**3.10** *Lawsonia inermis*

*L. inermis* Linn. (Apocynaceae) commonly known in India as Henna is a flowering plant and the sole species of the genus Lawsonia. It is a tall shrub or small tree, standing 1.8–7.6 m tall, glabrous and multi-branched, with spine-tipped branchlets. The henna plant is native to northern Africa, western and southern Asia, northern Australia, and thrives well in semi-arid zones and tropical areas. It is useful medicinally for burning sensation, leprosy, skin diseases, amenorrhoea, and dysmenorrhea

 and as abortifacient [51]. The ethanolic leaf extract exhibited an *in vitro* anti-vibrio activity with MICs ranging from 2.5 to 10 mg/mL against 13 strains of *V. cholera* [41].
