Abstract

TRADITIONAL AND EVIDENCE-BASED APPLICATIONS OF CULLEN CORYLIFOLIUM (L.) MEDIK. (BĀBCHĪ): A REVIEW OF PHYTOCHEMISTRY AND THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITIES

Mohd Tarique, Shaikh Mohammad Aatif Afzal, Malik Kashif, Sayyed Minhaj, Naila Naaz

Abstract

Cullen corylifolium (L.) Medik. — known in Unani medicine as Bābchī and formerly classified as Psoralea corylifolia L. — is a long-established treatment for dermatological disease, most notably vitiligo, psoriasis and leprosy, with pharmacological effects attributed largely to psoralen, isopsoralen, bakuchiol and psoralidin. This narrative review appraises the traditional, phytochemical and pharmacological evidence for the plant, separating traditional, preclinical and clinical findings and weighing them against its recognised safety concerns. A search of major bibliographic databases spanning January 1990 to June 2025 identified 612 non-duplicate records; 187 underwent full-text assessment, and 118 were included — three clinical studies, four human case reports, roughly sixty in-vivo studies, forty in-vitro or ex-vivo studies, eleven earlier reviews, and classical Unani texts — each finding tagged by evidence level. Classical Unani sources describe Bābchī as a blood purifier with anti-leucodermic, anti-psoriatic, anti-inflammatory and anthelmintic actions; preclinical work extends this to immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, antimicrobial, neuroprotective, antidiabetic and antitumour effects, almost none verified in humans. Clinical support is essentially confined to psoralen-based PUVA photochemotherapy for vitiligo and psoriasis, plus one small pilot trial of topical Bābchī tincture in vitiligo, set against well-established phototoxicity, documented hepatotoxicity (including fatal acute liver failure), probable nephrotoxicity and herb–drug interaction risk. Cullen corylifolium is therefore pharmacologically active with a firm traditional footing in dermatology, but evidence for most reported activities remains preclinical and inconsistent, falling short of what is needed for therapeutic claims beyond photochemotherapy; standardised extracts, rigorous toxicological assessment and adequately powered clinical trials are prerequisites for broader evidence-based use.

Keywords: Bābchī; Cullen corylifolium (L.) Medik.; Psoralea corylifolia; psoralen; bakuchiol; Unani medicine.