The Ayurvedic equivalent of the drug is Bheshaja or Aoushadha, that which overcomes Bhesham or Osha, i.e. disease or even fear of disease and includes anything, material or means used for this purpose. Authentic texts of Ayurveda have little reference regarding the drugKalamegha. Whatever the scattered information available in the Samhitas and Nighantus convey the role of Kalamegha in various ailments. It is used in the form of different single drug preparation like Swarasa, Kwatha,Choorna etc. and also in various compound formulations

DRUG REVIEW OF KALAMEGHA:

The literature of Kalamegha that is obtained from various authentic texts of Ayurveda can be compiled under the following headings:

HISTORICAL GLIMPES

VEDIC PERIOD:

In Vedakala references are not available,

CHARAKA SAMHITA (1000B.C.)

            This is one among the Brihatrayi texts written by Acharyacaraka. He has mentioned kalmegha as bhunimbha in his grahanichikitsaadyayam (chikitsasthana).Its choorna is one of the ingredient in bhunimbadyachoorna, and bhunimbadyakshara.

SUSHRUTA SAMHITA (1000-1500B.C.)

            It is second among the three major texts (Brihattrayi) written by AcharyaSushruta. Bhunimbhais mentioned in Kushta Chikitsa Adyayam, which is used for the preparation of mahatiktakagruta and mahaneelagrutha.         

ASTANGA HRIDAYA (7^th CENTURY A.D.)

            This is said as the heart (i.e. concised form) of Astangasangraha written by Acharya laghuVagbhata. He has mentioned kalamegha  in sutra,Chikitsasthana and uttaratantra

SODALA NIGHANTU (12^th CENTURY A.D.)

            This was written by AcharyaShodala who belonged to Rayekwad Brahmin caste of Gujarat. It’s an important work on Indian MateriaMedica.It is otherwise called Nama-gunasamgraha.Here Kalamegh is described under Guduchyadivarga as Bhunimbha.       

KAIYADEVA NIGHANTU (15^th CENTURY A.D.)

            This was written by AcharyaKaiyadeva and is originally called by the name “Pathyapathyavibodhaka.” The drugKalamegha is mentioned as yavathikthaka taila under tailavarga.

RAJA NIGHANTU (17^th CENTURY A.D.)

            This lexicon was written by   Pandit Raja Narahari. This is otherwise called by the name Abhidanachudamani or Dravyabidhanaganasangraha.This book is based mainly on substance of Dhanvantarinighantu.also have some references about Kalamegha

SALIGRAMA NIGHANTU (19^th CENTURY A.D.)

                This was written byLalasaligramavaisya.The drug kalamegha is described in bhunimbhadivarga of the text.

NIGHANTU ADARSHA (20^th CENTURY A.D.)

            This is written by Vaidya Bapalal.In this text the plant kalamegha is included in kusmandadivarga.

PRIYA NIGHANTU (20^th CENTURY A.D.)

This was written by P.V.Sharma The drug kalamegha is described in shatapushpadi varga of the text.

ADHUNIKA KALA:

•        Vaidya P.V. Sharma has explained about Kalamegha (Bhunimba) in detail.

•        In NighantuAdarsha the drug Kalameghais mentioned with its properties &ekamoolikaprayoga.

•                Modern botanical books like Indian MateriaMedica by Nadkarni (1908), Indian Medicinal Plants by Kirtikar&Basu  (1918), The Wealth of India , Indigenous Drugs of India  by, R.N.have identified this drug as Andrographispaniculata

•                 In DravyagunaHastamalakaVaidyaBanwarilal Mishra has mentioned kalmegha under vasakula.

•        In Dravyagunavignana by AchryaYadavajiTrikamji has mentioned kalamegha.

•        In  AurvedicPharmacopia  of  India  and  Ayurvedic  Formulary  Of  India  Drug Haridra has been mentioned.

NIRUKTI

भुनिम्ब-भुविनिम्ब – निम्बसद्रुशातिक्तत्वात्एवंसगुणत्वात्।

Kalamegha is considered as smaller variety of Nimba as it has got similar properties

महानिम्ब- Whole plant is very bitter to taste

यवतिक्त-The seed are barley shaped which also very bitter

 SYNONYMS:

SYNONYMS	D.G.H	P.N
Bhunimba	-	+
Kalamegha	+	+
Kalpanatha	+	+
Tikta	-	-
Yavakaraphala	-	+
Yavatikta	+	-

NOMENCLATURE:

The name is derived from the Latin Andrographis denoting male paniculata having an inflorescence known as panicle (Wagner et al. 1999)

VERNACULAR NAMESOF KALAMEGHA
  

	Language	Name
1	Arabic	Qasabhuva,Qasabuzzarirah
2	Persian	Nainehavandi
3	Canarese	Kreata
4	Bengali	Kalamegha
5	Gujarati	Kariyatu
6	Hindi	Kalamegh ,Kalpanatha
7	English	Creatkariyat
8	Kannada	Bhunimbha,Nelabevu
9	Marathi	Oli, Kariyatu
10	Oriya	Bhunime
11	Sanskrit	Bhunimbha, Kalamegh
12	Telagu	Nelavemu
13	Tamil	Nelavemu
14	Malayam	Nelavepu

TAXONOMICAL IDENTIFICATION

Kingdom- Plantae

Division –Magnoliophyta

Class –Dicotyledonae

Subclass –Gamopetalae

Series –Bicarpellate

Order –Perstenales

Family-Acanthaceae

Genus –Andrographis

Species –paniculata

Botanical name –Andrographis paniculata

 GANA VARGEEKARANA OF KALMEGHA

The drugs are classified on the basis of their morphology/ activities in the classics.

This helps in easy selection of a drug.

Sl.no	Gana	P.N	N .A	S.N	Sh .N	Ka.n
1	Guduchyadi	-	+	-	-	-
2	Bhunimbhadivarga	-	-	+	-	-
3	Taila varga	-	-	-	-	+
4	Shata pushpadi varga	+	-	-	-	-

VARITES OF KALMEGHA:

No verities are mentioned in nighantrus

 GUNA KARMA OF KALAMERGHA 

GUNA KARMA	KALAMEGHA
Rasa	Tikta,
Guna	Laghu, Ruksha, Tikshna
Virya	Usna
Vipaka	Katu
Doshaghnata	Kapha-Pittahara

FAMILY FEATURES OF ACANTHACEA

1 Description

·         Plants in this family have simple, opposite, decussated leaves with entire (or sometimes toothed, lobed, or spiny)margins, and without stipules.

·         The leaves may containcystoliths, calcium carbonate concretions, seen as streakson the surface.

·         The flowers are perfect, zygomorphic to nearly actinomorphic, and arranged in an inflorescence that iseither aspike, raceme, or cyme. Typically, a colorful bract subtends each flower; in some species, the bract is large and showy. The calyx usually has four or five lobes; the corolla tubular, two-lipped or five-lobed; stamens number either two or four, arranged in pairs and inserted on the corolla, and the ovary is superior and bicarpellated, with axileplacentation.

·         The fruit is a two-celled capsule, dehiscing somewhat explosively. In most species, the seeds are attached to a small, hooked stalk (a modified funiculuscalled a jaculatoror a retinaculum) that ejects them from the capsule.

2 Medicinal uses

Traditionally the most important part used in Acanthaceae is the leaves and they are used externally for wounds. Acanthaceaemembers possess antifungal, cytotoxic, anti-inflammatory, anti-pyretic, antioxidant, insecticidal, hepatoprotective, immunomodulatory, Antiplateletaggregation and anti-viral activities.

3 Phytochemistry 

Phytochemical reports on family Acanthaceae are glycosides, flavonoids, benzonoids, phenolic compounds, naphthoquinoneand triterpenoids.

DISTRIBUTION

ThroughoutIndia from upper gangetic plain to Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Tripura, Gujarat, Deccan , Konkanplateau, Karnataka plains, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Lakshadweep.

PROPAGATION, CULTIVATION AND COLLECTION:

PROPAGATION: Andrographis paniculata is propagated by its roots or by stem cuttings. It’s also propagated from seeds. It grows well on well drained, well prepared, deep, friable, loamy, red soil under irrigated conditions.

CULTIVATION:

This plant is cultivated as a Kharif season crop. It prefers sunny situations. During May – June the seeds are sown. The seedlings are transplanted at a distance of 60 × 30 cm in the last week of July. 2 or 3 irrigations are required during the dry period. It flowers during August – November and fertilizer requirements for this crop are – poultry manure 10 tons/ha, castor cake 2 ton/ha, 75 kg N and 75 kg P₂O_5.

COLLECTION: 

The plant is collected at maturity i.e. after complete flowering and fruiting. Depending upon the area of cultivation the harvesting is done in October and November. However in Andhra Pradesh it is collected from wild populations during November and January. The whole plant is dried in shade by spreading on the floor for 7 to 8 days. During this period it is protected from dew at nights.

MORPHOLOGY

Erect, wild, annual subshrub

Stems: Branched, herbaceous, cylindrical, solid, green, branchlets 4- gonous

Leaves: Simple, opposite decussate, linear – obovate, exstipulate, delicate, subsessile, unicostate reticulate venation, leaf apex is acute

Inflorescence: Panicle inflorescence, Panicle branches are zigzag

Flowers: Complete, bisexual, zygomorphic, white in colour and lower mid lobes are crested with purple lines gives pink tinge, petals are 5, stamens are 2in number and exerted. Gynoecium is bicarpillarysyncarpous, superior ovary and axile placentation

Fruit: Capsule, basally beaked, oblong, compressed, minutely hairy the funicle of seeds forms a hook like projection

Seeds: Numerous, subquadrant and yellowish brown colour

CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS

The plant contains an iridoidglucoside, procombide along with 14 – deoxyandrographolide – 19 – β – D- glucoside, andrographolide– 19 – β – D- glucoside, 5 – hydroxyl – 2’, 7,8 – trimethoxy flavone, 2’,5 – dihydroxy – 7,8 – dimethoxy flavone, mono – O – methyl wightin, 5 – hydroxyl – 7,8 – dimethoxy flavone and 5 – hydroxyl 7,8,2’ – tetramethoxy flavone. It also contains diterpene and neoandrographolide.

TRADE AND COMMERCE

Rate in Indian market is Rs. 1800 per quintal. Herbal drug dealers at Amritsar, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh are the major suppliers of the drug.

EKMULIKA PRAYOGA: 

1.      One part of Kalameghachurnaand one part of Marichachurna mixed and given 1g dose per day internally in case of Vishamajwara.

2.      Yakrutvikara–Kwathaprepared out of Kalameghais given orally in all type of Yakrutvikara

3.      Ksharaprepared out of Bhunimbagiven orally for Agni vardhana (cha. Chik. 15/181)

RESEARCH PROFILE:

1)      Hypoglycemic and beta cell protective effects of andrographolide analogue for diabetes treatment^.

2)      Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology of Andrographispaniculata.Linn. Andit’s Major Bioactive Phytoconstituent Andrographolide.

3)      Chaurasia A, Kharya MD, Sharma B, Roy P. Glucose metabolism and diabetogenic gene expression analysis of chloroform fraction of Andrographispaniculata whole herb in diabetic albino mice.

4)      Chandrasekara CV, Murali B, Deepak M, Agarwal A. In vitro comparative evaluation of non leaves and leaves extracts of A. paniculataon modulation of inflammatory mediators.