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Botany:
· An erect, branched, glabrous or nearly
glabrous herb, 1 m high or less. Stems green, somewhat 3-angled.
· Leaves: ovate to oblong, petioled, 5 to 8 cm long, acuminate,
base acute or acuminate, margins subentire or undulately toothed
or lobed.
· Flowers: umbellately disposed 5 to 8 on each extra-axillary
peduncle, nodding; peduncles 1 to 2.5 cm long. Calyx green, lobes
ovate-oblong. Corolla tube short, the limb 5-lobed, corolla white,
about 8 mm in diameter. Stamens 4, the filaments short, the anthers
connivent into a cone. Ovary 2-celled.
· Fruits: dark purple or black, glabrous, globose, fleshy
berries about 5 mm in diameter.
· Seeds are yellow and minutely pitted.
Distribution
Widely distributed in the Philippines,
in waste places, flowering all year round.
Parts
utilized:
· Entire plant.
· Collect from May to October, rinse, section into pieces,
sun-dry.
· May also use fresh.
Properties
Sour tasting, mild refrigerant.
Antipyretic, antiseptic, diaphoretic, diuretic, antiphlogistic, febrifuge,
purgative, sedative.
Constituents
Solanine; saponin;
oil; dihydroxystearic, tetrahydroxystearic, linoleic, and oleic acids.
The unripe fruit contains the toxin solanine.
Uses
Folkloric
· Decoction of 12 to 18 gms
dried material or 30 to 60 gms fresh material used for difficulty in
urination, lymphatic obstruction, leucorrhea, eczema and furuncle infections,
skin eczema, cold and fever, throat pain, cough.
· Decoction of leaves as wash or poultice of pounded fresh material
for skin ulcers, wounds and irritations.
· Poultice of leaves, stems and roots used for cancerous sores,
boils, wounds.
Nutritional
· Fruit used in pies and made
into jam.
· Young shoots used like spinach; boiled leaves are edible.
· Only ripe fruits should be consumed or used.
Cosmetic
· Seeds of fresh fruit rubbed
on cheeks to remove freckles and improve the complexion.
Studies
•Anti-seizure: Aqueous leaf extract of SN produced a dose-dependent protection against electrically- and chemically-induced seizures
in chicks, mice and rats with the anti-seizure property potentiated by amphetamine.
• Anti-Ulcer / Antioxidant: Antioxidant effect of methanolic
extract of Solanum nigrum berries on aspirin induced gastric mucosal
injury : Study suggests that SN berries extract may exert gastroprotective effect by a free radical scavening action and offers a therapeutic
potential in the treatment of gastric diseases.
• Hepatoprotective: (1) Inhibitory effect of Solanum nigrum on thioacetamide-induced liver fibrosis
in mice: Study confirmed SNE reduced the degree of fibrosis
caused by TAA treatment probably through a reduction of TGF-B1 secretion. (2) Crude extracts of hepatoprotective
plants, Solanum nigrum and Cichorium intybus inhibit free radical-mediated
DNA damage: Hepatoprotective effects may be due to suppression
of oxidative degradations of DNA in tissue debris. In the study, C intybus effect was more pronounced than the S nigrum effect.
• Molluscicidal / Anti-parasitic: Study of the molluscicidal and antiparasitic activity of SNV showed the unripe fruit extract can be applied for the control of in the larval stages of G. truncatula and F hepatica.
• Antitumor / Immunomodulating: Study of the crude polysaccharides isolated from S nigrum possess potent antitumor activity and SNL-P could exert antitumor activity via activation of different immune responses by directly attacking cancer cells on cervical cancer bearing mice.
• Hepatoprotective / Anti-tumor: Study of the water extract of SN showed it suppressed the progression of hepatoma with increased survival rate. It also alleviated the AAF-induced hepatic inuury and early hepatocarcinogenesis as well as AAF/NaNO2-induced lethal hepatomoa, probably through overexpression of glutathione S-transferases, Nrf2, and antioxidant enzymes.
• Hepatoprotective: Study showed the ethanol extract of the dried fruits of Sn with remarkable hepatoprotective activity against carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatic damage in rats.
• Nitric-oxide Production: Nitric oxide (NO) is an antitumour molecule produced in activated macrophages. Study showed Sn increased the production of NO by macrophages primed by recombinant interferon-y.
• Antinociceptive / Anti-Inflammatory / Antipyretic: Study showed dose-dependent effects of the lipid-soluble extract of S nigrum leaves. on various animal models.
Toxicity !
Generally considered safe and cultivated
as food crop in some places. .However, there are reports of toxicity
regarding the fruit and leave depending on the cultivar and where
it is grown. The unripe fruit contains the higher amount of toxin solanine.
Berries are edible when fully ripe. Leaves should be boiled.
Availability
Wild-crafted.
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