Immunomodulatory Indian Medicinal Plants

The traditional Indian system of medicine (Ayurveda) describes different modalities involved in the prevention and treatment of disease and stresses upon the role of diet, life style and drugs as cornerstones of therapy. Medicinal plant products are known to modify different aspects of human physiology and exert an alleviating influence on several pathophysiological states, and concepts of immunity and immunomodulation can be traced back several hundred years to the history of medicine. However, it is only in recent years that the scientific concept of immunomodulation has been forwarded, and it now appears that some of the beneficial effects of Indian medicinal plants, proposed in Ayurveda by Charaka and Sushruta Samhita, may be due to these "immunomodulatory" effects. Several research groups have worked on the scientific basis of such immunomodulatory effects of plant products, and as a result, considerable data has accrued. The present review summarizes some of these experimental data in an attempt to justify some of their beneficial effects in health and disease, and also to provide insights into the future research in this area.