Cinchona: A Crude Drug

Traditional medicines have occupied a huge space in our life because it helps us to treat different life threatening diseases with fewer side effects. As we all know that 56 percent geographical area of India is covered by a plant life, hence itself it is a treasure of crude drugs. There are many examples of crude drugs like curcuma, margosa, basil, vasaka, vinca, cinchona etc. In this pandemic of Covid-19 several countries are using Hydroxy-chloroquine (HCQ) to save many lives which are obtain from very well known crude drug that is Cinchona. It is a dried bark of cultivated trees of Cinchona officinalis belonging to family Rubiaceae. Its chemical constituents are quinine, quinidine, cinchonine, and cinchonidine. It is used as anti-malarial, anti-pyretic, anti-asthmatic, cardio depressant, oxytocics and in neuralgia.