Trop J Nat Prod Res, December 2017; 1(6):227-235 227 Oseghale et al., 2017 Tropical Journal of Natural Product Research Available online at https://www.tjnpr.org A Review of the Phytochemistry and Pharmacology of Eleusine coracana Linn (Poaceae): A Popular Nigerian Edible Grain Irene O. Oseghale 1 , Vincent O. Imieje 1 , Osayemwenre Erharuyi 1 *, Chidimma Iheanacho 2 , Abiodun Falodun 1 1 Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. 2 Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Physical Sciences, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. . Introduction From time immemorial, plants have been used in the prevention, management and treatment of various disease conditions such as malaria, diabetes, arthritis, ulcer, tumours, hypertension and so many other ailments. Lead compounds used in the synthesis of novel drugs with high efficacy and minimal side effects have been obtained from medicinal plants. 1 Apart from the fact that plants are rich in vitamins and minerals essential for normal body metabolism, they are also known to contain secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, tannins, flavonoids, phenols, saponins, cardiac glycosides, steroids and many other phytochemicals which have been found to have medicinal properties when used adequately. 2 Some plants that have been used in the management of various disease conditions are; Acacia nilotica used for the treatment of pile, Allium sativum for treating colds, Cadaba farinose for the management of cancer, Ficus congensis for treating arthritis, Leptadenia hastate as remedy against ulcer, Mangifera indica for the management of jaundice and malaria, 3 Ipomea batatas for the treatment of diabetes. 4 Eleusine coracana also known as finger millet is an important millet in the poaceae family. The poaceae family, a known family of grasses is said to be the fourth largest family of flowering plants having up to 800 genera and up to 13,000 species. 5 Members of the Poaceae family have been observed over the years to be useful in the management of different diseases. Some of them currently in use are; Cymbopogon citratus (lemon grass) used in the treatment of malaria, 6,7 Vetiveria nigritana (black vertiver grass) used in the management of HIV/AIDS, 8 Cynodon *Corresponding author. E mail: osayemwenre.erharuyi@uniben.edu Tel: +2348062355972 Citation: Oseghale IO, Imieje VO, Erharuyi O, Iheanacho C, Falodun A. A Review of the Phytochemistry and Pharmacology of Eleusine coracana (Linn) Poaceae: A Popular Nigerian Edible Grain. Trop J Nat Prod Res. 2017; 1(6):227-235. doi.org/10.26538/tjnpr/v1i6.1 © 2017 Natural Product Research Group, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Benin. All rights reserved. dactylon (Bahama grass) used to stop vomiting, Cyperus rotundus (cocograss) for the management of malaria and stomach ache, Saccharum officinarum (sugar cane) for the management of scanty urination, 9 Oryza sativa (rice) used in the treatment of herpes labialis 10 and Sorghum bicolor (guinea corn) used in the management of infertility. 11 Other members of the Poaceae family claimed to possess pharmacological activity are the leaves of Bambusa vulgaris (Bamboo), Sorghum caudatum (sorghum), 12 the fruit of Zea mays (maize), the rhizome of Imperata cylindrical (spear grass). 13 Millets generally, are annual plants which are tiny grained members of the Poaceae family that thrives in warm weather conditions and can survive a long period of drought. Millets are mainly grown for the purpose of feeding animals or to be consumed by man. They are believed to have the capability of slowing down digestion because of the phytochemicals present. This causes sugars to be released more slowly into the bloodstream after consumption. 5 There are however some millets which are used for medicinal purposes such as Sorghum bicolor used in the management of retained placenta, 14 Setaria italica (foxtail millet) used for treating dyspepsia, Pennisetum typhoides (pearl millet) used as a purgative for children, Paspalum scrobiculatum (kodo millet) used for treating typhoid fever, Panicum sumatrense (little millet) used for the management of small pox and scalp infection and Echinochloa crus-gali (barnyard millet) combined with powdered turmeric is used for the management of internal hemorrhage. 15 Finger millet or Eleusine coracana which is said to be ranked as the fourth most important millet in the world 16 apart from being from the poaceae family, also belongs to the sub family chlorodoideae 17 and the Eragrostidae tribe. There are about nine species in the genus Eleusine, mainly found in the tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, Africa and South America. Some of the species known are Eleusine africana, Eleusine indica, Eleusine coracana, Eleusine multiflora, Eleusine jaegeri, Eleusine floccifolia, Eleusine kigeziensis, Eleusine intermedia and Eleusine tristachya. They are either annual or perennial and most of them are wild. 18 Eleusine coracana is an annual plant which is erect, stout and cultivated mainly for its dark brown grain. It is mostly grown in Asia and Africa and serves as a major meal in Southern India and Ethiopia. India is believed to be the largest producer of finger millet worldwide. Finger millets are said to be highly nutritious and are popular in different tribes where they are called different names such as; Tamba in ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article history: Received 18 October 2017 Revised 28 November 2017 Accepted 30 November 2017 Published online 05 December 2017 Since ancient times, plants have been used in the management of various disease conditions worldwide. They are known to be rich in secondary metabolites which are responsible for the therapeutic effects they exhibit. Scientists worldwide have long discovered the possibility of discovering newer, effective and affordable drugs with minimal side effects from plants and have already started isolating promising compounds (from plants) some of which are now being investigated for the management of various diseases. Eleusine coracanna is an annual plant which belongs to the poaceae family. It contains different secondary metabolites with a wide range of uses and promise in the management of several disease conditions. This review is aimed at highlighting the various ethnomedicinal and pharmacological uses of the plant collated over the years using extensive literature search with a view to exploring the possibility of harnessing the potential of the plant and investigating if it could be a source of novel compounds in the management of various disease conditions. Keywords: Medicinal plants, Eleusine coracana, Phytochemistry, Pharmacological activity. Copyright: © 2017 Oseghale et al. This is an open- access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.