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| Latin Name |
Sanskrit Name |
Hindi Name |
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Phyllanthus amarus
Schum & Th. (Euphorbiaceae)
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Bhumyaamalaki |
Jar-Amla |
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| History |
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Hindu physicians considered the plant
deobstruent, diuretic, astringent and cooling. They prescribed
the dry powder or fresh juice for jaundice. The plant was also
used in skin diseases like scabby affections, offensive sores
and bruises. In western parts of India it was used as a diuretic
in gonorrhoea and acidity of the urine. The root with rice water
was a remedy for menorrhagia. In chronic dysentery, the plant
along with fenugreek was given.
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| Habitat |
It grows widely in the tropical parts
of all countries except Australia. It is found mainly as a weed
in waste lands, agricultural lands and riverbanks. In waste
lands it grows abundabtly during the rainy season.
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| Morphology
Description (Habit) |
It is an annual,
glabrous herb grows up to 15-60 cm high. Has an errect stem, naked
below and slender and spreading leaf branches above. Leaves are numerous,
subsessile, pale green, often distichously imbricating, glaucous below,
elliptic to oblong, obtuse, and stipules subulate. Flowers arise in
leaf axis, very numerous, males 1-3 and females solitary. Sepels of
male orbicular and obovate to oblong in females. Stamens 3, anthers
sessile and in a short column. Disc of male minute glands and of females
annular and lobed. Capsules depressed globose, smooth and hardly 3
lobed. Seeds are 3-gonous, rounded and with longitudinal regular parallel
ribes on the back.
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| Principal
Constituents |
Phyllanthin (bitter
constituent) and hypophyllanthin (non-bitter compound) are isolated
from the leaves. From the aerial parts phyllanthine (4-methoxy-securinine)
and 4- methoxy-norsecurinine are identified1. From the
roots glycoflavones were isolated2. Lintetralin was also
isolated from the plant3. Amariin, a novel hydrolysable
tannin together with geraniin, corilagin, 1,6-digalloyl-glucopyranoside
as well as a rutin and quercetin- 3-O-lucopyranoside have been isolated
from the polar fraction. An unusual hydrolysable tannin, phyllanthusiin
D has also been isolated from the biologically active polar fraction4.
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| Pharmacology |
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The alcoholic extract
of the whole plant has anti-cancer activity against Freund virus Leukaemia
(solid) in the mouse and antispasmodic activity on isolated guinea
pig ileum5. Aqueous extract of whole plant has hypoglycaemic
action in normal and alloxan-diabetic rabbits and leaves to be higher
than that of tolbutamide6.
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| Clinical
Studies |
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It is effective in
treatment of infective hepatitis without any adverse effect7.
It shown to be effective with other Siddha drugs in the treatment
of jaundice due to infective hepatitis8.
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| Toxicology |
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There is no adverse effect was
reported on using the plant.
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| Indications |
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The plant is bitter, astringent,
stomachic, diuretic, febrifuge and antiseptic. Whole plant is used
in dropsy, gonorrhoea, menorrhagia and other genital affections. It
is useful ingartropathy, dropsy, jaundice, diarrhoea, dysentery, intermittent
fevers, ophthalmopathy, scabies, ulcers and wounds. Young shoots and
leaves are given in dysentery and ulcers. Fresh root is an excellent
remedy for jaundice. The decoction of the plant is a remedy for intermittent
fevers and intermittents with infracts of the spleen and liver. Also
as a good tonic and diuretic.
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| Product
Range |
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Diabecon (GlucoCare),
Liv.52 Protec, Chyavanaprasha.
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| References |
- Planta Medica, 5, 104, 1984.
- Planta Medica, 32, 217, 1977; J Indian Chem Soc, 56, 326, 1979.
- Tetrahedron Lett, 32, 3043, 1979.
- Foo, Phytochemistry, 1993, 33, 487; Foo & Wong, ibid, 1992,31,
711.
- Indian J Expt Biol, 6, 232, 1968.
- Indian J Pharmaceut Sci, 44, 10, 1982.
- J Natl Integ Med Assoc, 25(8), 269, 1983.
- Punjab Med J, 10, 667, 1982; J Res Indian Med Yoga Homoep,
12(2), 1, 1977.
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