''Sida cordifolia'' ('ilima, flannel weed, bala, country mallow or heart-leaf sida) is a perennial subshrub of the mallow family

Malvaceae Malvaceae, or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include okra, cotton, cacao and durian. There are also some genera containing familiar ...

native to India. It has naturalized throughout the world, and is considered an invasive weed in Africa, Australia, the southern United States, Hawaiian Islands, New Guinea, and French Polynesia. The specific name, ''cordifolia'', refers to the heart-shaped leaf.

Description

''Sida cordifolia'' is an erect perennial that reaches tall, with the entire plant covered with soft white felt-like hair that is responsible for one of its common names, "flannel weed". The stems are yellow-green, hairy, long, and slender. The yellow-green leaves are oblong-ovate, covered with hairs, and long by wide. The flowers are dark yellow, sometimes with a darker orange center, with a hairy 5-lobed calyx and 5-lobed corolla. As a weed, it invades cultivated and overgrazed fields, competing with more desired species and contaminating hay.

Medicinal use

Sida cordifolia (Bala) in Hyderabad, AP W IMG 9423

''Sida cordifolia'' is used in

Ayurvedic medicine Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repor ...

(Sanskrit:-BALA). Known as "malva branca", it is a plant used in Brazilian folk medicine for the treatment of inflammation of the

oral mucosa The oral mucosa is the mucous membrane lining the inside of the mouth. It comprises stratified squamous epithelium, termed "oral epithelium", and an underlying connective tissue termed ''lamina propria''. The oral cavity has sometimes been descri ...

blennorrhea Blennorrhea is mucous discharge, especially from the urethra or vagina (that is, mucus vaginal discharge). Blennorrhagia is an excess of such discharge,bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

and

nasal congestion Nasal congestion is the blockage of nasal breathing usually due to membranes lining the nose becoming swollen from inflamed blood vessels. Background In about 85% of cases, nasal congestion leads to mouth breathing rather than nasal breathing. ...

stomatitis Stomatitis is inflammation of the mouth and lips. It refers to any inflammatory process affecting the mucous membranes of the mouth and lips, with or without oral ulceration. In its widest meaning, stomatitis can have a multitude of different cau ...

, of

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, cou ...

and nasal congestion and in many parts of Africa for various ailments, particularly for respiratory problems. It has been investigated as an anti-inflammatory, for preventing cell proliferation, and for encouraging liver re-growth. Because of its

ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is often used to prevent low blood pressure during anesthesia. It has also been used for asthma, narcolepsy, and obesity but is not the preferred treatment. It is of unclear benefit in ...

content, it possesses

psychostimulant Stimulants (also often referred to as psychostimulants or colloquially as uppers) is an overarching term that covers many drugs including those that increase activity of the central nervous system and the body, drugs that are pleasurable and inv ...

properties, affecting the

central nervous system The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain and spinal cord. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity of all par ...

and also the

heart The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide t ...

Phytochemistry

The following

alkaloids Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar st ...

were reported from ''S. cordifolia'' growing in India:

β-phenethylamine Phenethylamine (PEA) is an organic compound, natural monoamine alkaloid, and trace amine, which acts as a central nervous system stimulant in humans. In the brain, phenethylamine regulates monoamine neurotransmission by binding to trace amin ...

, ephedrine,

pseudoephedrine Pseudoephedrine (PSE) is a sympathomimetic drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes. It may be used as a nasal/sinus decongestant, as a stimulant, or as a wakefulness-promoting agent in higher doses. It was first characteri ...

, ''S''-(+)-''N''_b-methyltryptophan methyl ester, hypaphorine,

vasicinone Vasicinone is a quinazoline alkaloid. It shows bronchodilatory activity ''in vitro'' but bronchoconstrictory activity ''in vivo''. Vasicinone was shown to have an antianaphylactic action. It has been found within ''Peganum harmala''. Vasicinone ...

, vasicinol,

choline Choline is an essential nutrient for humans and many other animals. Choline occurs as a cation that forms various salts (X− in the depicted formula is an undefined counteranion). Humans are capable of some ''de novo synthesis'' of choline but re ...

, and

betaine A betaine () in chemistry is any neutral chemical compound with a positively charged cationic functional group, such as a quaternary ammonium or phosphonium cation (generally: onium ions) that bears no hydrogen atom and with a negatively charged ...

. No

tannin Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'', ...

glycosides In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...

have been identified from the plant. The roots and stems contain the

alkaloid Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...

, normally observed in the different varieties of the

gymnosperm The gymnosperms ( lit. revealed seeds) are a group of seed-producing plants that includes conifers, cycads, ''Ginkgo'', and gnetophytes, forming the clade Gymnospermae. The term ''gymnosperm'' comes from the composite word in el, γυμνό� ...

genus ''

Ephedra Ephedra may refer to: * Ephedra (medicine), a medicinal preparation from the plant ''Ephedra sinica'' * ''Ephedra'' (plant), genus of gymnosperm shrubs See also * Ephedrine Ephedrine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is of ...

''. Recent analyses have revealed that

and

constitute the major alkaloids from the aerial parts of the plant, which also show traces of sitosterol and palmitic, stearic and hexacosanoic acids. Two

flavanone The flavanones, a type of flavonoids, are various aromatic, colorless ketones derived from flavone that often occur in plants as glycosides. List of flavanones * Blumeatin * Butin * Eriodictyol * Hesperetin * Hesperidin * Homoeriodictyol * Iso ...

s—5,7-dihydroxy-3-isoprenyl flavone and 5-hydroxy-3-isoprenyl flavone—and two

phytosterol Phytosterols are phytosteroids, similar to cholesterol, that serve as structural components of biological membranes of plants. They encompass plant sterols and stanols. More than 250 sterols and related compounds have been identified. Free phyto ...

s—

β-sitosterol β-sitosterol (beta-sitosterol) is one of several phytosterols (plant sterols) with chemical structures similar to that of cholesterol. It is a white, waxy powder with a characteristic odor, and is one of the components of the food additive E499. ...

and

stigmasterol Stigmasterol – a plant sterol (''phytosterol'') – is among the most abundant of plant sterols, having a major function to maintain the structure and physiology of cell membranes. In the European Union, it is a food additive listed with E numb ...

—have been isolated from the plant. The analgesic alkaloid (5′-Hydroxymethyl-1′-(1,2,3,9-tetrahydro-pyrrolo ,1-bquinazolin-1-yl)-heptan-1-one) has also been found.

Sterculic acid Sterculic acid is a cyclopropene fatty acid. It is found in various plants of the genus ''Sterculia'', including being the main component of ''Sterculia foetida'' seed oil. Biosynthesis The biosynthesis of sterculic acid begins with the cycloprop ...

malvalic acid Malvalic acid is a cyclopropene fatty acid found in baobab seed oil and cottonseed oil. The cyclopropene ring is thought to be one of the causes of abnormalities that develop in animals that ingest cottonseed oil. Refining processes, such as hydr ...

, and

coronaric acid Coronaric acid (isoleukotoxin) is a mono-unsaturated, epoxide derivative of the di-saturated fatty acid, linoleic acid (i.e. 9(''Z''),12(''Z'') octadecadienoic acid. It is a mixture of the two optically active isomers of 12(''Z'') 9,10-epoxy-octa ...

have been isolated from the seed oil, along with other

fatty acids In chemistry, particularly in biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with an aliphatic chain, which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have an unbranched chain of an even number of carbon atoms, f ...

References

External links

* Contains a detailed monograph on ''Sida cordifolia'' (Bala) as well as a discussion of health benefits and usage in clinical practice. Available online at https://web.archive.org/web/20101017142652/http://www.toddcaldecott.com/index.php/herbs/learning-herbs/394-bala {{Taxonbar, from=Q1300611 Flora naturalised in Australia cordifolia Herbal and fungal stimulants Plants used in Ayurveda Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus