ABSTRACT
The family Capparaceae family consists of approximately 45 genera and about 800 species of pungent treelets, shrubs, or herbs, which have the ability to elaborate a series of isothiocyanates, flavonoids, and occasionally pyrrolidine alkaloids. Approximately 20 species of plants classified within the family Capparaceae are used medicinally in the Pacific Rim. These are often used as counterirritant remedies. The pharmacological potential in Capparis micrantha DC. and Crateva religiosa Forst. Caper Thorn is used in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam for medicinal purposes. The juice squeezed from the roots is used as a drink to reduce fever, to promote urination, and as a remedy for a cough. The wood is smoked to heal syphilitic ulceration of the nose and the seeds are used to treat a cough. Crateva religiosa Forst. is a treelet that grows in lowland forests in a geographical area ranging from India to Papua New Guinea including the Ryuku Islands.
