Trends and prospect of propagation, cultivation, and ethnopharmacological activities of black ginger (Kaempferia parviflora Wall. ex Baker)

Black ginger (Kaempferia parviflora Wall. ex Baker) is a medicinal herb from the Zingiberaceae family that has gained increasing popularity in treating an array of everyday ailments. Traditionally, the crop is used by the indigenous Thai community to boost stamina for strenuous mountain trekking and to enhance the response to sexual erotic stimuli. This review aims to provide comprehensive information on the description, distribution, propagation, cultivation, and ethnopharmacology of black ginger. Based on the published literature, a collection of information regarding black ginger from the aspects of its botany, origin and distribution, propagation and cultivation, phytochemistry, and ethnopharmacological benefits were carried out by retrieving the research outputs from online search engines, including Google Scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect, SciFinder, Scopus, etc. Scientifically, this was further supplemented by a number of studies reported throughout the years on its pharmacological activities, mainly attributed to the key phytochemical, i.e., methoxyflavones, present only in K. parviflora. Despite its manifold utilities, information on the propagation and cultivation of this plant is scarce. A collection of studies from the past 20 years has shown that the research activities have been mostly focused on anti-allergic, anti-microbial, anti-cancerous, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity, physical or muscle enhancement, skin health, and general health promoting activities of black ginger. In this review, the salient botanical features, geographical distribution, propagation methods, cultivation practices, and ethnopharmacological activities, including the mechanisms that drive those bioactivities, have been discussed in order to pave the way forward for the advancements of its utilization, propagation, and genetic improvement. This review not only highlighted the pharmacological usage of black ginger, but included the current status of crop cultivation practices and biosynthesis of specific flavonoids (methoxyflavones) compared to the other existing reviews on black ginger.

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