Phytopharmacological potential of Prosopis spicigera Linn.

Prosopis spicigera Linn. (Family, Fabaceae) is commonly known as ‘Sami’. It is distributed throughout the arid regions of India and other countries. Sami is caducous plant, so in the foliage condition stem and fruits are common.  It is also commonly known as Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce. It is one of the chief indigenous tree of the plains of the Punjab, Western Rajasthan, Gujarat, Bundelkhand and the neighborhoods of Delhi and Agra. This plant is xerophytic and draught resistant plant, it can survive for long. Tribal people use this plant as fodder and source of wood. Some of the community uses Sami fruits as food. Prosopis cineraria is a moderate sized evergreen thorny tree, with slender branches armed with conical throns and with light yellowish-green foliage. It contains sugars, five flavonones, fatty acids, tannins and alkaloids. The flavone glycoside patulitrin has been isolated from the flowers. Recently a novel variant on the piperidine-3-ol alkaloid is reported, which is spicigerin. Fruits are used as a food for the people in the desert area during scarcity. Fruits are rich source of vitamins. The leaves besides the pods are eaten by camels, goats and cattle as a fodder. Ashes of the wood rubbed over skin to remove hair. The wood is a good fuel for the preparing food in the tribal area. Prosopis cineraria flower is pounded, mixed with sugar and used during pregnancy as safeguard against miscarriage in women. The bark of the tree is dry, acrid, and bitter with a sharp taste and used in leprosy, dysentery, bronchitis, asthma, leucoderma and scorpion sting. The plant is recommended for the treatment of snakebite in rural area. The present review is an effort to emphasize the traditional uses, pharmacognostical, phytochemical and pharmacological information on Prosopis spicigera Linn. Key Words: Prosopis spicigera, Xerophytic, Caducous, Sami, Fodder