The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) scientists have received the US Patent for a novel herbal composition for treating asthma. The invention relates to a novel composition containing an extract obtained from the plant Murraya koenigii and useful for the treatment or providing relief from acute asthma.

The patent also involves with invention in the process for the preparation of a lyophilized extract containing active principles of the plant Murraya koenigii, and a method for the treatment of asthma. The Calcutta-based scientists Ranjan Bhadra, Bikash Chandra Pal, Krishna Das and Samir Bhattacharaya have been given credit for the invention.

The invention provides a process for preparing an extract from the plant Murraya koenigii, useful in the treatment of asthma, said process comprising the steps of pulverising plant materials obtained from plant Murraya koenigii, extracting the plant material with a solvent at ambient temperature, concentrating the extract by filtering and evaporating it under reduced pressure and lyophilizing the concentrate to obtain a lyophilized extract containing active principles of the plant Murraya koenigii.

Further, it provides a method for the treatment of asthma, said method comprising the steps of administering an effective amount of the composition comprising an extract obtained from the plant Murraya koenigii and at least one pharmaceutically acceptable additive to a subject in need thereof. In addition, the invention provides an anti-oxidant composition for human beings and animals, said composition comprising a effective amount of extract obtained from the plant Murraya koenigii together with or optionally, associated with pharmaceutically acceptable additives.

The patent (US Patent: 6,746,694 Issued: June 8, 2004) claims to be that of a pharmaceutical composition useful in the treatment of asthma made by a process comprising: i) extracting fresh leaves of Murraya koenigii with a solvent to obtain a percolate, said solvent being selected from the group consisting of a hydrocarbon solvent, a chlorinated hydrocarbon solvent, an alcohol solvent, an ether solvent and an ester solvent, ii) separating the percolate from the leaves, and iii) removing the solvent from the percolate to obtain said extract; and wherein the at least one additive is a powder of a plant selected from the group consisting of Murraya paniculate Linn, Hibiscus abelmoschus, Trachyspenmum ammi, Syzygium aromaticum, Adhatoda vasica Nees and Euphorbia hirta.