 Botany
Tañgal is a small tree growing up to 8 meters or less in height, with many buttresses at the base. Bark is dark red. Leaves are ovate, 5 to 7.5 centimeters long, 2 to 5 centimeters wide, blunt at the tip and pointed at the base. Flowers are about 6 millimeters in length, borne on short stalks. Calyx lobes are linear, with pointed tips. Petals are five, smooth; tips are flat or notched, with three of four club-shaped appendages. Stamens are ten. Fruit is small, club-shaped or subovoid, surrounded near the base by the reflexed segments of the calyx.
Distribution
- Abundant in mangrove swamps throughout the Philippines.
- Also occurs in India to Malaya.
Constituents
- Aerial parts yielded three new lupane-type triterpenes, 3a-O-trans-feruloylbetulinic acid, 3a-O-trans-coumaroylbetulinic acid and 3ß-O-cis-feruloylbetulin, with 10 known triterpenes.
Properties
Whole plant is astringent.
Bark is astringent, hemostatis, and used as quinine substitute.
Parts used
Bark.
Uses
Folkloric
Decoction of the bark used to stop hemorrhages; applied to malignant ulcers.
Bark used for diabetes.
On the African Coast, decoction of shoots used as substitute for quinine.
Malay women use a decoction of bark in childbirth.
In India, bark used as hemostatic.
In Malaysia, bark lotion used for ulcers and abdominal ailments.
Others
Dye: In eastern Africa and Asia, stem bark used for dyeing and tanning. In SE Asia, source of "soga browns" of Javanese batiks.
Preservative: In fishing communities, bark extract used to preserve nets and sails from decay.
Wood: Poles, planks and wattlework for house building.
Studies
• Dolabrane Diterpene / Tagalsin / Cytotoxicity:
Study isolated a new dolabrane-type diterpene, tagalsin, together with six known analogues. Cytotoxicity of the isolated compounds was evaluated against HeLa human cervical carcinoma cancer cell line.
• Anti-Tumor:
Study yielded four triterpenes. Compounds 1 and 3 were effective in inhibiting cell proliferation and growth of H-7402 and HeLa.
• Antihyperglycemic:
Study evaluated the antihyperglycemic effect of the crude extract of Ceriops tagal showed significant improvement of glucose tolerance in sucrose-loaded normal rats and a 10.9% reduction of hyperglycemia in STZ-induced diabetic rats.
• Antihyperglycemic / Hexose Uptake Stimulation:
Study on the effect of an ethanolic extract and its fractions on H-2-deoxyglucose uptake by cultured L6 rat muscle cells showed enhancement of glucose uptake comparable with insulin and metformin. Results suggest the n-hexane soluble fraction might be a potential source of new antihyperglycemic compounds.
• Antibacterial:
Study evaluated the antibacterial activity of the leaves and bark extracts of Ceriops tagal and Pemphis acidula against human pathogens such as P. aeruginosa, K. pneumonia, V parahemolyticus, S aureus and V cholera. P acidula showed higher antibacterial potency than C tagal. In all the tests, the crude methanolic extracts showed better inhibition.
• Antitumor:
Dolabrane diterpenes of Ceriops tagal exhibited significant antitumor effect in the LLC mice probably through induced apoptosis of tumor cell and the lower expression of the tumor-associated transcription factor NF-KPp65.
Availability
Wild-crafted.
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