A Comprehensive Review of Asthma and the Therapeutic Potential of Medicinal Plants

Abstract

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory airway disorder characterized by variable airflow limitation and increased bronchial responsiveness, resulting in recurrent symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, and breathlessness. Conventional management primarily includes inhaled corticosteroids, β2-adrenergic agonists, leukotriene modifiers, and other controller or reliever medications. Although these treatments benefit many patients, inadequate disease control, adherence problems, adverse effects, and treatment-resistant asthma have encouraged the search for additional therapeutic approaches. Medicinal plants have attracted considerable interest because they contain diverse phytoconstituents reported to possess bronchodilator, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiallergic, and immunomodulatory properties. Various traditional systems of medicine have used plants to manage respiratory disorders, while experimental investigations have explored their effects on pathways involved in airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness. This review outlines the major clinical forms of asthma, important risk factors, key mechanisms involved in disease development, and selected medicinal plants studied for antiasthmatic activity. Particular emphasis is placed on Adhatoda vasica, Curcuma longa, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Ocimum sanctum, and Tylophora indica. Available evidence indicates that these botanicals may serve as promising leads for complementary interventions and future drug-development research. However, clinical validation, safety assessment, authentication, and standardization remain essential before medicinal-plant preparations can be considered dependable therapeutic alternatives