Indian Pteridophytes Used in Folk Remedies

Abstract

The medicinal qualities of ferns, real or imaginary, are mentioned as early as 300 B.C. by the Greek philosopher Theophrastus (Corne, 1924a) and by his Indian contemporaries Sushrut and Char.ak. Dioscorides also speaks of brake fern, male fern, and others. Among the medicinal plants mentioned in old Indian texts, two are definitely ferns. One of these, called Myurshikha or Myurpankha, meaning peacock's feather, has been identified as Adiantum caudatum L. by some persons; others consider it to be Actiniopteris radiata (Swartz) Link. The other drug called Hanspad or Hansraj, meaning swan's foot, appears to be some species of Adiantum, most probably A. capillus-veneris L., A. lunulatum Burm. f. or A. venustum D. Don. In addition to these plants there are about 40 species of pteridophytes used as drugs. Of these Dryopteris filix-mas (L.) Schott is included in the pharmacopoeias of many countries. In the 1955 Pharmacopoeia of India this plant is replaced by the allied species, D. odontoloma (Moore) C. Chr., D. marginata (Wall.) Christ, and D. schimperiana (Hochst.) C. Chr., and in the 1966 Pharmacopoeia of India by D. odontoloma, D. marginata, D. chrysocoma (Christ) C. Chr., D. ramosa (Hope) C. Chr., and D. barbigera (Hook.) Kuntze. Lycopodium clavatum is included in the Indian Pharmaceutical Codex (Mukerji, 1953) and in the proposed Indian Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia. Equisetum arvense L. is included in the U.S.S.R. Pharmacopoeia (1961) and in the German Pharmacopoeia (Wealth of India), and Puri (1969) has recommended its inclusion in the Indian Pharmacopoeia. The species of Adiantum mentioned above are used unofficially in some of the patented cough preparations marketed in India. The rest of the plants mentioned below are used in domestic and rural medicines.