Pharmacognostical
aspects of Clitoria ternatea, an
indigenous herb
Selvi
K1, Anitha Hegde. G1, Kolkate Hedge3
1B.
Pharm, VV Puram College of Pharmacy, Bangalore
2Assistant
Professor, VV Puram College of Pharmacy, Bangalore
Corresponding
author: selvipharmaedu@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
Corresponding author Sundar
rino B.
Pharm, V.V Puram College of Pharmacy, Bangalore
The present paper deals with phytochemical
studies in Clitoria ternatea Linn.. It is commonly known as 'butterfly
pea' and “shankhapushpi”. It is a traditional Ayurvedic medicinal plant belonging
to the family Fabaceae. The plant extracts were subjected to phytochemical
analysis for screening of medicinal constituents. Valuable data has been
collected pertaining to the presence of various phytochemicals like Alkaloids,
Tannins, Glycosides, Resins, Steroids, Saponins, Flavonoids and Phenols.
Further, quantitative estimation of total Flavonoids, Saponins and Phenols was
also carried out which has provided information regarding the medicinal
potential of the plant.
Key words: Clitoria ternatea,
phytochemical analysis, qualitative analysis, quantitative analysis.
INTRODUCTION
Stress is known to induce alterations in
various physiological responses, leading to a pathological state. Stress causes
disturbance in the body’s normal
physiological equilibrium and results in threatened homeostasis. Every human
today faces stressful situations in day-to-day life and overstress has been
postulated to be involved in the pathogenesis of a variety of diseases,such as
depression and anxiety, cognitive dysfunction, immune-suppression, endocrine
disorder including diabetes mellitus, male sexual dysfunction, peptic ulcers,
hypertension and ulcerative colitis. There is an increasing evidence that
severe stress affects cognitive functions and leads to the pathogenesis of
various neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s
disease and aging. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of progressive
loss of memory and dementia in the elderly. In 2006, the worldwide prevalence
of Alzheimer’s disease was 26.6 million and by 2050, it has been projected to
quadruple.
Literature also indicates that the role
of free radicals in the pathogenesis of
cancer, aging, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and the compounds having capacity
to scavenge these free radicals has great potential in mitigation of these
disorders. Antioxidant based drugs and formulations for the prevention and
treatment of Alzheimer’s disease have appeared during last three decades. Clitoria
ternatea Linn, belonging to the family Fabaceae, is a perennial twining
herb found in India, China, Philippines and Madagascar. This plant is known as
Aparajit (Hindi), Aparajita (Bengali), Kakkattan (Tamil), and Dintena (Telugu)
in Indian traditional medicine. Roots, seeds and leaves of Clitoria ternatea
are commonly used in the Ayurvedic system of medicine.
The roots have laxative, diuretic,
anthelmintic,intellect promoting, anti-inflammatory properties and they are
useful in severe bronchitis, asthma and dementia, hemicrania, burning
sensation, leprosy, inflammation, leucoderma, pulmonarytuberculosis, ascites
and hectic fever .The various activities of methanolic extract of Clitoria
ternatea on CNS were reported .The preliminary phytochemical screening of
the roots revealed the presence of alkaloids, glycosides, flavanoids, resins,
saponins, phenols, triterpenes, proteins & carbohydrates.Till now there is
no scientific work is reported on protective effect of Clitoria ternatea
against oxidative stress induced brain damage, hence we carried out this
scientific study (1).
Plant profile:
Synonyms:
Clitoria albiflora Mattei, Clitoria bracteata Poir., Clitoria
mearnsii De Wild., Clitoria tanganicensis Micheli, Clitoria
zanzibarensis Vatke. Taxonomic classification: Kingdom: Plantae; Subkingdom:
Viridaeplanta; Infrakingdom: Streptophyta; Division:
Tracheophyta; Subdivision: Spermatophytina; Infrodivision:
Angiospermae; Class: Magnoliopsida; Superorder: Rosanae; Order:
Fabales; Family: Fabaceae; Genus: Clitoria L.; Species: Clitoria
ternatea.
Common names:
Arabic: Mazerion Hidi, Baslat el-Zuhoor; Bengali :
Aparajita, Chinese: die dou; English: blue-pea, bluebellvine,
butterfly-pea, cordofan-pea, Darwin-pea; French: honte; German: blaue
Klitorie; Hindi : Aparajita, Portuguese: clitória-azul, clitória;
Punjabi: Koyal; Sanskrit: Girikarnika, Vishnukranta; Spanish: conchitas
papito, azulejo, zapatico de la reina, zapotillo; Swedish: himmelsärt; Tamil:
Kakkanam and Telugu : Dintena. Distribution:
The plant originated
from tropical Asia and later was distributed widely to Africa: (Chad,
Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi,
Cameroon, Gabon, Sao Tome, Zaire, Benin, Cote D'Ivoire; Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,
Guinea-Bissau, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, Angola, Malawi,
Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa; Asia: Madagascar, Saudi
Arabia, Yemen, Iran, Iraq, China Taiwan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal,
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives, Cambodia, Laos; Myanmar, Thailand,
Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore; Australia; North
America: USA and Mexico; Northwestern Pacific: Guam, Northern
Mariana Islands, Palau, South-Central Pacific: French Polynesia -
Society Islands; Southwestern Pacific: Fiji, New Caledonia, Samoa,
Solomon Islands, Southern America: Antigua, Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas,
Barbados, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe,
Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Puerto Rico, St.
Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Virgin Islands (British), Virgin
Islands (U.S.), French Guiana, Suriname, Venezuela, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia,
Ecuador - Galapagos Islands, Peru, Paraguay and Uruguay (2)
Description:
Perennial climbing or trailing herb, growing
from a woody rootstock. Leaves imparipinnate with 2-4 pairs of leaflets and a
terminal leaflet. Leaflets ovate to elliptic-oblong, up to 6.5 × 4 cm, mostly
hairless above, pubescent below. Flowers axillary, solitary or 2 together,
resupinate, large and showy, bright blue. Pod linear-oblong, 6-13 cm long,
flattened, mucronate at the apex, hairless or finely pubescent.
Traditional uses: Root
was used for the treatment of ascetics, enlargement of the abdominal viscera,
sore throat and skin diseases. They were also used as purgative, but because,
they cause griping and tenderness, they were not recommended. Root was
administered with honey and ghee as a general tonic to children for improving
mental faculties, muscular strength and complexion tonics. Roots were also used
in epilepsy and insanity. Seeds and leaves were widely used as a brain tonic
and to promote memory and intelligence. Juice and flowers were used as an
antidote for snake bite. Seeds were used in swollen joints, crushed seeds are
taken with cold or boiled water for urinary problems.Plant parts used: Leaves,
seeds, bark, fruits, sprouts and stems were used medicinally (3).
Pharmacological activity:
Nootropic activity: Clitoria
ternatea, a traditional Ayurvedic medicine, has been used for
centuries for neurological disorders. Taranalli and Cheeramkuzhy evaluated the
influence of CT extracts on memory and central cholinergic activity in rats
.The memory in rats was screened by using passive avoidance test. The results
of this study indicate that the extract of aerial parts showed 66.66% memory
retention in electroshocked rats at the dose of 300 mg/kg, p.o. The extract of
aerial part of CT (300 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly increased the acetylcholine
(ACh) content in whole rat’s brain whereas acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity
was increased in cortex and midbrain but there was no significant change in
medulla oblongata and cerebellum. The aerial extract of CT at the dose of 500
mg/kg showed only 50% memory retention without affecting the cholinergic
markers as compared to normal rats. The extract of CT root exhibited equal
memory retention in electroshocked rats at doses of 300 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg,
p.o as compared to electroshocked control rats. The extract of CT root (300
mg/kg, p.o) also significantly increased Ach content. The AChE activity in
midbrain and medulla oblongata was decreased but decrease in AChE activity was
not significant. There was no change in the AChE activity in cerebral cortex
and cerebellum. The root extract of CT at dose of 500 mg/kg, p.o. significantly
increased the ACh content in whole rat’s brain. It was found that root extract
of CT at a dose of 500 mg/kg caused significant increase in AChE activity in
cerebral cortex whereas in medulla oblongata, AChE activity was significantly
decreased. Slightly decrease in AChE activity in midbrain and no change in AChE
activity in cerebellum was observed at a dose of 500 mg/kg of root extract of
CT. The results of this study suggest that roots of CT were found more
beneficial in attenuating memory deficits as compared to aerials parts. The
cathartic effect of root extract of CT was observed in mice.
Anti-anxiety effect: CT
exhibited a weak anti-anxiety in the elevated plus maze and light/dark
exploration test. The methanolic extract of CT has shown the dose (100-400
mg/kg, p.o) dependant anti-anxiety effect in mice when administered 60 min
before the test. The oral administration of CT (100-400 mg/kg) dose dependently
increased the time spent in the open arm. In light/dark exploration test higher
doses of CT (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg, p.o) increased the time spent in the lit
box. The duration of time spent in dark box decreased in dose dependant manner (4).
Anti histaminic activity:
Clonidine, a α2 adrenoreceptor agonist
induces dose dependent catalepsy in mice, which was inhibited by histamine H1
receptor antagonists but not by H2 receptor antagonist. Clonidine releases
histamine from mast cells which is responsible for diff erent asthmatic
conditions. Catalepsy produced by clonidine is mediated by histamine via H1
receptors. In present study it was found that Chlorpheniramine maleate (10
mg/kg, i.p.) and ECTR at doses (100, 125 and 150 mg/kg i.p) inhibit catalepsy
in dose dependent manner. Dhanalakshmi et al., (2004) showed that extracts
having antihistaminic or mast cell stabilizing eff ect inhibit
clonidine-induced catalepsy . Haloperidol, a non-selective D2 dopamine
antagonist induces catalepsy is primarily due to blockade of dopamine receptors
in the straiatum. Th e agents increasing dopamine transmission inhibits
haloperidol-induced catalepsy. An antihistaminic drug chlorpheniramine maleate
and ECTR fail to inhibit haloperidol induced catalepsy. It indicate that
haloperidol induced catalepsy is not mediated by histamine release as
antihistaminic drug does not inhibit catalepsy but clonidine induces catalepsy
by the release of histamine as it is inhibited by antihistaminic drug. Some
plants were investigated for antihistaminic activity inhibit clonidine induced
catalepsy in mice Allium sativum and Terminalia belerica ,Clerodendrum
serratum, Tamarindus Indica , Clitoria ternatea, Ficus
bengalensis etc. Present study concluded that the drugs having
antihistaminic potential inhibit clonidine induced catalepsy, so ethanol
extract of Clitoria ternatea roots possesses antihistaminic activity.
Future scope of present investigation is isolate active phytoconstituents which
is responsible for antihistaminic activity(5).
CONCLUSION
It is concluded that Clitoria ternatea is
a plant with a variety of ethnic medicinal uses. The qualitative analysis of Clitoria
ternatea shows the presence of bioactive compounds such as Alkaloids,
Tannins, Glycosides, Resins,Steroids, Saponins, Flavonoids and Phenols. The
quantitative estimation of total Saponins, Flavonoids and Phenols in roots and
of Flavonoids in shoots, flowers and seeds is also reported which is very
important for the pharmaceutical industry. This is valuable information for
preparation of drugs in pharmaceutical industry and stress the need for more
intensive research in this medicinal plant since the compounds play a great
role in healthcare.
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Chandan Singh, Ayurvedic medicinal plant - shala (shorea robusta) (a
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3. Satnam Singh, Design,
development and to formulate antimicrobial gel of toona ciliata roem. leaves
and ficus bengalensis linn. stem bark, 2014 2(4).
4. Shyam Baboo Prasad, Minakshi Sharma, Pharmacognostic
and physicochemical evaluation of guazuma tomentosa leaf, 2013, 1(3).