ETHNOMEDICINAL USES, PHYTOCHEMICAL COMPOSITION, PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES OF BOMBAX CEIBA L.

Abstract

Bombax ceiba L., commonly known as the red silk cotton tree, is a medicinally important plant with a long history of traditional use across South and Southeast Asia. Different parts of the plant, including the roots, bark, leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, gum, and prickles, have been used in Ayurveda, Unani medicine, and indigenous healthcare systems for the management of gastrointestinal, inflammatory, infectious, metabolic, reproductive, and dermatological conditions. Growing scientific interest in B. ceiba has revealed a chemically diverse profile comprising flavonoids, phenolic compounds, tannins, terpenoids, steroids, saponins, glycosides, fatty acids, polysaccharides, and other bioactive constituents. Experimental studies have reported a range of biological activities, particularly antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, analgesic, gastroprotective, and cytotoxic effects. The seeds and seed oil represent comparatively underexplored components with potential nutritional, pharmaceutical, and industrial value due to their lipid and fatty-acid composition. Despite promising preclinical findings, the current evidence is limited by inadequate extract standardization, incomplete characterization of active constituents, geographical variation, insufficient pharmacokinetic and toxicological studies, and a notable lack of well-designed human clinical trials. This review critically summarizes the ethnomedicinal, phytochemical, and pharmacological evidence concerning B. ceiba, with particular emphasis on seed constituents, seed oil, antioxidant activity, safety, and research gaps. Future investigations should prioritize standardized extracts, advanced metabolomic profiling, mechanistic studies, comprehensive toxicological assessment, and clinically relevant trials to establish the evidence-based therapeutic potential of this medicinally valuable species.