Alternative medicines in the Philippines

CAESAR WEED (Urena lobata linn.)

Family Malvaceae

Botany
Dalupang erect, branched shrub 0.6 to 2.5 meters high. Plant is exceedingly variable
and more or less hairy, stems often with reddish branches. Leaves are pale beneath,
ovate to suborbicular, 3 to 9 centimeters long, heart-shaped at the base, more or less
toothed or somewhat lobed or angled, the lobes not exceeding beyond the middle of the
leaf and the sinuses being usually broad and acute.
Flowers are pink or purplish, about 1.7 millimeters in diameter and borne singly in the
axils of the leaves, or somewhat in panicles. Petals are 5, free above, connate below
and adnate to staminal tube; staminal tube truncate or minutely toothed, anthers many.
Ovary is 5-celled, branches of stigma 10. Fruits are rounded but flattened and about 7
millimeters in diameter, with the 5 carpels covered with short, barbed spines.

Distribution
- Throughout the Philippines In open places, thickets, etc., at low and medium altitudes,
ascending to 1,600 meters.
- Polymorphous in vegetative characters.
- Pantropic.

Constituents
- Nutrient root analysis yielded carbohydrate 33%, protein 1.9%, fat 1.8%, fiber 51.7%,
moisture 6.6%, and ash 5%.

Properties
- Sweet tasting, slightly cooling, mucilaginous.
- Antirheumatic, antipyretic, stomachic, vermifuge.

Parts utilized
Roots, leaves; preferably fresh.

Uses

Folkloric
In the Philippines, root decoction used to relieve colic.
Infusion of root used internally as emollient and refrigerant, and externally for skin
diseases associated with pain and inflammation.
Decoction of 30-60 gms of dried roots used for enteritis and dysentery, rheumatic
pains, tonsillitis.
 Boiled and pounded leaves used as poultice for bladder and intestinal inflammations.
Decoction of roots and leaves used to soften the skin.

Effects of Irvingia grandifolia, Urena lobata and Carica papaya on the

Oxidative Status of Normal Rabbits

Abstract
The hypoglycemic effects of Irvingia grandifolia, Urena lobata and Carica papaya are
documented. While medicinal plants may have recognizable therapeutic effects, they
may also have toxic side-effects. In this study, the sub-chronic effects of aqueous
extracts of I. grandifolia bark, U. lobata root and C. papaya leaves, on the oxidative
status of normal rabbits were monitored at pre-determined intervals in the serum for 24
weeks, and in the tissues, by measuring activities of superoxide dismutase and
catalase, and the levels of malondialdehyde. The plants studied did not alter the serum
MDA levels, liver and pancreatic MDA levels were significantly (p<0.05) lower. For all
plants, serum and tissue, SOD and catalase activities were generally statistical similar
to control. I grandifolia, U. lobata and C. papaya, did not appear to exert any form of
oxidative damage on normal rabbits, with respect to liver and pancreatic MDA levels;
they even seemed to be protective against lipid peroxidation.
CALABASH TREE ( Crescentia cujete linn.)

Family Bignoniaceae

Botany
Cujete is a smooth, much-branched tree growing to a height of 4 to 5 meters. Branches
are arching with close-set clusters of leaves. Leaves are alternate, often fascicled at the
nodes, oblanceolate, 5 to 17 centimeters long, glossy at the upper surface, blunt at the
tip and narrowed at the base. Flowers develop from the buds that grow from the main
trunk, yellowish and sometimes veined with purple, with a slightly foetid odor, occurring
singly or in pairs at the leaf axils, stalked and about 6 centimeters long, and opens in
the evening. Calyx is about 2 centimeters long, and split into two lobes. Fruit is short-
stemmed, rounded, oval or oblong, green or purplish, 15 to 20 centimeters in diameter.

Distribution
- Occasionally cultivated for ornamental purposes.
- Recently introduced from tropical America.

Constituents
Phytochemical studies of the fresh fruit pulp report the presence of crescentic acid,
tartaric acid, citric, and tannic acids, two resins and a coloring matter than resembles
indigo.

Properties
Fruit considered aperient, laxative, expectorant.
Considered anthelmintic, analgesic, antiinflammatory, febrifuge, laxative.

Parts used
Fruit, bark, leaves.

Uses

For erysipelas, the fresh pulp is boiled in water to form a black paste, mixed and boiled
with vinegar, spread on linen for dermatologic application.
The bark is used for mucoid diarrhea.
Fruit pulp used as laxative and expectorant.

Internally, leaves used as diuretic

Anti-angiogenesis Effect of Calabash Fruit (Crescentia cujete Linn.) Pericarp Fruit
via Choriollantoic Membrane Assay: A Potential Agent against Tumour
Vascularisation

ABSTRACT

Cancer has been a leading cause of death worldwide and will still be the same on the
future if necessary actions will not be done. A lot of people can be affected by this
disease yet not all of them have the access of expensive and artificial treatments. The
researchers are urged to discover a natural and effective for stopping tumour
vascularisation. In this study, the pericarp of the Calabash (Crescentia Cujete) is utilized
as an effective treatment for stopping tumour vascularisation.The obtained 457g of
Calabash Fruit pericarp was soaked by solvent extraction using 1.5L 95%-Hexane and
1.5L 95%-Ethanol for 24 hours each. The extract was filtered and evaporated using
rotary evaporator for 3 hours and further dried for 24 hours. The residual crude extract
was poured in a glass container. The extracts were tested through Chorioallontoic
Membrane Assay (CAM).The CAM Assay gave the following results. The mesh indices
of the different concentration (25%, 50%, 100%) of the extracts, and the positive and
negative control were the following: 285.663, 280.534, 166.008, 176.162, and
244.049.The result of the Chorioallontoic Membrane Assay showed that the extract
showed no significant difference to the positive control so it is showed that the extract
also has anti-angiogenic effect to the chick embryo. The anti-angiogenic property only
shows when 100% concentration (dose-dependent) of the extract is injected to the egg.
The researcher concluded that the Calabash Fruit Pericarp has anti-angiogenic effect
thus having the potential of halting tumor vascularisation.
CALAPPA PALM (Actinorhytis calapparia (Blume) Wendl. and Drude.)

Family Palmae

Botany
Calappa is a large palm with erect stems, much like the habit of the tall Areca catechu,
about 10 meters high. Leaves are pinnate, the blade measuring 70 to 90 centimeters
long; the pinnae are linear, 50 to 60 centimeters long, 3 to 4 centimeters wide. Spadix is
ascending with 2 spathes. Male flowers are small with imbricate sepals, much shorter
than the valvate corolla. Sepals and petals of the female flowers are imbricate. Fruiting
spadix is spreading. Fruits are orange-yellow, pendulous ovoid, the size of a duck's egg
and containing one seed.

Distribution
- Isolated trees in settled areas, at altitudes of about 500 meters, in Davao (MIndanao).
- Introduced.
- Small garden cultivation.
- Widely distributed in the Malay Archipelago.

Parts used
Ripe nut.

Constituents
- Phytochemical screening yielded tannins, steroids, carbohydrates and amino acids.

Uses
Folkloric
- Ripe nut is medicinal, chewed by the Malays as betel substitute.
- In Sumatra, used for scurf.
Others
- Widely cultivated in Southeast Asia and Malesia where villagers attribute it magical or
medicinal powers.
- Betel substitute.
STUDIES ON THE ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF ACTINORHYTIS CALAPPARIA

ABSTRACT

In the present study, preliminary phytochemical screening and in-vitro antioxidant

activity of aqueous and methanolic fruit extracts of Actinorhytis calapparia H.Wendl. &
Drude was investigated. The antioxidant activity was studied by using in vitro
antioxidant models viz., DPPH radical scavenging activity and reducing power assay.
Both the extracts showed antioxidant activity by inhibiting DPPH free radicals and also
showed reducing power ability in ferric reducing model which was a dose dependent.
The IC50 value was found to be 15 and 26 g/ml for methanolic and aqueous extract
respectively. Phytochemical screening of the extract revealed the presence of tannins,
steroids, carbohydrates and amino acids. The total phenolic content of the extract was
determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu method. The total phenolic content observed for
aqueous and methanolic extracts were 56 and 64.3 mg/g equivalent of gallic acid
respectively. Key words: Actinorhytis calapparia, Antioxidant activity, DPPH assay,
Phytochemicals, reducing power.
CAMEL BUSH (Trichodesma zeylanicum Burm. f )

Family Boraginaceae

Botany
Dilang-usa is an erect, branched and hairy annual herb, 30 to 70 centimeters in height.
Leaves are hairy, oblong to lanceolate, 5 to 12 centimeters long, on short stalks, pointed
at both ends. The hairs on the upper surface of the blade arise from tubercles. Flowers
are borne on long stalks, in axillary or terminal racemes, of four or five flowers. Calyx is
densely hairy, about 1 centimeter long in the flower. Corolla is pale blue, about 1.3
centimeters in diameter.

Distribution
- A weed found in cultivated areas and waste places at low altitude.
- Found in Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, Pampanga, Rizal and Quezon Provinces in Luzon.
- Also occurs in tropical Asia to Mauritius, Malaya, tropical Australia, to eastern tropical
Africa.

Constituents
- Yield a low toxic alkaloid supinine.

Properties
- Sudorific and pectoral.
- Considered emollient, demulcent and diuretic.
- Seeds contain 30% oil.
- Roots considered analgesic and healing.

Parts used
Leaves, roots,

Uses
Edibililty
In Malawi, leaves cooked as a side dish.
Folkloric
Leaves are used as emollient poultice.
Powdered root applied to painful ulcers.
Roots used for bilharzia, swelling of lymph glands, coughing, toothache and abdominal
pains.

Concerns
Some reports contend it is poisonous to stock.
In- vitro Anti-oxidant Activity and Free Radical Scavenging Potential of roots of
Malawian Trichodesma zeylanicumm (burm. f.)

ABSTRACT

Aim: To evaluate the antioxidant potential and free scavenging activity of T. zeylanicum
powdered root extract. Material and Methods: The plant extract (50mg) obtained by
soxhlet extraction method was dissolved separately in 50ml of methanol and the
resultant solution serially diluted to concentrations 0.5, 0.25, 0.125 and 0.0625 mg/ml.
The antioxidant potential and free radical scavenging activity were analysed using
reducing power assay and hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity methods.
Phytochemical analysis was performed on the plant extract to detect the presence of
phytoconstituents. Results and Discussions: Phytochemical screening revealed the
presence of phenolics, alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids and tannins. The flavonoids
content were found to be 6.280.06 mg/gram of the dried extract. The reducing power
assay showed that reducing ability of the extract were significantly increased with
increasing concentration and were higher compared to the standard ascorbic acid.
Methanolic extract of T. zeylanicum also showed good scavenging ability compared to
the standard ascorbic acid. The IC values were found to be 0.122 mg/ml compared to
standard ascorbic acid 0.717mg/ml. At a concentration of 1mg/ml, the scavenging
percentages were 74.82 and 48.12 for T. zeylanicum extract and standard respectively.
Conclusion: The result indicates the potential of T. zeylanicum as a source of
antioxidants relevant to wound treatment. Keywords: Trichodesma zeylanicum, reducing
power assay, hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity, antioxidant potential,
Phytochemical analysis.
CAMPHOR TREE (Cinnamomum camphora (Linn.) J. Presl.)

Family Lauraceae

Botany
Camphor is a large evergreen tree growing to a height of 20 to 30 meters. Bark is pale,
very rough, and fissured vertically. Leaves are green and glossy, with a waxy
appearance, emitting the smell of camphor when crushed. In season, it produces a
bright green foliage with masses of small white flowers. Fruits are berry-like, about 1
centimeter in diameter.

Distribution
- Grows in subtropical countries, especially in East Asia.
- Native to Taiwan, southern Japan, southeast China and Indo-China.

Constituents
- Yields a colorless crystalline translucent mass.
- Camphor is obtained by passing steam through the chipped wood. The distillate
contains camphor, which is separated and re-sublimed, yielding the essential oil of
camphor.

Properties
- Considered aphrodisiac, contraceptive, aborttifacient, antiseptic, lactation suppressing.
- Also considered uterotrophic, antitussive, anticonvulsant, anti-implantation.

Parts used
Gum, chopped wood.

Uses
Folkloric
- Used for colds, chills, diarrhea associated with colds, inflammatory affections, fevers,
and hysterical complaints.
- Beneficial for gout, rheumatic pains, neuralgia, and irritations of the sexual organs.
- Externally, applied to inflammed affections, bruises, sprains, etc.
In vitro anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects of Cinnamomum
camphora extracts

Abstract

Cinnamomum camphora Sieb (Lauraceae) has long been prescribed in traditional

medicine for the treatment of inflammation-related diseases such as rheumatism,
sprains, bronchitis and muscle pains. In this study, therefore, we aimed to investigate
the inhibitory effects of Cinnamomum camphora on various inflammatory phenomena to
explore its potential anti-inflammatory mechanisms under non-cytotoxic (less than
100 g/ml) conditions. The total crude extract (100 g/ml) prepared with 80% methanol
(MeOH extract) and its fractions (100 g/ml) obtained by solvent partition with hexane
and ethyl acetate (EtOAc) significantly blocked the production of interleukin (IL)-1, IL-6
and the tumor necrosis factor (TNF)- from RAW264.7 cells stimulated by
lipopolysaccharide (LPS) up to 2070%. The hexane and EtOAc extracts (100 g/ml)
also inhibited nitric oxide (NO) production in LPS/interferon (IFN)--activated
macrophages by 65%. The MeOH extract (100 g/ml) as well as two fractions
(100 g/ml) prepared by solvent partition with n-butanol (BuOH) and EtOAc strongly
suppressed the prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in LPS/IFN--activated
macrophages up to 70%. It is interesting to note that hexane, BuOH and EtOAc extracts
(100 g/ml) also inhibited the functional activation of 1-integrins (CD29) assessed by
U937 homotypic aggregation up to 7080%. Furthermore, EtOAc and BuOH extracts
displayed strong anti-oxidative activity with IC50 values of 14 and 15 M, respectively,
when tested by the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and xanthine oxide (XO)
assays. Taken together, these data suggest that the anti-inflammatory actions
ofCinnamomum camphora may be due to the modulation of cytokine, NO and
PGE2production and oxidative stress, and of the subfractions tested, the EtOAc extract
may be further studied to isolate the active anti-inflammatory principles.
 Keywords

Cinnamomum camphora Sieb;

Lauraceae;
Anti-inflammatory effect;
Cellcell adhesion;
Anti-oxidative effect