An updated review on Cissus vitiginea L. (Family: Vitaceae) - An important medicinal climber

Cissus vitiginea L. is a perennial climber with potent medicinal values and used in Indian traditional systems of medicines to cure wounds, diabetes, cardiovascular illness, cancers, particularly bone diseases and arthritis. This plant is kept under rare category in certain parts of India due to its imprudent harvesting from the wild. Assortment of literature on phytochemical studies of this plant shows the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, triterpenoids, steroids, glycosides, coumarin, tannins, sugar, proteins etc. The reported secondary metabolites have been reviewed to possess immense biological activities in living systems. In the present review, we have summarized the information concerning the botanical description, phytochemistry, toxicology, pharmacology and the traditional medicinal uses of C. vitiginea. It has been concluded that this plant has not been well explored for its various biological activities and the alternate methods of propagation to increase its natural population in the wild.