Role of medicinal plants in corona infection with reference to Cinchona species

Abstract

Corona virus diseases 2019 (COVID-19) is a life threatening global health Scenario, WHO (World Health Organization) has declared as their diseases is pandemic and is a global issue. The severity of this diseases has caused highest death rates from December-2019 to October 2020 World wide Medicinal plants and plant based drugs play a major role in preventing the diseases and enhance the immune system. This article reviews diseases the major global issue pandemic corona virus diseases (COVID-19) and Medicinal plants used to treat and prevent the coronavirus with respect to Cinchona species which has the medicinal properties to control the disease. The genus Cinchona Linn (Rubiaceae) comprises about 40 species of evergreen shrubs or trees growing naturally in South America. Species of the genus are medicinally very important. Their bark yields a variety of useful alkaloids, of which the most important are quinine, quinidine and cinchonidine. Quinine is a very effective drug for the treatment of maleria, and quinidine for the treatment of heart disease. On account of the medicinal value of Cinchona, several species have been domesticated in India, and a few grown as plantation crops in the Nilgiris and Anamalai in South India. Some species are also found growing wild around the genus Cinchona Linn (Rubiaceae) comprises about 40 species of evergreen shrubs or trees.