Dendrocnide sinuata

Dendrocnide sinuata
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Urticaceae
Genus: Dendrocnide
Species:
D. sinuata
Binomial name
Dendrocnide sinuata
(Blume) Chew
Synonyms
  • Urtica sinuata Blume
  • Laportea crenulata (Roxb.) Gaud.

Dendrocnide sinuata (meaning "tree nettle" with "wavy leaf margin" in Greek) is a poisonous plant called pulutus,[1] pulus,[1] stinging tree,[1] fever nettle,[citation needed] or elephant nettle,[2] growing in subtropical wet evergreen forests throughout Asia.[3] Some of its uses in herbal medicine have been scientifically validated.[4]

Distribution

This nettle grows along streams and among understorey trees in wet evergreen forests between 300 metres (980 ft) – 850 metres (2,790 ft) but up to 1,200 metres (3,900 ft) elevation. It is found in the forests of the Western Ghats of South India, Sri Lanka, Bihar, Northeast India and onwards into Burma. Bhutan. Sikkim, Thailand, Malaysia and (S Guangdong, SW Guangxi, Hainan, S Xizang and SW Yunnan provinces of China)[3]

This nettle is a major shrub species in the tropical evergreen forests of the lower reaches of Khasi Hills and Garo hills of Meghalaya, India, up to 1,200 metres (3,900 ft).[5] There is a camp named 'Sessni' in Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary in the Himalayan foothills of West Kameng District in Arunachal Pradesh, India, which in the Nishi peoples language means Nettle. The place is filled with nettle on either side of the road.[6]

Description

The plants are large shrubs or small trees up to 5 metres (16 ft) tall.
The bark is white and smooth with lenticellate blaze.
Whitish. branchlets are terete (cylindrical and circular in cross section) with glandular stinging hairs.
Leaves are simple, alternate, spiral, with stipule caducous (falling off prematurely or easily) and leaving scar
Petiole is 2–6 centimetres (0.79–2.36 in) long, terete, with glandular stinging hairs.
Lamina parts of the leaves are 9.5–34 centimetres (3.7–13.4 in) x 2–11.5 centimetres (0.79–4.53 in), narrow oblanceolate to elliptic, apex acuminate, base attenuate-cuneate to obtuse, margin subentire or crenulate, coriaceous, with glandular stinging hairs; midrib raised above; secondary_nerves 8-11 pairs; tertiary nerves distantly obliquely percurrent.
Flowers with inflorescence axillary panicles, drooping, to 20 centimetres (7.9 in) long. Flowers are unisexual, subsessile.
Fruit and seed are achenes.[7]

Medical

Upon contact with skin the nettle causes a painful itch, hives, fever and chills, skin depressions and clamminess which can recur over 10 days to six months. About 1820, Jean Baptiste Louis Claude Theodore Leschenault de la Tour, the French botanist, described the pain caused by the nettle to be like "rubbing my fingers with hot iron". Jean Baptiste also suffered jaw muscle contractions so severe that he feared he had tetanus.[8]

It's not sure what toxin in the plant causes such severe reactions but formic acid, serotonin, histamine, oxalic acid and tartaric acid are some of the suspects. When the antidote lime juice or turmeric is smeared on the affected areas apparently the symptoms immediately subside.[2]

The juice of the root is reported to be used in chronic fevers. The roots are also boiled in water and the decoction is given to cure jaundice. The roots and leaves are used to prepare poultice and applied to heal boils, carbuncles, wounds, burns and rashes. The root extract has strong antibacterial activity against both Gram (+) and Gram (-) bacteria due to presence of 2a, 3, 21, 24, 28-pentahydroxy-olean-12-enes.[4]

Dendrocnide sinuata has been used as medicine for curing diverse ailments including fever, chronic fever, malaria, dysentery, urinary disorder, Irregular menstruation, swelling, blind abscesses and hypersensitivity by most ethnic tribal communities of North East India including the Nishi, Apatani, Adibasi, Karbis. Dimasa, Khasi and Riang.[9]

The stem-bark yields a strong cordage fibre. The fiber is also used to make coarse cloth. The flowers are reported to be used in curries in North Lakhimpur, Assam. The seeds are chewed to freshen breath.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c "The Australian Plant Names Index".
  2. ^ a b Janaki Lenin (11 February 2011), "My Husband and other Animals – Innocent plant, deadly sting", The Hindu – S & T » ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT, Chennai: Kasturi & Sons Ltd., retrieved 26 February 2012
  3. ^ a b "Dendrocnide sinuata (Blume) Chew, Gard. Bull. Singapore. 21: 206. 1965.", Flora of China, vol. 5, p. 90, retrieved 14 February 2011
  4. ^ a b c T.K. Paul; A. Kumar, "Dendrocnide sinuata (Blume) Chew [Urticaceae]. – A plant that can be grown to repulse the wild elephants.", ENVIS NEWSLETTER, From Directors desk, Keystone Foundation, p. 5, ISSN 0974-1992, archived from the original on 4 March 2016, retrieved 25 February 2012
  5. ^ Rawat, G.S., ed. (2008), "Special Habitats and Threatened Plants of India" (PDF), ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas, vol. 11, no. 1, Dehradun, India: Wildlife Institute of India, p. 84, retrieved 26 February 2011[permanent dead link‍]
  6. ^ text: Bikram Grewal; images: Ramki Sreenivasan (28 February – 8 March 2009), "In search of the Bugun Liocichla and other parables from Eaglenest", Birds of India, Eaglenest 2009 – Trip Report, Sumit K. Sen, archived from the original on 4 February 2012, retrieved 26 February 2012{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Dendrocnide sinuata (Bl.) Chew – URTICACEAE", Biodiversity Informatics and co-Operation in Taxonomy for Interactive shared Knowledge base (BIOTIK), retrieved 14 February 2011
  8. ^ Beddome, R.H. (1869). The Flora Sylvatica for Southern India. Volume II. Madras: Gantz Brothers. p. 306.
  9. ^ Tanti, Bhaben; Buragohain, Alak Kumar; Gurung, Lisha; Kakati, Debashree (March 2010), "Assessment of antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of Dendrocnide sinuata (Blume) Chew leaves–A medicinal plant used by ethnic communities of North East India" (PDF), IJNPR Vol.1(1) [March 2010], New Delhi: Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), ISSN 0976-0504, retrieved 14 February 2011

Additional sources

  • Anonymous. 1962. Wealth of India, Raw Materials, 6: 34–35. Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, New Delhi.
  • Chopra, R.N., S.L. Nayar & I.C. Chopra. 1956. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants, p. 150. Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, New Delhi.
  • Rahman, M.M., A. Khan, M.E. Haque & M.M. Rahman. 2008. Antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities of Laportea crenulata. Fitoterapia79: 584–586