Botanical origin, constituents & uses of medicinal plants used to cure dengue fever

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study is to determine various possible plants that are having anti-dengue activity which can be further employed to determine the active biological ingredient responsible for this activity and can be extracted for its practical use as there is no specific treatment for dengue but dengue fever is spreading at an alarming rate worldwide affecting millions of people every year and is complicated by Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF) and Dengue Shock Syndrome (DSS). Method: A systematic review of the available literature was conducted for the papers published up to year 2015. This article reviews various plants having anti-dengue activity along with their biological and geographical origin. Conclusion: Constituents derived from medicinal plants may be used for cure and control of this disease. Need of the hour is to develop a drug that is safe, effective, non-toxic, can increase platelet count and has efficacy against all serotypes. Structural analysis of their active constituents may lead to the development of effective anti-dengue drugs.