''Aristolochia indica'' (native language: Garudakkodi / Eswaramooli) is a creeper plant found in

Southern India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...

and also

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. It Is known as 'sapsada' in

and is critical to the survival of the

southern birdwing ''Troides minos'', the southern birdwing, also called Sahyadri birdwing, is a large and striking swallowtail butterfly endemic to south India. With a wingspan of 140–190 mm, it is the second largest butterfly of India. It is listed as Lea ...

and common birdwing, as well as crimson and common rose butterflies. It reaches a height of several metres on trees and cover the branches with thick foliage. It is commonly found in forest floor, rocky hillslopes. It flowers once a year to produce seeds. It can also be propagated by roots. The plant has a number of historical medicinal uses.

Toxicity

This plant contains aristolochic acid, a

carcinogen A carcinogen is any substance, radionuclide, or radiation that promotes carcinogenesis (the formation of cancer). This may be due to the ability to damage the genome or to the disruption of cellular metabolic processes. Several radioactive subs ...

also found in various '' Aristolochia'' and '' Asarum'' plants, both in the family

Aristolochiaceae The Aristolochiaceae () are a family, the birthwort family, of flowering plants with seven genera and about 400 known species belonging to the order Piperales. The type genus is ''Aristolochia'' L. Description They are mostly perennial, he ...

. Aristolochic acid is composed of an about 1:1 mixture of two forms, aristolochic acid I and aristolochic acid II. In addition to its carcinogenicity, aristolochic acid is also highly

nephrotoxic Nephrotoxicity is toxicity in the kidneys. It is a poisonous effect of some substances, both toxic chemicals and medications, on kidney function. There are various forms, and some drugs may affect kidney function in more than one way. Nephrotoxins ...

and may be a causative agent in

Balkan nephropathy Balkan endemic nephropathy (BEN) is a form of interstitial nephritis causing kidney failure. It was first identified in the 1920s among several small, discrete communities along the Danube River and its major tributaries, in the modern countries of ...

. However, despite these well-documented dangers, aristolochic acid still is present sometimes in herbal remedies (such as for weight loss), primarily because of substitution of innocuous herbs with ''Aristolochia'' species. The alcoholic extract is more toxic than the water extract.Michl J., Simmonds M., Ingrouille M., Heinrich M., Toxicological risk assessment of Aristolochia species.. Planta Medica. Conference: 59th International Congress and Annual Meeting of the Society for Medicinal Plant and Natural Product Research Antalya Turkey.

References

External links

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Anti-inflammatory, Antipruritic and Mast Cell Stabilizing Activity of Aristolochia Indica.Toxicological risk assessment of Aristolochia species
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3595780 indica Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus