Kesri Nandan Sharma
Manipal University Jaipur, India
Title: Uses of purslane (Portulaca Oleracea L.) for healthy life
Biography
Biography: Kesri Nandan Sharma
Abstract
Portulaca oleracea (common name Purslane) is an annual succulent in the family Portulacaceae and is perennial in the tropics with a cosmopolitan distribution. It has smooth, reddish, mostly prostrate stems and alternate leaves clustered at stem joints and ends and are common in fields, gardens, vineyards, lawns, driveways, dunes and river banks. Its yellow flowers open singly at the center of the leaf cluster for only a few hours on sunny mornings. Purslane is not only treated as wild plants in fields, but is also an edible vegetable rich in beneficial nutrients. It is an important medicinal plant with diverse pharmacological spectrum as it possesses many anti-oxidant properties and due to the high content of vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids and other healthful compounds; therefore, the intake of purslane and/or its bioactive compounds could help to improve the health and function of the whole human organism. Purslane is a rich source of many nutrients like free oxalic acids, alkaloids, omega-3 fatty acids, coumarins, flavonoids, cardiac glycosides, anthraquinones, proteins, a-linolenic acid, b-carotene, mono terpene glycoside and N-trans-feruloyltyramine. The plant is reported to have versatile biological activities like antioxidant, antipyretic, antitussive, diuretic, hypolipidemic, antiulcerogenic, antiinflammatory, anticonvulsant, antimicrobial properties etc.