''Hemidesmus indicus'', Indian sarsaparilla is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of plant found in
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...
. It occurs over the greater part of India, from the upper
Gangetic plain
The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian River Plain, is a fertile plain encompassing northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, including most of northern and eastern India, around half of Pakistan, virtually all of Bangla ...
eastwards to
Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
and in some places in central, western and South India.
The root is a substitute for sarsaparilla (the dried root of the tropical species of ''
Smilax
''Smilax'' is a genus of about 300–350 species, found in the tropics and subtropics worldwide. In China for example about 80 are found (39 of which are endemic), while there are 20 in North America north of Mexico. They are climbing flowering ...
'',
Smilacaceae
Smilacaceae, the greenbriers, is a family of flowering plants. While they were often assigned to a more broadly defined family Liliaceae, most recent botanists have accepted the two as distinct families, diverging around 55 million years ago dur ...
; in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
''Smilax aspera''
L., and ''Smilax ovalifolia''
Roxb.). It should be distinguished from Mexican Sarsaparilla
''Smilax'' ''aristolochiifolia'' Mill. and Jamaican Sarsaparilla ''
Smilax ornata
''Smilax ornata'' is a perennial trailing vine with prickly stems that is native to Mexico and Central America. Common names include sarsaparilla, Honduran sarsaparilla, and Jamaican sarsaparilla.
It is known in Spanish as ', which is derived ...
''
Hook.f..
Names
In India, it is called ''ananthamoola'', also known locally in Southern India as ''naruneendi'' or ''nannari''.
Description
It is a slender, twining, sometimes
prostrate or semi-erect
shrub. Roots are woody and aromatic. The stem is numerous, slender, terete, thickened at the nodes. The leaves are opposite, short-petioled, very variable, elliptic-oblong to linear-lanceolate. The
flowers
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...
are greenish outside, purplish inside, crowded in sub-sessile axillary
cymes.
Traditional uses
''Hemidesmus indicus'' is used to make beverages like nannari
sharbat
Sharbat ( fa, شربت, ; also transliterated as ''shorbot'', ''šerbet'' or ''sherbet'') is a drink prepared from fruit or flower petals. It is a sweet cordial, and usually served chilled. It can be served in concentrated form and eaten with ...
, and is used in
traditional medicine
Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...
.
In southern states of India (particularly Tamil Nadu), the pickled roots are served along with rice dishes.
Chemical constituents
The roots of ''H. indicus'' contain
hexatriacontane,
lupeol
Lupeol is a pharmacologically active pentacyclic triterpenoid. It has several potential medicinal properties, like anticancer and anti-inflammatory activity.
Natural occurrences
Lupeol is found in a variety of plants, including mango, ''Acacia ...
, its
octacosanoate,
α-amyrin,
β-amyrin, its
acetate and
sitosterol. It also contains new coumarino-lignoid-hemidesminine, hemidesmin I and hemidesmin II50, six pentacyclic
triterpene
Triterpenes are a class of chemical compounds composed of three terpene units with the molecular formula C30H48; they may also be thought of as consisting of six isoprene units. Animals, plants and fungi all produce triterpenes, including squa ...
s including two
oleanenes, and three ursenes. The stem contains calogenin acetylcalogenin-3-0-β-D-digitoxopyrannosyl-0-β-D-digitoxopyronsyl-0-β-D-digitoxopyranoside. It also afforded 3-keto-lup-12-en-21 28-olide along with lupanone, lupeol-3-β-acetate, hexadecanoic acid, 4-methoxy-3-methoxybenzalaldehyde and 3-methoxy-4-5methoxybenzalaldehydglycosides-indicine and hemidine. The leaves contain
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'' ...
s,
flavonoids,
hyperoside
Hyperoside is a chemical compound. It is the 3-''O''- galactoside of quercetin.
Natural occurrences
Hyperoside has been isolated from ''Drosera rotundifolia'', from the Lamiaceae ''Stachys sp.'' and ''Prunella vulgaris'', from ''Rumex acetosell ...
,
rutin
Rutin, also called rutoside, quercetin-3-O-rutinoside and sophorin, is the glycoside combining the flavonol quercetin and the disaccharide rutinose (α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-D-glucopyranose). It is a flavonoid found in a wide variety of pl ...
and
coumarino.
Leucoderma
Vitiligo is a disorder that causes the skin to lose its color. Specific causes are unknown but studies suggest a link to immune system changes.
Signs and symptoms
The only sign of vitiligo is the presence of pale patchy areas of depigmen ...
lignoids such as
hemidesminine,
hemidesmin I and
hemidesmin II are rare group of naturally occurring compounds present in leaves.
References
External links
Botanical : A Modern Herbal - Indian Sarsaparilla
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15356241
Flora of the Indian subcontinent
Periplocoideae
Medicinal plants of Asia
Plants described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus