Ethnomedicinal claims and Biological activities of Dendrophthoe falcata (L. f.) Ettingsh.

Abstract

Dendrophthoe falcata (L. f.) Ettingsh belongs to the family Loranthaceae, is an evergreen hemiparasitic plant, popularly known as ‘Vanda’ in the Indian Ayurvedic system of medicine. It is indigenously said to have potential medicinal properties. It is reported to possess potential to cure various ailments like gynecological uses, gastrointestinal disease, urolithiasis, wound healing, cholesterol reduction, analgesic etc. The present study is an attempt to assess the credibility of various folk claims on medicinal uses of Dendrophthoe falcata in view of scientific studies done so far.