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Botany
· A glabrous, erect, branched shrub 2 to 5 m high. Branches
stout cylindric, green.
· Leaves: entire, orbicular-ovate, angular or somewhat
3 to 5-lobed, 10 to 18 cm long, acuminate, base cordate, the
petioles long.
· Flowers: greenish or greenish-white, unisexual, 7 to
8 mm in diameter, the staminate ones villous inside, the petals
reflexed. Stamen, 10, the filaments of the inner 5, connate.
Cymes axillary peduncled.
· Fruits: capsules, at first fleshy, becoming dry, rounded,
with 2 to 3 one-seeded divisions, 3 to 4 cm long.
Distribution
Very common in and about towns,
in thickets and hedges along roadsides. The name derives from
its cultivation and use as a hedge or fence (bakod).
Parts
utilized
· Fresh leaves.
· Collected the year round.
Chemical constituents
and properties
• Bark
contains chlorophyll.
• Seed has a toxic principle, toxalbumin curcin, belonging
to the same group as croton and ricin; curcin, comparatively, causes
less gastrointestinal irritation. 8 drops of this oil has been reported
to cause severe vomiting, followed by diarrhea.
• Latex contains alkaloids: jatrophine, jatropham and curcain
with its anti-cancerous properties.
• Leaves contain apigenin, vitexin, isovitexin, etc used for malaria,
rheumatic and muscular pains.
· Physic-nut oil consists of glycerides of palmitic, oleic,
and linoleic acids.
· Seed contains a yellow fixed oil,
29-40 %, known as Hell oil, Pinhoen oil, Oleum infernale, and
Oleum ricini majoris; the activity is greater than castor oil
and less that of croton oil.
Properties
Bitter-tart tasting, cooling
natured, antipyretic, antispasmodic, anti-vomiting, haemostatic,
suppurative.
Toxic - observe caution with internal use.
Oil of the seed is a drastic purgative.
Roots are emetic and purgative.
Uses
Folkloric
· Internal administration treats
acute gastroenteritis, abdominal pain, cholera, vomiting.
· External applications treats bleeding, ulceration of wound,
pruritus.
· Dosage: Use fresh leaves, 2 to 3 blades, remove petiole, pound
and extract juice, decoct in water.
· Seeds: 1-4 seeds is mildly purgative; an overdose causes drastic
purgatiion.
· Decoction of leaves or roots used for diarrhea.
· The leaf decoction is also used as a cough remedy and as galactagogue.
· Poultice of bark used for sprains and dislocations. Sap is
used for toothaches.
· Leaves are applied to wounds and pruritic lesions.
· A vigorous massaging of the oil onto the abdomen is believed
to be abortifacient..
· Decoction of young leaves taken for fevers.
· Infusion of leaves, hot or cold, mixed with lime juice, used
as lotion for fevers.
· In other countries, the seed is used as antihelminthic or abortive;
the leaves as insecticidal.
• Roots used as antidote against snake venom; root extract used
for bleeding gums.
• White latex used as mouth disinfectant; used externally for
piles.
• In South Africa,
traditionally used as laxative.
• In Peru, traditionally
used for external wound healing and gastric ulcers.
Others
Oil , known as curcas oil, is used
as illuminant and lubricant; in the manufacture of soaps and candles
Biodiesel
One of the Philippine plants (Tubang bakod, Malunggay,
Bani) that has been considered asan alternative biodiesel source.
Jatropha is easy to grow with minimum care, maturing in two years. However,
unlike malunggay which is gaining preferable status over tubang-bakod
(kasla), Jatropha is left with poisonous waste after oil extraction,
while all parts of the Malunggay plant are used.
Toxicity !
• Reports of 31 cases acute
poisoning in South Africa involving children from accidental ingestion
of seeds. Presenting manifestations were nausea, vomiting and abdominal
cramps. source
Studies
• Antibacterial:
Study has shown antibacterial activity against S aureus and E coli.
• Abortifacient:
Study has shown a fertility regulatory effect of fruit of J curcas for
pregnant rats. The pregnancy interruption occurred soon after implantation,
with marked toxicity with extracts given for 10 days.
• Anti-inflammatory:
Study confirmed the anti-inflammatory activity of topical JC root powder
in paste form in TPA-induced ear inflammation in mice. The anti-inflammatory
activity could be due to several mediators and involve the cyclo-oxygenase
/ prostaglandin pathway .
• Wound-healing:
Study with J curcas, A diffusa and P galioides showed significant wound-healing
effect.
Availability
Wild-crafted.
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