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Family Moraceae
Sikir
Fatoua pilosa Gaudich.
HAIRY CRABWEED

Xi chi shui she ma

Scientific names Common names
Fatoua pilosa Gaudich. Malbas-damo (Batangas)
Parietaria aspera Lesch. ex Gaudich. Poro (Ilk.)
Urtica manillensis Walp. ex Bureau Sarungkar-a- babasit (Ilk.)
  Sikir (Ilk.)
  Hairy crabgrass (Engl.)
  Hairy crabweed (Engl.)
  Mulberry weed (Engl.)
Fatoua pilosa Gaudich. is an accepted name The Plant List

Other vernacular names
AUSTRALIA: Arzerarzer.
CHINESE: Xi chi shui she ma.
JAPANESE: Kuwa kusa.

Botany
Sikir is an ascending or erect, slightly branched, half-woody, slightly hairy perennial herb, 50 centimeters high or less, with slender, terete branches. Leaves are ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 2 to 6 centimeters long, and 1 to 4 centimeters wide, the tip pointed, and broad at the base, truncate or somewhat heart-shaped, 3-nerved, with crenate-dentate margins. Fruit is usually a drupe, rarely an achene, enveloped by an enlarged calyx or immersed in a fleshy receptacle. Seed is solitary.

 

Distribution
- In dry thickets, on walls, cliffs, etc. at low altitudes from northern Luzon to Mindanao.
- Also occurs in Japan and China, and southward to Malaya.

Properties
- Febrifuge, diuretic.
- Plant reported to cause itching of mild degree.
(4)

Constituents
- Study of the whole plant yielded six new prenylcoumarins:
(+)-fatouain A, (−)-fatouain B, (+)-fatouain C, (−)-fatouain D, (+)-fatouain E, and (−)-fatouain F, along with two new bis-prenylcoumarins, (+)-fatouain G and (+)-fatouain H. (1)
- Study isolated umbelliferone, phellodenol A, psoralen and scopoletin, bergapten, (+)-(S)-marmesin, (+)-(S)-rutaretin, and xanthyletin from the whole plants of Fatoua pilosa.
(See study below) (5)
- Study reports calcium carbonate in the leaves--cytoliths were located in the epidermal lithocysts. (6)
- Study isolated three new alkylated chalcones, villosins A-C (1-3), five known analogues, together with ten known coumarins. (see study below) (7)


Parts used
Fresh roots.

Uses

Folkloric
- In the Visayas, decoction of fresh roots is given in fevers.
- Also effective for swollen gums when used as a gargle.
- Infusion of roots used for irregular menstruation.
- Root infusion also used as diuretic.

Studies
Prenylcoumarins / Fatouains:
Study of the whole plant yielded six new prenylcoumarins: (+)-fatouain A, (−)-fatouain B, (+)-fatouain C, (−)-fatouain D, (+)-fatouain E, and (−)-fatouain F, along with two new bis-prenylcoumarins, (+)-fatouain G and (+)-fatouain H. (1)
Fatouapilosin / Antimycobacterial: Study yielded one novel dimeric coumarin analog, fatouapilosin, together with 18 known compounds. Compounds 3, 12, and 14 exhibited the strongest antimycobacterial activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv. (2)
Coumarins / Umbelliferone and Scopoletin / Antimycobacterial: Study isolated umbelliferone, phellodenol A, psoralen and scopoletin, bergapten, (+)-(S)-marmesin, (+)-(S)-rutaretin, and xanthyletin from the whole plants of Fatoua pilosa. Umbelliferone and scoploletin exhibited antimycobacterial activity. (5)
• Cytotoxic Chalcones / Human Tumor Cell Lines: Study isolated three new alkylated chalcones, villosins A-C, along with 10 known coumarins. Compounds 1-3 showed cytotoxicity against five human tumor cell lines (NBA, A549, SHSY5Y, PC3, and MCF7) with IC values ranging from 1.4 ± 0.1 to 5.7 ± 0.3 µM. (7)

Availability
Wild-crafted.

© Godofredo U. Stuart Jr., M.D. / StuartXchange

Updated August 2018 / October 2015

IMAGE SOURCE: Fatoua villosa / File:Fatoua villosa 2007.07.15 14.37.23-p7150082.jpg / Michael Becker / 15 July 2007 / GNU Free Documentation License / Wikimedia Commons / Modifications by G. Stuart

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Prenyl Coumarins from Fatoua pilosa / Chun-Ching Chiang, Ming-Jen Cheng et al / J. Nat. Prod., 2010, 73 (10), pp 1718–1722 / DOI: 10.1021/np100354c
(2)
A Novel Dimeric Coumarin Analog and Antimycobacterial Constituents from Fatoua pilosa / Chun-Ching, Ming-Jen Cheng et al / Chemistry & Biodiversity, Volume 7, Issue 7, pages 1728–1736, July 2010 / DOI: 10.1002/cbdv.200900326
(4)
MORACEA (Mulberry family) / Botanical Dermatology Database Info / BoDD
(5)
Review on Natural Coumarin Lead Compounds for Their Pharmacological Activity / K. N. Venugopala, V. Rashmi, and B. Odhav / BioMed Research International, Volume 2013 (2013) / http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/963248
(6)
Calcium crystals in the leaves of some species of Moraceae / Chi-Chih Wu / Botanical Studies, An International Journal.
(7)
New Cytotoxic Alkylated Chalcones from Fatoua villosa / Shi-Yun Su, Jing-Jing Xue, Guang-Yu Yang, Chun Lei. Ai-Jun Hou / Chemistry & Biodiversity / https://doi.org/10.1002/cbdv.201700076

It is not uncommon for links on studies/sources to change. Copying and pasting the information on the search window or using the DOI (if available) will often redirect to the new link page.

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