Botanical and Pharmacognostic Profile of Moringa oleifera

Pulukuri Divya Bhargavi^1,*, Divya Bhargavi Avala², Pavani Gummadilli³, Siddhartha Lolla⁴

Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

Moringa oleifera Lam., a member of the Moringaceae family, is a fast-growing, drought-tolerant tree recognised by names such as the miracle tree, horseradish tree and drumstick tree. This chapter thoroughly analyses the botanical and pharmacognostic attributes of M. oleifera - its taxonomy, morphology, microscopic features, physicochemical parameters and phytochemical constituents. Pharmacognostic profiling emphasises the abundance of bioactive components (alkaloids, phenolic acids, glycosides, sterols, glucosinolates, flavonoids, terpenes and fatty acids) and supports quality and authenticity assessment of the crude drug.

Author Affiliations

• ¹ Dept. of Pharmacognosy, University College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Acharya Nagarjuna University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India.

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