What's in a Neem?: Active Components and Preparation

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More than 300 active components have been isolated from the Neem tree with 21 bioactive compounds possessing potential therapeutic value (Ganguli, 2002; Kumar et al., 2010). Neem extracts contain many active tetranortriterpenoid compounds especially limonoids out of which azadiractin, meliacarpin, nimbin, nimbolinin and salannin are the five important ones. (Hanum and Van der Maesen, 1997; Mehta and Mehta, 2005). Azadiractin is the most active component with various isolated distinguishable forms (A to K) out of which the most abundant is Azadirachtin A (Dr. Rahman, n.d.). Other compounds found in Neem include ‘glycerides, polysaccharides, sulphurous compounds, flavonoids and their glycerides, amino acids and aliphatic compounds’ (Hanum and Van der Maesen, 1997).

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Scientific research has proved Neem’s efficacy in treating numerous ailments and thus it has become a principal ingredient in many products such as toothpastes and mouthwash (Singh et al., 2008). Neem seed oil is used in soaps, shampoos and is used to treat Athlete’s foot, dandruff, acne, leprosy while leaf extracts are used in face creams and anti-fertility drugs (Singh et al., 2008). Additionally powdered Neem leaves are increasingly being used in capsule form to treat many disorders simultaneously (Singh et al., 2008).