Pankaj Oudhia’s Notes on Ventilago madraspatana Gaertn. [Kirtikar, Kanhoba Ranchoddas, and Baman Das Basu. "Indian Medicinal Plants." Indian Medicinal Plants. (1918)].
Pankaj Oudhia’s Notes on Ventilago madraspatana Gaertn. [Kirtikar, Kanhoba Ranchoddas, and Baman Das Basu.
"Indian Medicinal Plants." Indian
Medicinal Plants. (1918)].
Pankaj Oudhia
Introduction
Based on Ethnobotanical
surveys since year 1990 in different parts of India Pankaj Oudhia has
documented vital information about Medicinal Plants mentioned in the famous
publication by Kirtikar and Basu (1918). Through this research document Pankaj
Oudhia has tried to present original document with additional notes. For
complete paper with pictures, Interactive Tables, Video and Audio clips please
visit pankajoudhia.com
For original publication by Kirtikar and Basu (1918) please visit https://archive.org/details/indianmedicinalp01kirt
284. Ventilago madraspatana Gaertn. H. p. b. I.,
i. 631.
Sans. : — Raktavalli.
Vern. : — Pitti (H.) ; Raktapita (B.) ; Chorgu (Hyderabad) ;
Kroti pitti (C. P.) ; Lokandi, kanwail (Bomb.) ; Ragatarohado
(Guz.) ; Luri-chakka (Dec.) ; Pappili-chakka, suralpattai,
lurala
chaki, surate cheka, papli, vembadain, veinpadon (Triman)
(Tarn.) ; Surabi ; papri Kali-bili (Dun) ; Bonga-Sarjom
(Kol.)
petli tige, lurala tige, arra chiratali (Tel) ;
Paipli-chakka, papli,
popli (Kan.) ; yaccaduvel (Sinhalese).
Habitat : — Western Peninsula, from the Concan southward.
Tenasserim. Throughout the plains of India. Forests of Burma
and Ceylon, in hot dry places.
A large, much-branched, woody climber or climbing shrub.
Bark grey white. Vertical cracks, exposing the inner surface
which has a vermilion colour. Wood yellow, porous, soft ;
branchlets elongated, slender, younger parts, branchlets,
petioles
and young leaves pubescent.
A very conspicuous forest climber, climbing over the
tallest trees and hanging its branches down in festoons
(Gamble).
Tendrils woody. Leaves l|-5in. (usually about 2|), ovate,
ovate-
lanceolate, obtuse or rounded at base, acuminate, obtuse or
rarely acute, shallowly crenate-serrate or entire, glabrous
and
shining ; lateral veins 6-10 in each side, fine but
conspicuous,
oblique, connected by very fine transverse reticulation.
Petiole,
ii'in., stipules very small, lanceolate, pubescent. Flowers
pale
green, ^ in., numerous, on short pubescent pedicels, arranged
in clusters on the branches of large spreading and drooping,
pubescent, elongated, terminal panicles. Calyx pubescent,
lobes erect, very acute. Petals shorter than calyx, 2-lobed.
Stamens as long as petals. Styles short. Nut small, globular,
supported on persistent calyx. Wing 1-1| in. linear oblong,
1 athery, pubescent, slightly, bifid at apex.
N. 0. RHAMNEJE. 333
Part used : — The root-bark. [Pankaj
Oudhia’s Comment: All parts are used as medicine. The insects attacking
Ventilago in wild are used by Traditional Entomotherapists specially with
indigenous medicinal rice. Please see Tables Venti-1 to Venti-30 for details.]
Uses: — The powdered root-bark is carminative, stomachic,
tonic and stimulant ; useful in atonic dyspepsia, debility
and
slight cases of fever (Moodeen Sheriff).
The powdered bark (mixed with gingelly oil) is also said
to be sometimes used in South India as an external
application
for itch and other skin diseases (Watt). [Pankaj
Oudhia’s Comment: Through Ethnobotanical surveys since year 1990 I have
collected information about over 350,000 Traditional Herbal Formulations in
which Ventilago parts are added as primary, secondary, tertiary, septenary,
octonary and denary ingredients. Modern researchers have done very little to
validate these Traditional Herbal Formulations. The senior Traditional Healers
use different herbal extracts to enrich wild population of Ventilago with
desired medicinal properties through Traditional Allelopathic Knowledge. Please
see Tables Venti-31 to Venti-300 for details.]
Ventilago Madraspatana.
On treating this dye-stuff with carbon bisulphide five
crystalline sub-
stances are extracted, together with a wax and a resinous
colouring
matter.
1. A substance of the formula C 16 H 12 5 . This crystallises
in long,
orange-red needles, melting at 200° ; it sublimes at higher
temperatures,
partially carbonising. Its alkaline solutions have a purple
tint, and the
corresponding salt can be obtained in the form of
violet-colored needles
sparingly soluble in alcohol. There is a great deal of
similarity in appear-
ance, properties, and melting point between emodin from
Rhamnus frangula
and this substance. They are probably identical.
2. A substance of the formula C 16 -H 14 4 (A). This forms
long, colourless
needles, which decompose at about 260° before melting ; it is
soluble in alka-
line solutions with a yellowish brown coloration.
3. A substance of the formula C l6 H 14 4 (B). This
crystallises in pale
yellow needles melting at 173°. With acetic anhydride, it
yields what is
probably a triacetyl compound melting at 227-229°, the
alcoholic solution of
which has a strong blue fluorescence. Tt dissolves in alkalis
forming yellow-
ish brown solutions which on long exposure to air become red,
and on treat-
ment with acid yield a precipitate of emodin methyl ether.
4. A substance of the formula G 16 H 3 8 . This is an
orange-red, crystalline
powder, which, when heated, begins to darken at 260°, and
melts and carbon-
ises at 275-280°. It is distinguished from the preceding
substances by its
sparing solubility in most solvents. Solutions of the alkalis
dissolve it with
an orange-red coloration, and it yields an acetyl derivative,
C l0 -H 7 O 8 (C 2 H 3 0),
which crystallises in yellow needles melting and decomposing
at 216-220°.
5. A substance of the formula 17 H 12 5 . This is a chocolate-colored,
crystalline powder. When treated with dilute alkali, it
dissolves with a yel-
low coloration, but on exposure to air the solution deposits
a blue, amorphous
precipitate, and it therefore appears to contain in its
molecule a reduced
quinone group.
6. The wax (C 9 H l6 0) n , consists of nearly colourless,
minute needles,
melting at 72°.
334 INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS.
7. The colon ring matter is a reddish-brown, brittle resin of
the formula
C 15 H 14 O g , and, up to the present, has resisted all
attempts to obtain it in a
crystalline condition, It softens at about 100°, and melts at
100-110°. Dilute
alkalis dissolve it with a purple-violet coloration, and the
corresponding
salts are obtained as violet, amorphous precipitates, on adding
common salts
to these solutions. From its nature and properties, it
appears possible that
it is allied to alkanin, 1S H 14r 4 , the colouring matter of
the roots of the
Anchusa tinctoria. Alkanin is also of a resinous nature. It
is possible,
therefore, that the coloring matter of the Ventilago
madraspatana, for which
the name of ventilagin is proposed, is represented by alkanin
containing two
additional hydroxyl groups.— J. Ch. S. T. 1894, p. 924 et
seq.
E-documents on Ventilago
Citation
Oudhia, Pankaj (2013).
Pankaj Oudhia’s Notes on Ventilago
madraspatana Gaertn. [Kirtikar,
Kanhoba Ranchoddas, and Baman Das Basu. "Indian Medicinal Plants." Indian Medicinal Plants. (1918)]. www.pankajoudhia.com
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