Detail Study of Traditional Drugs of India

 CHAPTER 35 

Detail Study of Traditional Drugs of India

INTRODUCTION

• A large number of natural plant species, specifically those used extensively in various Indian traditional herbal drugs, have been, and are still being investigated for ascertaining their specific inherent vital pharmacological and microbiological activities.

• In the recent past, stretched over to almost two decades the spectacular thrust generated enough interest, inquisitiveness, and incredible latest scientific approach to search for new drugs of tremendous potential value and worth in comparison to the modern allopathic system of medicin

• Based upon the high quality, proper standardization procedures, ultramodern packaging concepts and ideas, exhaustively informative drug-usage literatures, and above all the broad-spectrum methodical promotions both in India and abroad, the Indian traditional herbal drugs have undoubtedly made their presence felt amongst the valued consumers. An overwhelmingly plausible and sound confidence amongst the consumers to make use of such available drugs as: OTC products, prescribed medications, long-term usage in chronic ailments, have really turned them into a widely accepted alternative saga of safer and effective medications not only in India but also across the entire globe

• The importance of ‘medicinal plants’ right from the very dawn of civilization up to the last couple of decades have witnessed a tremendous cumulative, informative, and educative volume of researches carried out in the everexpanding field of pharmaceutically significant naturally occurring plant products. Interestingly, the better understanding of the plants as a whole vis-à-vis their important chemical constituents have undoubtedly broadened and strengthened one’s acceptability and overall confidence in their usages amongst the consumers. Hence, the prevailing biodynamism of the ‘active principles’ strategically located in the plant kingdom would certainly provide the mankind with an eternal storehouse of clinically beneficial herbal drugs.

• Indian plant drug caught the attention of west since the beginning of colonial days. Garcia da Orta, the personal physician of the then Portuguese governor in India was the first to publish his treatise on Indian drugs in 1563. During the period of 1678–1703, Henrich Van Reed, the Dutch governor of Cochin, published his work in twelve volumes on the medicinal plants of Kerala. In the later period, most of the systematic work on Indian medicinal plants has been published by Indian authors such as Nadkarni (1908), Kirtikar and Basu (1918), Chopra (1956), Aiyer and Kolammal (1960–66), Moose (1976–79), and Nambiar (1986). The aspects of cultivation and utilization of medicinal and aromatic plants were edited in detail by Atal and Kapoor (1982) and as we see in recent days Handa (1998) published Indian Herbal Pharmacopoeia with an emphasis on the standardization and quality control of traditional drugs of India

ADUSA

Synonym

• Vasaka

Regional Names

• Sansk: atarusa, Vasaka; Guj: aduso, ardusi; Hindi: adusa, arusa; Kan: atarusha, adsole, adasale; Mar: adulsa.

Biological Source

• Vasaka consists of the fresh or dried leaves of Adatara vesical Nees.

Family

• Acantharean

Habitat

The plant is distributed all over the plains of India and in the lower Himalayan ranges, ascending to a height of 1,500 m

Macroscopy

Leaves are entire when fresh and crumpled or broken when dried. Shape is lanceolate-ovate lanceolate, crenate to entire margin, acuminate apex, base tapering; petiole 2-to 8-cm long. The leaves are 10-to 30-cm long and 3- to 10-cm broad, pinnate venation, glabrous or slightly pubescent green when fresh, on drying the colour changes from brown to grey. Odour is characteristic and bitter in taste.

Microscopy

• Leaf shows dorsiventral structure with two layers of palisade cells below upper epidermis, epidermal cells sinuous walls with anomocylic stomata on both surfaces; one to three, rarely upto five-celled uniseriate covering trichomes few, and glandular trichomes with unicellular stalk and fourcelled head are seen; acicular and prismatic forms of calcium oxalate crystals are also present in mesophyll.

Standards

Chemical Constituents

• Vasaka contains several alkaloids, but the major ones include pyrroloquinoline alkaloids vasicine about 1.3% accompanied by vasicinol, vasicinone and anhalonine. Aliphhydroketones such as 37-hydroxy hexateracont-1-en-5-one and 37-hydroxy heptatriacontane 19-one have also been reported from vasaka.

Uses

• The leaf extract has been used for treatment of bronchitis and asthma for many centuries. It relieves cough and breathlessness. It is also prescribed commonly in ayurveda for bleeding due to idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, local bleeding due to peptic ulcer, piles, menorrhagia etc. Large doses of fresh juice of leaves have been used in tuberculosis. Its local use gives relief in pyorrhea and in bleeding gums.

Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparations known as Vasavaleha (Dabur), Kasamrit Herbal (Baidyanath) and Vasaka capsule (Himalaya Drug Company).

AMLA

Synonyms

• Indian gooseberry, Emblic myrobalan.

Regional Names

• Sansk: amalaka, dhatriphala; Guj: ambala, amala; Hindi: amla; Kan: nellikayi; Mar: anvala, Valakati.

Biological Source

• Amla consists of the fresh or dried fruit of Emblica officinalis Gaertn. (syn. Phyllanthus emblica Linn).

Family

• Euphorbiaceae.

Habitat

• A deciduous tree, small to medium in size, the average height being 5.5 metres, commonly found in India, Sri Lanka, China, and Malaya ascending to 1,500 m on the hills

Macroscopy

• Fruits, fleshy, almost depressed to globose. 1.5- to 2.5-cm in diameter. It is distinctly marked in six lobes. The fruit is green when tender but the colour changes to light yellow or brick red on maturity. Taste is sour and astringent initially and sweet afterwards.

Microscopy

• Fruit shows an epicarp consisting of epidermis with a thick cuticle and two to four layers of hypodermis; the cells in hypodermis is tangentially elongated, thick-walled, smaller in dimension than epidermal cells; mesocarp consists of thin-walled isodiametric parenchymatous cells; several collateral fibrovascular bundles scattered throughout mesocarp; xylem composed of tracheal elements, fibre tracheid and xylem fibres; tracheal elements, show reticulate, scalariform, and spiral thickenings; mesocarp also contains large aggregates of numerous irregular silica crystals.

Standards

Chemical Constituents

• It is highly nutritious and is an important dietary source of Vitamin C, minerals, and amino acids. The edible fruit tissue contains protein concentration 3-fold and ascorbic acid concentration 160-fold compared to that of the apple. The fruit also contains considerably higher concentration of most minerals and amino acids than apples. The pulpy portion of fruit, dried and freed from the nuts contains: gallic acid 1.32%, tannin, sugar 36.10%; gum 13.75%; albumin 13.08%; crude cellulose 17.08%; mineral matter 4.12%, and moisture 3.83%. Tannins are the mixture of gallic acid, ellagic acid, and phyllembin. The alkaloidal constituents such as phyllantidine and phyllantine have also been reported in the fruits. An immature fruit contains indoleacetic acid and four other auxins: a1, a3, a4 and a5, and two growth inhibitors R1 and R2.

Uses

• The fruits are diuretic, acrid, cooling, refrigerant, and laxative. Dried fruit is useful in hemorrhages, diarrhea, diabetes, and dysentery. They are useful in the disorders associated with the digestive system and are also prescribed in the treatment of jaundice and coughs. It has antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral activities. Amla is one of the three ingredients of the famous ayurvedic preparation, triphala, which is given to treat chronic dysentery, biliousness, and other disorders, and also it is an ingredient in Chyavan rash.

Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparations known as Jeewani malt (Chirayu Pharma), Triphala churna (Zandu) and Chyavan rash (Dabur).

APAMARGA

Synonym

• Prickly Chaff flower.

Regional Names

• Sans: apamarga; Hin: chirchira; Mar: aghada.

Biological Source

• The drug consists of dried whole plant of Achyranthes aspera Linn. Syn. A. canescens.

Family

• Amaranthaceous.

Habitat

• It is found commonly as a weed throughout India up to an altitude of 900 m.

Macroscopy

Root

• Tap root are cylindrical in shape that are slightly ribbed. They are 0.1- to 1.0-cm thick and the outer surface is rough due to presence of some root scars, secondary and tertiary roots are present. It is yellowish brown in colour and devoid of odour.

Stem

• The stems are cylindrical, erect, branched, hollow, 0.3- to 0.5-cm in cut pieces with yellowish brown in colour.

Leaf

• Simple, obovate, opposite, subsessile, exstipulate with wavy margin; slightly acuminate apex, and pubescent.

Flower

• They are greenish white arranged as inflorescence on a long spike, bisexual, actinomorphic, hypogynous; gynoecium bicarpellary, syncarpous with superior ovary.

Seed

• Sub-cylindrical, truncate at the apex, rounded at the base, endospermic, black, and shiny.

Microscopy

Root

• The outer most layers are the cork cells which are three- to eight-layered, rectangular, tangentially elongated, and thin walled. The cortex consists of six to nine layers; the cells are thin-walled, oval to rectangular shape, parenchymatous cells with hardly any scattered stone cells either single or in groups. Below this it has four to six discontinuous rings of secondary thickening with vascular tissues; sieve tubes are distinct in phloem parenchyma and xylem rings are also present. The xylem is composed of pitted vessels. Medullary rays are one- to three-cells wide with small prismatic crystals of calcium oxalate.

Stem

• Stem shows six to ten outstanding ridges. Epidermis is single layered and covered by thick cuticle having uniseriate covering trichomes and glandular trichomes which are two to five celled. The cortex has parenchymatous cells, six to ten layered, with rosette crystals of calcium oxalate. Cortex has collenchyma Tous cells with vascular bundles capped by pericyclic fibres. The mature stem shows thinwalled lignified cork cells. Vascular tissues show anomalous secondary growth with four to six incomplete rings of xylem and phloem.

Leaf

• Epidermis is the outer layer which is covered with cuticle and consists of both covering and glandular trichomes. The stomata present are anomocytic stomata in the epidermis; the lower epidermis has numerous stomata. The ground tissues consisting of thin-walled parenchymatous cells containing of rosette type of calcium oxalate crystals. In the midrib it has four- to five-layered collenchyma just below the upper epidermis and two- to three-layered above the lower. Vascular bundle is present in the middle of the midrib, and the remaining is filled with parenchyma cells with calcium oxalate crystals.

Chemical Constituents

• A. apsera contains triterpenoid saponins as the major constituents of the whole drug. The triterpenoid saponins yield oleanolic acid as an aglycone. It also shows the presence of an insect moulting hormone Ecdysterone, long-chain alcohols such as 17-penetatriacontanol, 27-cyclohexyIheptacosan-7-ol, long-chain ketones and a water-soluble base betaine. Two new saponins C and D have been isolated from the fruits.

Uses

• A. aspera is much valued in the indigenous medicine. It is reported to be an astringent and diuretic. A decoction of the plant is useful in pneumonia and renal dropsy, while the juice is useful in opthalmia and dysentery. The leaves are used to cure gonorrhoea, whereas the flowers are used in the treatment of menorrhagia. The roots are astringent and their paste is applied to clear opacity of cornea. It is also reported to be useful in cancer. The plant shows significant abortifacient activity in mice and rabbit. The plant also shows hypoglycaemic activity in the normal and diabetic rabbits.

 Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparation known as Cystone tablet (Himalaya Drug Company).

 ARJUNA

Synonym

• Arjuna Myrobalan.

Regional Names

• Sansk: kakubha, svetavaha; Guj: arjuna, sajada; Hindi: arjuna; Kan: matti, neermatti, mathichakke; Mar: adurta, sadada.

Biological Source

• It is the dried bark of Terminalia arjuna W. and A.

Family

• Combretaceae.

Habitat

• This herb has been known from as early as the Vedic period. It is grown in flowerpots in most Hindu homes. Its leaves are used in the worship of gods and goddesses and partaken as prasad. It is native to India. It reached Western Europe only in the 16th century. It is widely grown throughout the world.

Macroscopy

• Bark is available in pieces, flat, curved, recurved, channelled to half quilled 0.2- to 1.5-cm thick, 10 cm in length, and upto 7 cm in width; inner surface fibrous and pinkish, short fracture; taste is bitter and astringent.

Microscopy

• Outer cork consists of 9–10 layers of tangentially elongated cells; cork cambium and secondary cortex are not distinct. Medullary rays are seen traversing almost upto outer bark secondary phloem occupies a wide zone, consisting of sieve tubes, companion cells, phloem parenchyma and phloem fibres; phloem fibres are distributed in rows and present in groups of 2–10; rosette type of calcium oxalate crystals and starch grains are also present.

Standards

Chemical Constituents

• The dry bark from the stem contains about 20 to 24% of tannin, whereas that of the bark obtained from the lower branches is upto 15 to 18%. The tannins present in arjuna bark are of mixed type consisting of both hydrolysable and condensed tannins. The tannins are reported to be present are (+) catechol, (+) gallocatechol, epicatechol, epigallocatechin, and ellgic acid. The flavonoids such as arjunolone, arjunone, and baicalein have been reported from the stem bark. The triterpenoid compounds arjunetin, arjungenin, arjunglucoside I and II, and terminoic acid have also been reported from the bark. The root contains number of triterpenoids such as arjunoside I and II, terminus acid, oleanolic acid, arjunic acid, arjunolic acid, etc. The fruits also contain 7 to 20% of tannins. A pentacyclic triterpenic glycoside arjun glucoside III has been reported from the fruits along with hentriacontane, myristic oleate and arachidic stearate.

Uses

• Arjuna bark is used as a diuretic and astringent. The diuretic properties can be attributed to the triterpenoids present in fruits. It causes decrease in blood pressure and heart rate. It is used in the treatment of various heart diseases in indigenous systems of medicines. The bark was extensively used in the past by the local tanneries for tanning animal hides. It yields a very firm leather of a colour which is similar babool tanned leather.

Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparations known as Abana, Geri forte, Liv 52, Mentat (Himalaya Drug Company); Arjun Ghrita, Arjun Churna (Baidyanath Company); and Madhushana (Jamuna Pharma).

ASHOKA

Synonym

• Ashok

Regional Names

• Hindi and Bengali: asok; Mar: ashoka.

Biological Source

• The drug consists of the dried bark of Saraca indica auct. non-Linn., syn. S. asoca (roxb). De Wilde

Habitat

• Ashoka tree is evergreen tree, grown all over India, in Burma and Ceylon. In India, it is cultivated in states like Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and A.P.

Macroscopy

• S. indica is a small evergreen tree of 6 to 9 m height distributed throughout India up to an altitude of 750 m in the central and the eastern Himalayas and the Khasi, Garo, and Lusai hills. It is found wild along streams or in the shade of evergreen forests. The bark of the plant is bark brown to grey or almost black with warty surfaces. Leaves are paripinnate, oblong-lanceolate, and rigidly subcoriaceous. Flowers are orange to orange yellow eventually turning vermillion in dense axillary corymbs. Fruits consist of the flat leathery pods with four to eight ellipsoid-oblong seeds.

BRAHMI

Synonyms

• Indian Pennywort, Mangosteen.

Regional Names

• Sanskrit: manduki, darduracchada; Gujarati: khodabrahmi, khadbhrammi; Hindi: brahma manduki, brahmi; Kan: ondelaga, brahmi soppu; Mar: karivana.

Biological Source

• Brahmi is the fresh or dried herb of Centella asiatica (L.) (syn. Hydrocotyl asiatica Linn.)

Family

• Umbelliferae

Habitat

• The plant is found in swampy areas of India, commonly found as a weed in crop fields and other waste places throughout India up to an altitude of 600 m and also in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Madagascar.

Macroscopy

• It is a slender, herbaceous creeper. Stems are long, prostate, filiform, often reddish, and with long internodes, rooting at nodes. Leaves are long-petioles, 1.3 to 6.3 cm in diameter, several from rootstock and 1 to 3 cm from each node of stem. They are orbicular, reniform, rather broader than long, glabrous on both sides and with numerous slender nerves from a deeply cordate base. Fruit 8 mm long, ovoid, hard with a thick pericarp.

Microscopy 

Root

• Outer cork consisting of three- to five-layered, exfoliated rectangular cells, followed by cortex region consisting of three or four layers of parenchyma cells containing oval to round, simple, starch grains, and micro sphenoidal crystals of calcium oxalate; secondary cortex composed of thinwalled, oval to polygonal parenchymatous cells. Secretory cells are also present.

Stem

• Single-layered epidermis composed of round to cubical cells covered by striated cuticle. Two or three layers of collenchyma Tous cells are found below the epidermis, collenchyma Tous cells are followed by six to eight layers of thin-walled, isodiametric, parenchymatous cells with intercellular space present; vascular bundles collateral, open, arranged in a ring, capped, by patches of sclerenchyma and traversed by wide medullary rays. Resin ducts are also present in parenchymatous cells of cortex; pith consists of isodiametric parenchyma cells with intercellular spaces.

Leaf

• Single-layered epidermis covered by a thick cuticle, two- or three-layered collenchyma in the midrib region on both surfaces, central zone occupied by vascular bundles, mesophyll consists of two or three layer of palisade cells, five to seven layers of loosely arranged, more or less isodiametric spongy parenchyma cells. Rosette type crystals of calcium oxalate and anisocytic stomata are also present. Few anomocytic stomata are also seen.

Standards

Chemical Constituents

• The drug contains triterpenoid saponin glycosides, indocentelloside, brahmoside, brahminoside, asiaticosides, thankuniside, and isothankuniside. The corresponding trirerpene acids obtained on hydrolysis of the glycosides are indocentoic, brahmic, asiatic, thankunic, and isothankunic acids. These acids, except the last two, are also present in free form in the plant from isobrahmic and betulic acids. The presence of mesoinositol, a new oligosaccharide, centellose, kaempferol, quercetin, and stigmasterol, have also been reported.

Uses

• The plant is used as tonic, in diseases of skin, nerves, blood, and also to improve memory. It also strengthens our immune system. Asiatic sides stimulate the reticuloendothelial system where new blood cells are formed and old ones destroyed, fatty materials are stored, iron is metabolized, and immune responses and inflammation occur or begin. The primary mode of action of centella appears to be on the various phases of connective tissue development, which are part of the healing process. Centella also increases keratinization, the process of building more skin in areas of infection such as sores and ulcers. Asiatic sides also stimulate the synthesis of lipids and proteins necessary for healthy skin. Finally, centella strengthens veins by repairing the connective tissues surrounding veins and decreasing capillary fragility

Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparations known as Iqmen (Lupin Herbal Lab.) and Abana, Geriforte, Menosan, Mentat (Himalaya Drug Company).

TYLOPHORA

Synonyms 

• Anantmul, Tylophora asthmatica W. and A. 

Biological 

• Source The drug consists of dried leaves and roots of Tylophora indica Burm f.

Family 

• Asclepiadaceae.

 Habitat 

• Tylophora is a perennial climbing plant native to the plains, forests, and hills of southern and eastern India.

Macroscopy

• Leaves, ovate, or elliptic oblong shape, acute or acuminate apex, cordate base, 5-to 10-cm long, 2.5-to 5.3-cm wide, glabrous, pubescent beneath. The whole part of the plant is pale yellow brown in colour and devoid of odour but has a sweetish and subsequent acrid taste.

Chemical Constituents

• The active constituents are phenanthroindolizidine alkaloids like tylophorine, tylophorinine, tylophorinidine, and septicine. The plant also contains a phytosterol (cetyl alcohol, wax, resin, pigments, tannin, glucose, calcium salts, potassium chloride, α-amyrin, and flavonoids like quercetin, kaempferol, and tyloindane.

Uses

• The dried leaves are used in the treatment of bronchial asthma, bronchitis, rheumatism, and dermatitis. It is also used as emetic, diaphoretic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and expectorant. The roots have stimulant, emetic, cathartic, expectorant, stomachic, antidysentery, antidiarrhoeal, and diaphoretic properties.

Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparation known as Geriforte Aqua (Himalaya Drug Company).

VIDANG

Synonym

•  False black pepper. 

Regional Names

•  Sansk: jantughna, krmighna, vella, krmihara; Guj: vavding, vavading, vayavadang; Hindi: vayavidanga, bhabhiranga; Kan: vayuvidanga, vayuvilanga; Mar. vavading, vavding. 

Biological 

• Source Vidang consists of dried ripe fruits of Embelia ribes Burm. 

 Family 

• Myrisinaceae.

Habitat

• These climbing herbs are found in India, Central and lower Himalayas, Sri Lanka, Burma, South China, and Singapore.

Macroscopy

• Fruits are globular to subglobular, brownish black, 24 mm in diameter, style at apex, often short, thin pedicel, and persistent calyx with usually three or five sepals present; pericarp brittle enclosing a single seed covered by a thin membrane; seed, reddish in colour and covered with yellowish spots, aromatic odour, astringent in taste.

Microscopy

• Fruit T.S. shows epicarp consisting of single row of tabular cells of epidermis with wrinkled cuticle; mesocarp consists of a number of layers of reddish brown-coloured cells and numerous fibre vascular bundles. Mesocarp and endodermis composed of stone cells; endodermis consisting of single layered, thick-walled large, palisade like stone cells; seed coat is composed of two- to three-layered reddish browncoloured cells; the cells in endosperm are irregular in shape and thick walled, containing fixed oil and proteinous masses; mesocarp contains few prismatic crystals of calcium oxalate and a small embryo is seen.

Standards

Chemical Constituents

• Vidang contains hydroquinone derivative embelin, embellic acid, a dimer of embelin known as vilangin, an alkaloid christembine, tannins, and quercitol. It also contains volatile oil and fats. In fruit embelin occurs in golden yellow needles and is insoluble in water but soluble in alcohol, chloroform, and benzene.

Uses

• It is anthelmintic, carminative, and stimulant. It is also used in abdominal disorders, lung diseases, insanity, constipation, fungus, gas, indigestion, headache, heart disease, toothache, hemorrhoids, mouth ulcers, obesity, pneumonia, sore throat, worms, etc.

Marketed Formulations

• It is one of the ingredients of the preparations known as Gasex, Diakof, Herbolax, and Koflet (Himalaya Drug Company).