• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.207-216
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• 2009

Bauhinia variegata Linn (Mountain Ebony) is a medium-sized, deciduous tree, found throughout India, ascending to an altitude of 1,300 m in the Himalayas. The plant is widely used by the tribals throughout India and popular in various indigenous systems of medicine like Ayurveda, Unani and Homoeopathy. Following the various traditional claims on utility of this plant in curing number of diseases, considerable efforts have been made by researchers to verify its utility through pharmacological screenings. The notable biological activities reported are anthelmintic, antiulcer, antitumour, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antigoitrogenic, hepatoprotective and haemagglutination. Industrially, the plant is widely used for the manufacture of wood wool board, production of tannin, oil, gum and fibre. The plant is also utilized for afforestation to conserve the nature. In this article, a comprehensive account of the cultivation, microscopy, phytochemical investigation, traditional and biologically evaluated medicinal uses of B variegata is presented.