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Gen info
Name "gliricidia" derives from the Lain 'glis' (dormouse) and caedere (to kill). The Spanish name "mata-raton" refers to the tree's rodenticial properties.
As the tree pods hang-dry in the sun, they curl and explode, making a popping cracking sound. A cluster of trees with their pods snapping and popping and falling to the ground, in unison, make a fascinating afternoon of nature's concoction of sound.
The tree is common
in the southern Tagalog areas, shedding leaves around December and flowering February and March. In some areas, the blooming of its pink flowers is so profuse to deserve a comparison with the cherry blossoms.
Botany
Kakawati is a smooth, deciduous
tree, 3 to 10 meters high. Leaves are 15 to 25 centimeters long with 13 leaflets which are opposite, oblong-ovate, 4 to 6 centimeters long, with a pointed
tip and rounded base. Racemes are numerous on leafless branches, containing many flowers. Flowers are pink, 2 centimeters long, with a truncate calyx. The standard is reflexed and pale-yellow in the median part. The pods are narrowly oblong to oblanceolate, 10 to 14 centimeters long,
about 2 centimeters wide, containing 6 to 8 seeds.
 Distribution
- Thoroughly naturalized throughout the Philippines in settled areas at low and medium altitudes.
- Planted as an ornamental flowering tree for its beautiful pink flowers.
- Introduced by the Spaniards from Mexico.
Constituents
• Phytochemical studies have yielded a formosin (an isoflavan, reportedly with anti-tumor capacity), formononetin, gliricidin-6a-gliricidol-9a, medicarpin (pterocarpan), 7,4'-dihydroxy-3'-methoxyisoflavin, 2'O-methylsepiol, tannin, and a trihydroxyflavone.
• Heartwood yielded a stigmastanol glucoside and 3'4-dihydroxy-trans-cinnamic acid octacosylester 2 along with three other known constituents.
Properties
• Tannins are considered potentially antidiarrheal, antidysenteric,
antimutagenic, antioxidant, bactericidal, hepatoprotective, pesticidal
and viricidal.
Parts
utilized
Leaves, bark, roots.
Uses
Folkloric
- Dermatitis, skin itching:
Apply juice or decoction of leaves, bark or roots on the skin as antipruritic.
Fresh leaves applied to the skin as insect repellant.
As counterirritant: Crush leaves and apply as poultice for rheumatic
pains, sprains and closed fractures.
Sap of bark, leaves and roots have been used for wound healing.
Treatment of scabies.
In Guatemala, the bark and leaves are used
to treat skin diseases.
In many folkloric regimens of other countries, used for headache, bruises,
burns, colds, cough, fever, fatigue, gangrene, gonorrhea, skin itches
and sores; as antidote, insecticide, insect repellent.
Others
- Wood is hard and durable
used for small housing needs, posts, implement handles and firewood.
In the Tagalog areas, popularly used as a liviing fence.
- Leaves have a fetid smell; crushed, used to rid dogs of fleas and ticks
and cattle, of ticks.
- The juice from leaves is applied to daily for one week to areas affected
by external parasites,
Insect repellent: In Latin American, used
by farmers to repel insects. Leaves are ground up, mixed with water,
and the resulting paste use to bathe animals, and repeated every 7 to
14 days, decreasing the infections from tropical warble fly.
Studies
• Anti-Pseudomonas:
Potential
as anti-pseudomonas drug: Crude extract of Gliricidium sepium
showed potential antipseudomonas drug potential with an in vitro study
showing a minimum inhibitory concentration at 1%.
• Anti-Scabies: (1) The study concluded that the "kakawati"
preparation is as effective as sulfur lotion in the treatment of scabies. (2) In a study of scabies treatment among selected residents of Titay, Zamboanga, results showed a significant difference between pre-treatment and post-treatment scores after one week. However, there was a noted increase of scabies lesions 2 and 4 weeks after.
• Antimicrobial:
(1)
Study of 10 medicinal plants in Colombian folk medicine, including G
sepium, was done screening for antimicrobial activity. The ethanol extracts
were all active against S aureus except for J secunda. (2)
A possible alternative in the treatment of non-nosocomial infections:
G. sepium was one of ten medicinal plants screened for antimicrobial
activity, all of which were found effective against three or more pathogenic
microorganisms, corroborating their use in folkloric medicine.
• Saponins:
Study
yielded three new hederagenin-based acetylated saponins from the fruits
of Gliricidia sepium.
• Insecticidal
/ Nematicidal / Antibacterial: Study
showed nematicidal activity against Meloidogyne incognita nematode with
60% mortalilty; mosquito repellent activity against Aedes aegypti with
maximum 78% repellency; and antibacterial activity agaiinst E. coli,
S aureus, Pseudomonas spp, S typhi and Klebsiella spp with best results
against E Coli.
• Antimicrobial:
Study
on the antimicrobial activity on the bark of five tree species showed
G sepium to have antimicrobial effects against S epidermis, S aureus,
P aeruginosa, B pumillus and V cholerae.
Preparation
for scabies treatment
Courtesy
of: Dr. Joel Bañez, Section of Dermatology, UERMMH
Ingredients:
1. White candelsticks (4)
2. Coconut oil or any cooking oil: 500 cc
3. Kakawati leaves 250 g
Instructions:
1. Clean kakawati leaves thoroughly
2. Chop leaves finely
3. Add 250 g (approximately 1 glass) of finely chopped leaves into 2
glasses of coconut oil.
4. Mix while boiling.
5. Gather leaves on the surface of the oil, then drain using a strainer.
6. Get 4 white candles ('esperma") and chop finely.
7. Add to the boiled preparation and mix until all chopped candles are
melted.
8. Again, using a strainer, drain and transfer mixture into a clean
glass container. Let it cool.
Toxicity
• Tannins:
In South America, in times of scarcity, the forage is fed to livestock.
Although goats can consume large quantities of plants with tannins,
some animals, like cattle and sheep may not tolerate it due to a salivary
protein binding factor that biinds the tannins.
Availability
Wild-crafted. |
