Suhail Ahmad Parra^1,, Kalpesh Gaur¹, Lalit Singh Ranawat¹, Mohammad Imran Rather¹

Herbal medicine is getting popularized in developing and developed countries owing to its natural origin. Berberis Lycium also famous as Indian Barberry, Kashmal in Hindi and Ishkeen in Urdu belongs to the family Berberidaceae. Its local name is Kawdach in Kashmir valley. Traditionally, Berberis lycium is used by the Tribal peoples in J&K, India, since the time immemorial. It is an evergreen spiny shrub 2-3 m in height growing mainly in Himalayan regions. The various parts of the plant like root, bark, stem, leaves and fruits are used by the people as a medicine or food. In traditional system of medicine, the plant is used for various affliction and diseases. This plant has also gained wide acceptance for its medicinal value in ayurvedic drugs. The plant is known to prevent liver disorders, abdominal disorders, skin diseases, cough, ophthalmic, oral ulcers, kidney, conjunctivitis, piles, leprosy etc. The pharmacological studies have shown that plant has hypoglycemic, antihyperlipidemic, hepatoprotective, antipyretic, wound healing, anticancer, antimicrobial, antifungal, pesticidal properties.In the present article we have summarized various aspects of the plant Berberis lycium.

Berberis Lycium, Berberidaceae, Berberine, Traditional medicine, Phytochemical, Pharmacological activity