ECHINACEA GENUS: AN ENDLESS NATURAL THERAPEUTIC RESOURCE? AN OVERVIEW

Abstract

Echinacea spp., Asteraceae family represented one of the important genera of cultivated biologically active plants, well-known in traditional medicine. Its multiple effects were investigated along time, in the research for alternative therapies for synthetic drugs. Could this genus represent more than an alternative? Are its effects more valuable in medicine than thought before? This mini-review is exploring those possibilities.