CLERODENDRUM INFORTUNATUM: AN UNHEEDED BOON OF NATURE

The excavation for new delegates into the chemotherapeutic family and modernization of existing candidates are evergreen goals of cancer researchers. It is quite interesting to make out that the plant kingdom has gifted us with an array of anti-cancer compounds, reporting over 60% of the drugs today coming out from natural sources such as plants, marine organisms, and micro-organisms. With the evolution of modern analytical tools, the chemical composition of active principle in each of the plant parts is being elucidated, and more plants are being analyzed for their pharmacological application and nominated to the list of medicinal plants. Members of the Verbenaceae family, such as Clerodendrum infortunatum crowns in medicinal values tricked with a worthless treasure of phytochemical constituents, many of which remain mysterious. This paper reviews the different aspects of Clerodendrum infortunatum concerning its phytochemical constitution, traditional usage, and potential possibilities in the treatment and prevention of cancer. The source materials were browsed from Pubmed and Google by word search for Verbenaceae, Clerodendrum, Cancer, etc. Clerodendrum infortunatum, the hill glory bower, is reputed as the prodigious treasure for Indian folk medicine owing to its wide-ranging medicinal applications from the ancient era. This paper reviews the glory of the plant in cancer prevention and chemotherapy due to its importance in the regulation of different “Hallmarks of Cancer”. Into the bargain, the articles reviewed here authenticate the anticancer potential of two pentacyclic lupane type triterpenoids, namely betulin and betulinic acid bestowing in the leaves and roots of C. infortunatum.