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Bapi Ghosh*
Department of Botany, ABN Seal College, Cooch Behar 736101, West Bengal, India
Email: bpghosh88@gmail.com
Received-01.06.2025, Revised-16.06.2025, Accepted-29.06.2025
Abstract: Physalis minima Linn is an important medicinal plant widely used in traditional medicine in India. Various parts of the plant are employed in the treatment of several conditions such as inflammation, fever, hypertension, cancer, spleen disorders, and diabetes. Characterization of the plant across multiple aspects has been determined to enable accurate identification. Key phytochemicals such as flavonoids, phenols, steroids, and tannins have been extracted from different plant parts using various extraction methods and these compounds possess anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. Physalin and withanolides, two potent steroidal compounds that exhibit anti-inflammatory activates through mechnanisms such as inhibition of NO production, NF-κB pathway, COX-2 expression, STAT3, upregulation of HO-1 expression, blocking MAPK signalling pathway and secretion of IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α. These compounds also exhibit anti-cancerous activity through caspase-3, P53 and c-Myc apoptotic pathways and PI3K/AKT and RAS/MAPK signalling pathways.
Keywords: Anti-inflammatory, Anti-cancer, Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, Physalis minima, Phytochemicals
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