Page:Indian Medicinal Plants (Text Part 2).djvu/76

826 Habitat : — South Nepal ; at Sukanagur ; South Concan and the Bababoodan hills.

Twining perennial herbs. Stems several from the root, erect 12-18in., nearly simple, flexuous or climbing amongst grass, pubescent. Branches glabrous below, finely puberulous above. Leaves small, 1-1½in., rather crowded, ovate or oblong-lanceolate, rounded or acute at base, acute, glabrous above, pubescent on veins beneath, coriaceous. J. D. Hooker says, " leaves 1-2 by ¾-1½in." Petiole ¼in., slender, pubescent. Flowers small, on rather long, slender, pubescent pedicels. Cymes racemose, shorter than leaves, shortly stalked, erect ; bracts filiform. Sepals linear- lanceolate, acute, coronal processes globose. Follicles fusiform, short, turgid. " 1½-2 by ½-⅔ in., ovoid-lanceolate ; paricarp very thick, glabrous. Seeds ¼in. long, broadly ovoid, quite flat." " Pollen-masses horizontal, according to Wight, but "I think erect," says J. D. Hooker.

Uses : — In the Southern Concan, it is used as a poison for rats and other vermin. Dr. Lyon records a case in which it proved fatal to a man (1879). As this plant has very active properties, its physiological effects should be investigated (Dymock).

The juice of the root is given with milk as a tonic ; the leaves are pounded and used as an application to unhealthy ulcers and wounds to induce healthy granulation (Pharmacographia lndica, Vol. II. p. 441.

The leaves were very mucilaginous when treated with water, and even the alcoholic extract when evaporated to dryness made a thick solution with a large quantity of water. The latter solution was precipitated by alkaloidal reagents and was most acrid to the taste. Shaken with ether a resinous body was removed, and then made alkaline with ammonia, which produced a slight precipitate, and again shaken with ether, a small quantity of an amorphous alkaloid was separated, which gave a yellowish brown colour with sulphuric acid, passing to a red. The leaves gave off slightly alkaline fumes when ignited, and left 12 per cent, of ash.

The roots reduced to fine powder were made into a tincture with strong spirit, and the evaporated tincture when treated with water left some resinous matter undissolved. The solution shaken with ether yielded up some more resinous substance which became encrusted with feathery crystals when the solvent had been dissipated. A larger quantity of alkaloid was present