea, nausea, and spermatohoea [7]. The leaf of C. tamala is a brain tonic, antihelminthic, diuretic, is good for the liver and spleen and is useful in inflammation. Its bark is useful for the treatment of gonorrhoea [9]. Besides these, various pharmacological activities have been detected in natural products from Cinnamomum species. The essential oil from Cinnamomum tamala exhibits antifungal [10, 11], antibacterial [12], antidermatophytic...