1) Vernaculars: The vernacular famous names are Mundi (Hindi and Urdu), Aab Hayat (Persian), Kamazarijus (Arabic), Kotatakkarandai (Tamil), Badasorum (Telugu) and Mundirika, Pravrajita (Sanskrit) (Chopra et al., 2002). In Sanskrit word “Mundi” literally means that which “cuts off or “wards off”.

2) Etymology: This plant is named mundi in Unani texts. In Persian, it is known as Mahlaq al-Ras as the flower looks like a bald head (Ghani, 2004).

3) Description of the medicinal herb in Unani literature: As per the Unani encyclopaedia and texts, Mundi is an Indian aromatic weed, found near water. The branches are thin and spread on the ground. Leaves are like mint (Pudina) but small, round and thick. Flowers are rounded, big and similar to wheat, flower reddish-blue with fragrance and mildly bitter taste. It’s all parts that are aromatic. It is of two types small and big. The big one is called Mahamundi (S. Africans) (Ghani, 2004).

4) Temperament (Mizaj): The temperament of the plant is warm in 2^nd degree and wet in 2^nd degree (Kabir al-Din, 2007; Mohiuddin, 2004). Or cold in 1^st degree and dry in 1^st degree (Ghani, 2004).

5) Ethnomedicinal properties (Af’al) in Unani medicine: Musaffῑ-i-Dam (blood purifier) (Ghani, 2004; Kabir al-Din, 2007; Mohiuddin, 2004); Mufattih (deobstruent) (Kabir al-Din, 2007); Muqawwῑ al-‘Ayn (eye tonic) (Kabir al-Din, 2007; Muqawwῑ-i-A‘dā’ Ra’ῑsa (tonic for vital organs) Muqawwῑ-i-Bāh (aphrodisiac), (Ghani, 2004; Kabir al-Din, 2007; Mohiuddin, 2004); Antitubercular properties (Ghani, 2004; Mohiuddin, 2004); Muqawwῑ-i-Mi‘da, Mukhrij wa Qātil-i-Dῑdān-i- Am‘ā’, Muqawwῑ-i-Jigar (Mohiuddin, 2004)

6) Therapeutic uses in classical Unani texts: The whole plant of Mundi is very useful in various diseases.

a) Effect on the nervous system: The whole plant is employed to increase memory power. Its ‘Arq or Sharbat (distillate or syrup) is useful in melancholia and with Lemoni Kagzi (lemon) in epilepsy. Orally, its plant with sugar for 40 days is useful in Saudavi (black bile) cognitive diseases. Its powder is useful as Muqawwῑ-i-A‘dā’ Ra’ῑsa (tonic for vital organs) (Mohiuddin, 2004).

e) Effect on the cardiovascular system: It is useful in Khafaqān (palpitation) (Mohiuddin, 2004).

7) Dosage: 15-20g as a powder; 12 g in the form of Joshānda (Hakeem, 2002; Kabir al-Din, 2007; Standardization of Single Drug of Unani Medicine, 1987)

8) Adverse effects: It adversely may affect to intestine and kidney

9) Corrective: Juice of Bhangra Siyah (Eclipta prostrata whole plant).

10) Substitutes: Brahamdandi (Tricholepis glaburima), Sarphoka (Tephrosia purpurea L.) (Kabir al-Din, 2007; Standardization of Single Drug of Unani Medicine, 1987)

11) Unani formulations: Majun Mundi, Sharbat Ushba Khas, Arq Murakkab Musaffi Khoon. The other important formulations, their preparation and uses are summarized in table 1 (Mohiuddin, 2004).

12) Ethnomedicinal uses in other traditional systems: The powder of root (40 grains) and seeds is usefulfor stomachic and anthelmintic properties (Kiritikar and Basu, 2003; Nadkarni, 2005). An oil prepared from the root by steeping it in water and then boiling it in sesamum oil until all the water is expelled is said to be a valuable aphrodisiac (Nadkarni, 2005). The roots and seeds are also used in intestinal worm’s infestation, indigestion, and administered with honey in patients with cough (Nadkarni, 2005). The flowers are used as an alternative, depurative, cooling, tonic. It is employed in skin disorders(Chopra et al., 2002; Kiritikar and Basu, 2003; Nadkarni, 2005). The rind of the fruit is useful in fishpoison. The whole plant is used in treating epileptic convulsions, mental illness and hemicranias. It is laxative, emmenagogue, increases the appetite, enriches the blood, lessens inflammation and resolves boils (Kiritikar and Basu, 2003). Antitubercular properties have also been ascribed to the plant (Wealth of India, 2003).

In Ayurveda, it has been used as a laxative, digestible, tonic, fattening, alterative, anthelmintic, alexipharmic. It is employed in tuberculous glands, anaemia, diseases of spleen, elephantiasis, pain in the uterus and vagina, bronchitis, asthma, indigestion, biliousness, vomiting, dysentery, pain in the rectum, piles, insanity, hemicrania, epileptic convulsion, strangury, urinary discharges, looseness of the breasts, leukoderma, etc (Kiritikar and Basu, 2003).

1) Plant Description: It is an aromatic herb, 30-60 cm tall, with a stem with toothed wings. The leaves are obovate oblong, rounded or subacute, glandularhairy, spinous-serrate or dentate, narrowed at the base. The flowers in heads are 1-1.6cm in diameter, compound, globose-ovoid, bracteates on solitary glandular peduncles with tooted wings. Further, flowers are purple involucral bracts in several series; another tailed; style arms truncate and apically hairy;seeds small. It is found throughout India ascending the Himalayas up to 5000 feet from Kumaon to Sikkim. The herb is pungent, bitter and sweet. The part used are whole plant, especially flowers (Standardization of Single Drugs of Unani Medicine, 1987).

Essential oil in the herb, an alkaloid in leaves, stems and flowers (Chopra et al., 2002). The inorganic constituents are salts of iron and calcium. The organic phytoconstituents are alkaloids, glycosides, saponins, tannins, resins, flavonoids, steroids, proteins and volatile oils, sterol, and terpenoid. The alkaloid Sphaeranthine is present in the plants (Kiritikar and Basu, 2003). Other molecules are 7α-hydroxyeudesm-4-en-6,12-olide (sesquiterpene lactone), 2-hydroxycos-tic acid (sesquiterpeneacid), β-eudesmol and ilicic acid have been isolated from methanol extract. The major constituents were cadiene, ocimene, citral, p-methoxycinnamaldehyde, geraniol, eugenol and geranyl acetate. Methyl chavicol,α-ionone, d-cadiene, p-methoxycinnmaldehyde, α-terpinene, geraniol, geranyl acetate, β-ionoe, sphaerene, indicusene, sphaeranthol as essential oil and β-sitosterol, n-triacontanol, phenyl urethane,n-pentacosane isolated from the oil (Singh et al., 2019). Hentriacontane, sesquiterpene lactone was isolated by Gogate et al., (1986), sphaeranthanolide (Shekhani et al., 1990) flavone and isoflavone glycosides were also isolated from this plant (Yadav et al., 1998).

These uses in the Unani and other Traditional systems of medicine is evidenced by many explorative pharmacological and clinical research studies.

1) Anti-asthmatic/Anti-allergic/Mast cell stabilizing activity: Mathew and co-workers (2009). They found an ethanolic extract of S. indicus whole plant showed better protection of mast cell degranulation than ketotifen in the sheep serum model. Researchers concluded that S. ndicus has potent mast cell stabilizing effects by inhibiting mediator release from mast cells in Wistar albino rats.

Prajapati et al., (2010) reported that the methanolic extract of aerial parts of S. indicus has anti-asthmatic activity. The researchers found that significant increase in preconvulsion dyspnoea time, decreased differential leukocyte counts and serum bicarbonate level, with reduction in the inflammation and bronchodilation dilated.

2) Antibacterial /Antimicrobial activity: Crude alcoholic extract of S. indicus flowers showed antibacterial activity against different species of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria (Shaikh et al., 1986). A bicyclic sesquiterpene lactone isolated from the aerial part of the plant demonstrated strong antimicrobial activity against S. aureus, S. albus, E. Coli, Fusarum sp. Helmintho sporium species and other microorganisms (Singh et al., 1988). Alcoholic and aqueous extract of the plant was found to be highly effective in preventing the growth of Alternoria solani, Fusarium oxysporum and Penicillium pinophitum to a great extent (Dubey et al., 2000). 7x - Hydroxyeudesm-4en-6, 12-olide exhibited antimicrobial activity (Rastogi, 2002).

3) Antifungal activity: High antifungal activity has been exhibited by essential oil obtained from leaves against Trichoderma viride, Rhizopus nodosus, Aspergillus neger, Trichophyton rubrum 5s and Curvularia prasadie (Garg and Kasara, 1982).

4) Anxiolytic activity: Petroleum ether extract of S. indicus flowers produced anxiolytic activity in mice (Amavade et al., 2006).

5) Anti-inflammatory activity: Jain and Basal (2003) found inhibition of Propionibacterium acnes-induced mediators of inflammation by S. indicus extract. Aqueous extract S. indicus root caused significant suppression of reactive oxygen species (ROS), proinflammatory cytokine-induced monocytes, which are important inflammatory mediators in acne pathogenesis. Nanda et al., (2010) found the ethanol and petroleum ether extracts showed significant (p<0.05) anti-inflammatory activity at the doses of 200mg/kg and 400mg/kg body weight from 1 hour onwards as compared to the standard drug diclofenac sodium. Whereas aqueous extracts exhibit activity from 2 hours onward when compared to the standard drug amongst various extracts.

In another study, 7-hydroxyfrullanolide a sesquiterpene lactone molecule isolated from fruit extract of S. indicus showed a significant and dose-dependent reduction in induced and spontaneous production of TNF-α and IL-6 from freshly isolated human mononuclear cells, synovial tissue cells isolated from patients with active rheumatoid arthritis and BALB/c mice. a. In collagen-induced arthritis in mice, 7-hydroxyfrullanolide significantly reduced disease associated increases in the articular index and paw thickness, protected against bone erosion and joint space narrowing and prominently diminished joint destruction, hyperproliferative pannus formation and infiltration of inflammatory cells. The authors concluded that these findings provide evidence of 7-hydroxyfrullanolide-mediated inhibition of pro-inflammatory cytokines in experimental models of acute and chronic inflammation (Fonseca et al., 2010).

The ethanolic extract of leaves in different doses also exhibited dose-dependent and significant anti-inflammatory activity in acute (carrageenan induced hind paw oedema, p< 0.05) and chronic (cotton pellet granuloma formation, P < 0.05) inflammation model (Meher et al., 2011).

Ali et al., (2011) noted significant anti-inflammatory potency of ethanolic extract of flowers was 42.66 and 50.5% at doses of 300 and 500 mg/kg respectively at the end of one hour the inhibition of paw oedema.

Chakrabarti et al., (2012) evaluated the standardized extract of flowering and fruiting heads and found that treatment reduced levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines from human macrophages and activated epidermal keratinocytes in a dose-dependent manner. They conclude that extract from S. indicus can be used as a therapeutic option in inflammatory and auto-immune conditions such as psoriasis.

6) Analgesic activity: The ethanolic extract of leaves (Ali et al., 2011). and flower of S. indicus (Meher et al., 2011) in different doses exhibited dose-dependent and significant analgesic activity in both models of pain

7) Antiarthritic activity: The petroleum ether extract of S. indicus flower at a dose of 100mg/day orally showed significant antiarthritic activity against complete Freund's adjuvant-induced arthritis in laboratory rats (Badgujar et al., 2009).

8) Attenuating effect on prostatic hyperplasia: The petroleum ether, ethanol and aqueous extracts extract S. indicus flower head exhibited a significant attenuating effect on prostatic hyperplasia. Although the best attenuating activity was observed with petroleum ether. Urine output was also improved significantly in all extract groups (Nahata and Dixit, 2011).

9) Antihyperlipidemic activity: Alcoholic extract of S. indicus flower head showed a significant decrease in body weight, total cholesterol, triglyceride and low-density lipoprotein and very low-density lipoprotein whereas significant increases in the level of high-density lipoprotein were also obtained after treatment with Sphaeranthus indicus extract (Pande and Dubey, 2009).

Ramachandran and co-workers (2011) found that administration of ethanolic extract of S. indicus root in the STZ-induced diabetic rats of 200 mg/kg showed a significantly higher reduction in elevated TC, TG, LDL and an increase in HDL levels when compared to glibenclamide 100 mg/kg dose of extract.

10) Anthelminthic activity: Sharma et al., (2011) found whole plant ethanolic and aqueous extract exhibits anthelmintic activity in a dose-dependent manner

11) Antioxidant activity: The ethanolic extract of the underground portion of S. indica at 1000μg/ml showed maximum scavenging of the free radical action, 2,2-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonate) (ABTS) observed up to 41.99% followed by the scavenging of the stable radical 1,1-diphenyl, 2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) (33.27%), superoxide dismutase (25.14%) and nitric oxide radical (22.36%) at the same concentration. However, the extract showed only moderate scavenging activity of iron chelation (14.2%). The total antioxidant capacity of the extract was found to be 160.85 nmol/g ascorbic acid (Shirwaikar et al., 2006).

Methanolic extract of flower head also exhibited a significant antioxidant effect (Tiwari and Khosa, 2009). The inhibitory concentration (IC50) in all models viz. ABTS, DPPH, superoxide dismutase, nitric oxide and iron chelating, were found. The total antioxidant capacity of extract was found to be 127.85 nmol/g ascorbic acids (Prabhu et al., 2009).

Administration of ethanolic extract of S. indicus 200 mg/kg produced significant (P < .01) and higher antioxidant activity than 100 mg/kg dose in STZ-induced diabetic rats (Ramachandran et al., 2011). Stems and leaves methanol extract showed a significant decrease in serum liver enzyme, total protein and antioxidant levels at the dose of 500 mg/kg and 750mg/kg in CCl4 induced liver damaged rats (Mathews et al., 2012).

Krishna et al., (2013) found that among the methanol extracts of leaf, flower, stem and root tested, flower and leaf extracts exhibited the highest free radical scavenging activity i.e., at 150μg/ml concentrations

12) Antitussive activity: The methanolic extract at the dose of 200, 300 and 400 mg/kg showed inhibition of cough by 71.24%, 76.84% and 77.92% on a cough induced by Sulphur dioxide gas in mice and also exhibited a synergistic effect of sleeping time induced by standard sedatives (Nayak et al., 2010).

13) Anti-ulcer activity: Malairajan et al., (2013) tested the ethanolic extract of the whole plant for antiulcer activity aspirin and pylorous ligation induced ulcer in Wistar albino rats. They found at 500 mg/kg dose significant reduction in gastric volume, free acidity, total acidity, and ulcer index. The ulcer protection of the extract was found to be 82.9% and 85.3%, in comparison to ranitidine showed 92.6%.

14) Antiprotozoal activity: The ethanolic extract of the flower was found to have an inhibitory effect on Entamoeba histolytica (Naqvi, 1997)

15) Antipyretic activity: Among whole parts petroleum-ether, benzene, chloroform, ethanol and triple distilled water extract; chloroform and ethanol extracts showed potential significant antipyretic activity from 1 hour onward whereas aqueous extracts exhibited activity from 2 h onward as compared to the standard drug paracetamol amongst various extracts (Nanda et al., 2009)

16) Antiviral activity: The methanolic extract of S. indicus showed potent anti-MCV and anti HSV activities (low MIC₁₀₀ and broad spectrum of activity) at a concentration as low as 0.4 μg/mL. (Vimalanathan et al., 2009).

17) Bronchodilator effect: Whole plants methanolic extract and its fractions viz., petroleum ether, benzene, chloroform and ethyl acetate exhibited significant protection against bronchospasm, induced by histamine in guinea pigs at the dose of 87 and 174 mg/Kg, p.o. However, the methanolic extract showed a significant bronchodilatory effect comparable withChlorophenarmine maleate. Hence, S. indicus shows broncho dilatory activity (Sarpate et al., 2009).

18) Hepatoprotective activity: Mansoori et al., (2019) found that the petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate, ethanolic, and aqueous extract of S. indicus leaves had hepatoprotective activity against the carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatotoxicity in mice and in-vitro human live hepatoma cell line. Likewise, in the ethanol induced in-vivo study ethanolic and ethyl acetate extract showed a significant protectiveeffect at 400mg/Kg p.o.dose (Nayak et al., 2007).

Pavan et al., (2008) also reported that S. indicus methanolic extract at a dose of 500 mg/kg body weight exhibited hepatoprotective effect in CCl4 intoxicated rats, that were comparable with silymarin 100 mg/kg b.w.

Tiwari and Khosa (2009) found that the methanolic and aqueous extract of flower heads of S. indicus. Had hepatoprotective against carbon tetrachloride induced hepatic damage in rats. Another study found that at 500 and 750 mg/Kg dose extract statistically restored the serum liver enzyme, total protein and antioxidant levels. Further, histopathological studies supported the biochemical assessment (Mathews et al., 2012).

19) Hypoglycaemic activity: Oral administration of petroleum ether extracts of the flower head of S. indicus (200 mg/kg) showed significant hypoglycemic activity in alloxan induced Wistar rat (Jha et al., 2010).

Arial part ethanolic extract showed that S. indicus increased the uptake of glucose by isolated rat hemidiaphragm significantly and was found to be more effective than insulin (Pareek et al., 2010). Oral administration of alcoholic extract of S. indicus for 15 days at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg significantly lowered fasting blood glucose in diabetic rats in a dose-dependent manner. The 500 mg/kg dose showed significantly better activity than the 250 mg/kg dose throughout the analysis (Prabhu et al., 2008).

The methanolic extract S. indicus at the dose of 300 mg/kg body weight significantly reduced the blood glucose level, plasma total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein in treated rabbits as compared to alloxan-induced diabetic rabbits; also, significantly increased the level of high-density lipoprotein. The extract also significantly decreased ALT and AST (Razi et al., 2011). Muhammad et al., (2011) and Kharkar et al., (2013) has also reported the antidiabetic effect of S. indicus.

20) Immunomodulatory effect: The compound exhibited immune-stimulating activity (Shekhani et al., 1990). The methanolic extract, its petroleum ether, chloroform and remaining methanol fractions, of flower heads of S. indicus Linn. was significantly effective in increasing phagocytic activity, haemagglutination antibody titre and delayed-type hypersensitivity in mice. The further, it probably stimulates stimulating both humoral and cellular immunity (Bafna and Mishra, 2007).

21) Nephroprotective activity: The ethanol and aqueous extract of S. indicus Linn. were showed nephroprotective activity in gentamicin induced nephrotoxic Wistar albino rats and significant improvement in blood urea, serum creatinine, serum protein and urine glucose level and reversed the kidney damage and restored normal kidney architecture in histopathological studies (Pradeep et al., 2019). In another study, the ethanolic extract of the whole plant on cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in the albino rat showed significantreduction tion in the elevated serum creatinine and urea levels. Same time renal antioxidant defense systems, such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase activities and reduced glutathione level that are depleted by cisplatin therapy were restored to normal by treatment with the extract (Mathew et al., 2012)

22) Neuroprotective and anxiolytic activity: Ambikar and Mohanth (2013) evaluated the neuropharmacological activity of petroleum ether (SIP), methanolic (SIM) and aqueous extract (SIA) of S. indicus in mice. The SIP and SIM showed a significant decrease in locomotor activity but no effect on motor coordination at 200 and 400 mg/kg. All three extract showed significant anxiolytic activity at 100 mg/kg dose. Whereas, SIM showed significant anticonvulsant activity at SIM 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg/p.o. and prolonged haloperidol induced catalepsy at 400 mg/kg/p.o. in mice. Apart from this, SIP and SIM extracts also showed significant analgesic activity using the hot plate method. The authors concluded that the extract possesses anxiolytic, anticonvulsant and anti-stress activity.

23) Psychotropic activity/ Sedative effect: Whole plant extract of S. indicus significantly reduced spontaneous motor activity and prolonged pentobarbital induced hypnosis. The researcher suggests that effects might due to a mild neurosedative mechanism. The hydroalcoholic extract of S. indicus also reduced exploratory behaviour and decrease sedative activity (Galani and Patel, 2009).

24) Wound healing activity: The ethanolic extract (10%) cream prepared with aerial parts of S. indicus showed wound healing activity in Guinea pigs excised wounded models. After a 15-day application of cream researchers observed that wound area was reduced 88.9, 77.9 and 83.6% in extract, placebo and neomycin cream respectively (Sadaf et al., 2006). Geethalakshmi et al., (2013) reported that the excison wound healing activity of methanolic extract (5% w/w) and flavonoid fraction of S. indicus in paste form in male Wistar rats. The authors also estimated the hydroxyproline content, collagen content and histopathology for fibroblast proliferation, collagen formation, epithelisation, and keratinisation of healed wound area skin. They found a very rapid closure of the wound in extract and flavonoid fraction treated groups which were comparable to the group treated with silver sulfadiazine. Likewise, rat wounds treated with methanol extract and flavonoid fraction ointments showed more fibroblastic proliferation and epithelisation as compared to the placebo-treated group.

An ointment prepared with the 2% alcoholic extract of the flower head of S. indicus also showed wound healing activity in the excision wound model, re-sutured incisional wound model, tensile strength measurement of healed tissue, and determination of hydroxyproline content in granular tissue. In addition to greater hydroxyproline content found in healed wounds as compared to control and standard formulation (Jha et al., 2009).

Cream prepared with 5% and 10% ethanolic extract of flowers in Wistar albino rats observed significant wound epithelisation, contraction area and wound closure activity in the test drug which was comparable to standard i.e., framyctine sulphate cream Copda et al., (2010).

1) Efficacy in cervical erosion with cervicitis: In the test group (n=30), Safuf Mundi (powder of flower) 6g orally in three divided doses and 5g cream of Henna (leaves of L. inermis Linn) with Murdarsang (P. oxidum) was applied intravaginally twice daily for 9 weeks showed that 26.7% complete healing of erosion whereas none of the patient had healing in the placebo group (n=15) (p<0.05, statistically significant) in a randomized placebo-controlled single-blind study (Hashmi et al., 2011).

2) Effect on psoriasis: Velaskar et al., (2016) reported that the efficacy and safety of 12 weeks course of oral tablet of S. indicus extract (Tinefcon® ) in 74 patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasiss. They found that at 12 weeks, 65% and 31% patients achieved PASI-50 in the high and low dosegroup respectively. They also found marked mprovement in PGA status. Histopathological and biomarker data strongly support the improvement in the disease severity.