Azadirachta indica has been used for centuries. Earliest reference to it is in Sanskrit writings that are over 4,000 years old. Neem is a native tree of India, a tropical tree especially suited to semi-arid conditions. It is now grown in many Asian countries and in the tropical regions of the western hemisphere. Neem is considered to be part of India's genetic bio-diversity.   Leaf and bark extracts are most consistently recommended in ancient medical texts and by herbal practitioners for gastrointestinal upsets, diarrhea, intestinal infections, skin ulcers and infections and malaria and as anti-inflammatory agent.   The major active constituents in neem are terpenoids such as azadirachtin, which are considered to be antimicrobial and insect repellant among many other actions indicated.   The water soluble part of alcoholic extract of Azadirachta indica leaves exerted significant anti-inflammatory activity in cotton pellet granuloma assay in rats. The extract also inhibited significantly the biochemical parameters (viz. DNA, RNA, lipid peroxide, acid phosphatase and alkaline phosphatase) studied in cotton pellet exudate. Some studies revealed that nimbidin significantly inhibited some of the functions of macrophages and neutrophils relevant to the inflammatory response following both in vivo and in vitro exposure. In an in vitro study it was seen that the exposure of rat peritoneal macrophages to Nimbidin also inhibited phagocytes and PMA stimulated respiratory burst in these cells. Nimbidin also inhibited nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulated macrophages following in vitro exposure, whereas interleukin 1 (IL-1) was only weakly inhibited.

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