Botany
Malasandia is a twining, herbaceous, annual vine, all part being more or less covered with rather long, spreading, pale or brownish hairs. Leaves are somewhat rounded in outline, 6 to 10 centimeters in diameter, palmately 5- to 9-lobed, heart-shaped at the base and somewhat hairy on both surfaces. Lobes of the blade are elliptic, with narrowed base and rounded sinuses. Flowers occur in axillary heads usually only one opening at a time. Calyx is green and about 1 centimeter long. Corolla is white and 4 centimeters long, the limb about 3 centimeters in diameter. Fruit is rounded, 6 to 7 millimeters in diameter.
Distribution
- In all or most parts of the Philippines in open grasslands and waste places at low and medium altitudes.
- Also occurs in tropical Africa and Asia through Malaya to Polynesia.
Constituents
- Ethyl acetate extract yielded flavonoids, glycosides, alkaloids, saponins, carbohydrates and tannins. (see study below) (10)
- Preliminary phytochemical of shade-dried whole plant yielded
flavonoid, alkaloid, tannin, terpenoid, steroid, saponin, cardiac glycosides and anthraquinone glycosides. (15)
Properties
- Studies suggest analgesic, cytotoxic, sedating, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, thrombolytic, anticancer properties
Parts used
Leaves
Uses
Folkloric
- Poultices of leaves used as resolvent for pimples, boils, carbuncles, etc.
- In Java, leaves used for poulticing sores, boils, pimples. (13)
- In Sri Lanka, entire creeper is crushed and the juice extracted and take orally for treatment of or prevention of rabies if bitten by a rabid dog. (13)
- In India, used for wound healing. In the Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, leaf powder is smoked to get relief from bronchial spasm. Leaves used for treating boils.
-
The Kerala tribe use the herb for various painful conditions - headaches, swellings, poisonous stings, snake bites, etc. (4)
- In Tamil Nadu, southern India, leaf paste is applied twice daily for 2 days to treat pimples. Seed paste with coconut oil is applied to facilitate wound healing.
- In Andhra Pradesh, India, leaf paste is warmed and cooled, and applied to the head for hypnotic effect. Twining stems are dipped in tumeric water and worn around the neck of children for restlessness and to drive away evil spirits. Leaf paste is applied on whole body before bathing with warm water to treat fever. Also used for wound healing. Leaf powder smoked to relieve bronchial spasm. (12)
- In Bangladesh, used for the treatment of tumors and cancers. Leaf powder smoked to get relief from bronchial spasm. (16)
Others
- Fodder: In India, used as fodder plant.
Studies
• Analgesic / Leaves:
Study showed the ethanolic leaf extract of Ipomoea pes-tigridis has significant analgesic activity with significant dose-dependent reduction of writhes (p<0.05) with 100 mg/kbw dose showing the highest reduction. using plate reaction time. (4)
• Analgesic and Neuropharmacological Testing: Study investigated the analgesic and neuropharmacological activities of an ethyl acetate extract of I. pes-tigridis in albino mice. In acetic acid writhing test and hot plate method in mice the extract showed significant analgesic activity. Testing did not show any CNS depressant activities. (see Constituents above) (10)
• Cytotoxic / HepG2 Cell Line / Leaves: Study of 70% ethanolic extract of I. pes-tigridis leaves showed significant anticancer effect against liver cancer on HEPG2 cell line in concentration range of 500 µg/mL with 99.87% cell inhibition. The antiproliferative effect comparable to that of Ipomoea stans. (11)
• Alkaloids and Flavonoids / Antibacterial / Anti-Inflammatory / Aerial Parts: Study evaluated methanolic extract of aerial parts for antibacterial activity against routine bacterial strains and anti-acne activity against S. epidermis and Propionibacterium acnes. Staphylococcus epidermis was more susceptible to the extract than P. acnes, with MIC of 96 µg/ml and 100 µg/ml, respectively. Alkaloids and flavonoids were the potent inhibitors of these microorganisms. Anti-inflammatory activity screening showed 100 mg/kg as the most effective dose. (14)
• Antioxidant / Cytotoxicity / Neuropharmacological Effects: Study showed dose-dependent radical scavenging effect in DPPH assay, with IC50 for free radicals of 79.05 µg/ml. Leaf petroleum benzene extract showed dose dependent lethality in brine shrimp lethality assay. LC50 of leaf extract was 12.035 µg/ml. In open field and hole cross tests in mice, extract exhibited a critical sedative effect at doses of 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg by oral route, with diazepam as standard. (16)
• Antimicrobial / Thrombolytic / Cytotoxic /
Leaves:Study evaluated the EA and n-hexane extract of leaves for antimicrobial, cytotoxic, and thrombolytic activities. The EA extract showed mild antimicrobial activity with ZOI ranging from 11 to 14 mm while the n-hexane extract showed mild activity with ZOE range from 4 to 9 mm, with ciprofloxacin standard 50 mm ZOI. The extracts showed clot lysis effect with thrombolytic activity of 14.90% and 8.18% for the EA and n-hexane extracts, respectively. In Brine Shrimp Lethality Bioassay, the EA extract showed an LC50 of 14.125 µg/ml while the n-hexane extract exhibited an LC50 of 33.11 µg/ml. (17)
• Anti-Acne / Dermatological Herbal Hydrogel: Study formulated and evaluated a herbal hydrogel incorporated with extract of Ipomoea tes-tigridis for anti-acne activity. The formulation passed all evaluation parameters i.e., organoleptic characters, pH, skin irritation tests, microbial contamination, extrude and spread ability, drug content, and diffusion studies. The anti-acne and anti-inflammatory activity was comparable to standard drug clindamycin and diclofenac, respectively. Results suggest the formulation can be a substitute for synthetic anti-acne agents. (18)
Availability
Wild-crafted.
|