**6.1** *Curcuma longa*

*C. longa L.* is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial flowering plant of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, and requires temperatures between 20 and 30°C and a considerable amount of annual rainfall to thrive. Methanolic extracts (curcumin-II at 200 mg/kg and

curcumin-I at 100 mg/kg) of the finger rhizomes of *C. longa* reduced significantly (P < 0.01) estimated white blood cells count in ovalbumin (OVA) sensitized Wistar rat models for both long and short term. At a higher dosage, curcumin-II (200 mg/kg) tends to protect intact mast cells from degranulation [3]. This suggests that curcumin can be used as complementary medicine in the treatment of Asthma.
