Background

• Swertia chirata is a plant that grows at high elevations in Kashmir, Nepal, and Bhutan. It is an annual plant with yellow flowers that grows to 2-3 feet tall. Today, the plant is threatened with extinction because of poor seed germination and low viability, and efforts are being taken to preserve it.
• Swertia chirata is known for its bitter taste and has been used in traditional medicine to treat liver disorders, malaria, diabetes, fever, and skin diseases. Swertia chirata is used in Ayurveda, a form of traditional medicine that originated in India, and is thought to help treat liver disorders and malarial fevers. Swertia chirata has also been used in other traditional medicine systems, such as Unani and Siddha.
• At this time, there is a lack of data to support of the use of Swertia chirata for any condition. Further research is needed before conclusions can be made.

References

1. Chaudhuri RK, Pal A, Jha TB. Conservation of Swertia chirata through direct shoot multiplication from leaf explants. PLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY REPORTS 2008;2(3):213-218.
2. Chaudhuri RK, Pal A Jha TB. Production of genetically uniform plants from nodal explants of Swertia chirata Buch.-Ham. ex Wall. - an endangered medicinal herb. IN VITRO CELLULAR & DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY-PLANT 2007;43(5):467-472.
3. Chaudhuri RK, Pal A Jha TB. Regeneration and characterization of Swertia chirata Buch.-Ham. Ex Wall. plants from immature seed cultures. SCIENTIA HORTICULTURAE 3-3-2009;120(1):107-114.
4. Iqbal, Z, Lateef M, Khan MN, et al. Anthelmintic activity of Swertia chirata against gastrointestinal nematodes of sheep. Fitoterapia 2006;77(6):463-465. View Abstract
5. Koul S, Suri KA, Dutt P, et al. Protocol for in vitro regeneration and marker glycoside assessment in Swertia chirata Buch-Ham. Methods Mol.Biol. 2009;547:139-153. View Abstract
6. Madhuri S and Pandey G. Some dietary agricultural plants with anticancer properties. PLANT ARCHIVES 2008;8(1):13-16.
7. Rawat MSM and Dutt KR. Comparison of ethyl acetate extracts of Allium cepa bulbs, Luffa acutangula fruits, Nyctanthes arbostristis leaves, Swertia chirata twigs and Woodfordia floribunda leaves with Silymarin for hepatoprotective activity. PLANT ARCHIVES 2007;7(1):183-186.
8. Saha P, Mandal S, Das A. Amarogentin can reduce hyperproliferation by downregulation of Cox-II and upregulation of apoptosis in mouse skin carcinogenesis model. Cancer Lett. 12-8-2006;244(2):252-259. View Abstract
9. Suryawanshi S, Asthana RK, Gupta RC. Assessment of systemic interaction between Swertia chirata extract and its Bioactive constituents in rabbits. Phytother.Res. 2009;23(7):1036-1038. View Abstract
10. Suryawanshi S, Asthana RK, Gupta RC. Simultaneous estimation of mangiferin and four secoiridoid glycosides in rat plasma using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry and its application to pharmacokinetic study of herbal preparation. J.Chromatogr.B Analyt.Technol.Biomed.Life Sci. 10-15-2007;858(1-2):211-219. View Abstract
11. Suryawanshi S, Mehrotra N, Asthana RK. Liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometric study and analysis of xanthone and secoiridoid glycoside composition of Swertia chirata, a potent antidiabetic. Rapid Commun.Mass Spectrom. 2006;20(24):3761-3768. View Abstract
12. Tamhankar S, Ghate V, Raut A. Molecular profiling of "Chirayat" complex using Inter Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) markers. Planta Med. 2009;75(11):1266-1270. View Abstract
13. Tripathi R, Mohan H, Kamat JP. Modulation of oxidative damage by natural products. FOOD CHEMISTRY 2007;100(1):81-90.
14. Verma H, Patil PR, Kolhapure RM. Antiviral activity of the Indian medicinal plant extract Swertia chirata against herpes simplex viruses: a study by in-vitro and molecular approach. Indian J.Med.Microbiol. 2008;26(4):322-326. View Abstract
15. Wang Z, Ma C, Tang S, et al. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of Swertia herbs by high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector-mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD-MS). Chem.Pharm.Bull.(Tokyo) 2008;56(4):485-490. View Abstract