Botany
The plant is a a gregarious root parasite, producing numerous tubercles or swellings. The scapes are solitary or several, very slender, from 10 to 50 cm high, arising from the tubercle. Flowers are solitary. Calyx is ovoid, 1.5 to 3 cm long, purplish with longitudinal yellow stripes. Corolla is pale purple, two-lipped, tubular, bell-shaped, 2.5 to 5 cm long, 2.5 cm in diameter or less, and fimbriate in the margins. Capsules are ovoid or rounded, 1.5 to 2 cm long. Seeds are yellowish.

Distribution
• A root parasite on various coarse grasses, such as sugar cane, at low altitudes, and on wild grasses at medium altitudes.
• In most provinces in Luzon; in Panay and Leyte.

Parts utilized
Whole plant.

Constituents and properties
Studies have yielded aeginetic acid, aeginetolide, aeginetoside, polyenes and ionone glycosides.

Uses
Folkloric
• Infusion of the plant taken internally for diabetes.
• Decoction of plant used for treatment of anasarca due to acute nephritis.
• In Chinese folk medicine, used to treat chronic liver diseases, cough, and arthritis.

Studies
• Immunomodulation: A indica, a root parasite that grows on bamboo, used extensively in Thai traditional medicine, was studied for its immunological effects. Results showed extracts from A indica had T cell stimulatory activity.
• Cytokine Production / Lymphocyte Proliferation: Previous study reported A. indica induces potent antitumor immunity in tumor-bearing mice. This study investigated the in vitro effects of A. indica extract on various lymphoid cells. Spleen cells from mice pretreated with AIL produced IL-2, IFN gamma, TNF and IL-6 when cells were stimulated in vitro by AIL. CD4 T cells were main producers of IL2 and TNF, while CD4 and CD8 T cells secreted IFN.
• Phenylpropanoid Glycosides: Study yielded two new phenylpropanoid glycosides with seven known compounds.
• 55 kDa Protein / Cytokine Induction / Anti-Tumor Effect: Study isolated a 55 kDa protein from the seed extract of Aeginetia indica. Results strongly suggested that the 55kDa protein is a potent Th1 inducer and may be a useful immunotherapeutic agent for patients with malignant diseases.

Availability
Wild-crafted.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Immunomodulation by Dok Din Daeng (Aeginetia indica Roxb.) extracts in female B6C3F1 mice: (I): Stimulation of T cells / Wimolnut Auttachoat et al / International Immunopharmacology, Vol 4, Issues 10-11, October 2004, Pages 1367-1379 / doi:10.1016/j.intimp.2004.06.002
(2)
Seed extract of Aeginetia indica L induces cytokine production and lymphocyte proliferation in vitro / Chai J G et al / Immunopharmacology. 1994 Jan-Feb;27(1):13-21.
(3)
An extract of seeds from Aeginetia indica L a parasitic plant induces potent antigen-specific antitumor immunity in Meth A-bearing BALB/c mice / Chai J G et al /
(4)
Phenylpropanoid Glycosides from the Parasitic Plant, Aeginetia indica / Jiau-Ching Ho et al / Journal of the Chinese Chemical Society, 2004, 51, 1073-1076
(5)
Th1-cytokine induction and anti-tumor effect of 55 kDa protein isolated from Aeginetia indica L., a parasitic plant / Go Ohe et al / Cancer immunology and immunotherapy, 2001, vol. 50, no5, pp. 251-259