INTRODUCTION:

Throughout human history people have believed on natural product, plant in particular to promote and maintain good health and to fight, sickness, pain, and diseases. Efforts to document traditional medicinal knowledge and systematically explore the flora of Indian during the past two year centuries have added much to our understanding of the use and efficacy of medicinal plant. In recent decades, these has been a vigorous efforts within India to conserve, document and promote knowledge of plant drug and to pharmacological research programmes for the benefit to both traditional and modern medicinal system¹. The interest in nature as a source of potential chemotherapeutic agents continues. Natural products and their derivatives represent more than 50% of all the drugs in clinical use in the world today². Today and in the decades to comes, we have a golden opportunity, and indeed an obligation, to take stock of the vast store of traditional knowledge on the healing property of the earth’s plant resources¹.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Phalsa (Grewia asiatica, Family-Tiliaceae), a small bush fruit, is native to Southern Asia. Blueberry-like in appearance, it may be purple or red in color when ripe. Phalsa fruits are eaten fresh when ripe, used for tasty desserts, or are processed into fruit and soft drinks generally enjoyed during the hot summer months. The fruit, however, does not keep well and is currently suitable only for local marketing. Profitable domestic production will require significantly improved storage capabilities and well-planned marketing strategies³. A shrub or small tree, young parts stellately pubescent. Leaves 7 to 17 by 6 to 12 cm, ovate or suborbicular, acute, or subacuminate or cuspidate, sharply and often coarsely, double serrate, subglabrous above, hoary -tomentose, beneath, rounded or only slightly cordate at the base 5-6-7 nerved ;

petals 6-12 mm. long , thickened at the top stipules nearly as long as petioles linear subulate or lanceolate . Flower buds broadly cylindric or clavate, peduncles axillary, usually many, long and slender, for exceeding the petioles and often 3-4 times as long. Sometime 4 cm long flower large. Bracts beneath the pedicles lanceolate. Sepals about 10 mm long, linear oblong, acute stellately, pubescent or tomentose. Petals yellow oblong or ovate oblong, jagged or entire, about 6 mm long, not bifid, gland with a wide fleshy margin, pubescent towards the edges. Gonophores long stigma with 4 short rounded lobes style much thickened above. Fruit red, globose, 6-8 mm diam.; pyrenes 1-2, always 1-celled only⁴.

HABITAT

Extensively cultivated in India, and also native in southern Asia from Pakistan, East Combodia and widely cultivated in other topical country. In India especially in Punjab, Uttar-Pradesh, Andhra-Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Delhi⁵.

VERNACULAR NAME ⁶

Hindi – Phalsa, Parusha

Sanskrit – Miriduphala

Bangali – Phalsa

Gujarati – Phalsa

Punjabi – Phalsa

Urdu – Phalasah

Uriya – Phasosakoli

Tamil – Palsia

TAXONOMICAL CLASSIFICATION ⁷

Kingdom – Plante

Order – Malvales

Family – Tiliaceae

or Malvaceae

Sub-family – Grewioideae

Genus – Grewia

Species – asiatica

ETHNOMEDICAL INFORMATION OF VARIOUS PARTS OF Grewia asiatica

Whole plant is used as a cooling, sweet astringent, demulcent, appetizer; antithirst, tonic, aphrodisiac⁸ .The ripe fruits are sweet with a pleasant blend of acid and having a cooling effect on body, also used as a digestive. An unripe fruit is bitter, acrid, and sour; remove “Vatta” cures “KAPHA” and biliousness. The fruit is good for troubles of the throat help, removal of dead foetus .The fruit are also useful for the chest and heart disease. The bark of Phalsa plant cures biliousness and “Vatta”. It also cures urinary troubles and burning of vagina (Ayurveda).An infusion of bark is used as demulcent. The root and bark are used in strangury, gleets and gonorrhoea (Unani) and cures inflammation, heart, blood disorder, fever and consumption⁶. Seed extract and seed oil are used as in antifertility activity, Stem bark also exhibited antifertility activity⁹ .Leaf are used as an application to postural eruptions and bubs are also prescribed by native practitioners¹⁰. Phalsa fruit is superior in vitamin C (natural ascorbic acid) concentration to many major fruits and has a pleasing flavour along with an acidic taste. Green, unripe Phalsa fruit is used in some regions to alleviate inflammation and is advised for use to treat many health problems including fever, respiratory, cardiac and blood disorders. Phalsa bark is also used as a febrifuge, and in the treatment of diarrhoea. Some aboriginal and poor people of India use Phalsa root bark to treat rheumatism. Leaves are applied to skin eruptions and rashes². An ether extract of Phalsa leaves has been reported to possess antibacterial qualities against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli ¹¹. An extract of the bark is commonly used in north Indian sugar factories for clarification of sugarcane juice. Phalsa wood is elastic and strong for use in shoulder poles, shingles and tool handles. The bark yields a fibre often used for rope making¹².

CLAIMS AND REPORTS: (BIOLOGICAL/ PHARMACOLOGICAL)

Rashmi Sisodia et al, (2009); reported biochemical, behavioural and quantitative alteration in cerebellum of Swiss albino mice following irradiation and its modulation by Grewia asiatica. The result shows that prior/post supplementation of Grewia asiatica has radioprotective potential as well as neuroprotective properties against the radiation¹³.

Zahra Yaqeen et al, (2008); reported the evaluation of antiemetic activities of alcoholic fruits extracts of Grewia asiatica in experimental model Dog, whereas acute oral toxicity test was carried out in mice and rats. Maximum oral dose of 200 mg/kg and 600 mg/kg of crude alcoholic extract was found non toxic in mice and rats. Oral dose of crude alcoholic extract (120 mg/kg body weight) caused antiemetic effect in dogs in 3 h and controlled emesis centrally induced by Apomorphine (0.044 mg/kg body weight). This activity of Grewia asiatica was comparable with standard commercial anti-emetic drugs like Maxolon (Metoclopramide) and Largactil tablets 10 mg (Chlorpromazine) ¹⁴.

Smita Singh et al, (2008); reported the protective role of Grewia asiatica on Blood after radiation exposure in Mice studied to evaluate the radio protective effect of Grewia asiatica fruit pulp extract (GAE) on Swiss albino mice against radiation induced haematological and biochemical alterations. Study showed that GAE provides protection against radiation: induced alterations in blood of mice¹⁵.

Mukesh Gupta et al,(2008); reported the antipyretic effect of a traditional polyherbal Preparation: A Double-Blind, Randomized Clinical Trial: the aqueous extract of polyherbal ayurvedic preparation PD-10 (from the roots of Hemidesmus indicus R. Br. (Asclepiadaceae), Rubia cordifolia (Rubiaceae), Cissampelos pareira (Menispermaceae), fruits of Terminalia chebula (Combretaceae), Emblica officinalis (Euphorbiaceae), Terminalia bellirica (Combretaceae), Vitis vinifera (Vitaceae), Grewia asiatica (Tiliaceae), Salvadora persica (Salvadoraceae) and granules of Saccharum officinarum (Poaceae)) exhibited significant antipyretic-analgesic properties during rodent experiments while exhibiting low toxicity and ulcerogenicity¹⁶.

Muktika Ahaskar et al, (2007); reported the radio protective effect of methanolic fruit extract of Grewia asiatica in Swiss Albino mice against lethal dose¹⁷.

Rashmi Sisodia et al, (2007); reported the post treatment effect of Grewia asiatica against radiation-induced biochemical alterations in Swiss albino mice. The results indicated that GAE post treatment protects liver and blood against radiation-induced damage by inhibiting glutathione depletion and ameliorating lipid peroxidation levels that attended normal levels by day 30 post treatment¹⁸.

Mahesh Gupta et al, (2007); reported the successive extract of Grewia asiatica leaves were screened for in vitro antioxidant properties. The successive extracts such as petroleum ether, benzene, ethyl acetate, methanol, water and 50%crude methanol extract exhibited IC50 values of 249.60 ± 7.37, 16.19 ± 2.132, 26.17 ± 1.49, 27.38 ± 1.80, 176.14 ± 5.53 and 56.40 ± 3.98 µg/ml, respectively in DPPH and 22.12 ± 02.65, 27.00 ± 01.62, 47.38 ± 05.88, 56.85 ± 06.16, 152.15 ± 5.76 and 72.75 ± 13.76 µg/ml, respectively nitric oxide radical inhibition assay. These values are comparable with standard such as an ascorbic acid and quercetin. The Grewia asiatica leaves are showing antioxidant activity¹⁹.

Abou zeid et al, (2005); reported the aqueous ethanol extract, as well as, successive extracts of the dried powdered leaves of the plant were investigated for their anti-diabetic activity in alloxan:induced diabetic rats. The obtained data were statistically analyzed using Students’t’ test. Significant reduction in blood glucose level was observed especially with the ethyl acetate and methanol extracts. Bioassay-guided fractionation led to the isolation and purification of seven major flavonoids from the ethyl acetate extract. They were identified as, quercetin, kaempferol, isorhamnetin, isorhamnetin 3-O-rhamnoside, vitexin, kaempferol-7-O-glucoside and kaempferol-3-O-(6″-O-E-p-coumaroyl)-glucoside [tiliroside] by determination of their chromatographic, and spectral data.

PHYTOCHEMICAL REPORTS

Mahesh Gupta et al, (2008); reported pharmacognostical evaluation of Grewia asiatica leaves. Phytochemical tests indicated the presence of flavonoids, tannins, phenolic compound protein, amino acid and vitamin C in aqueous and methanolic extracts of Phalsa²⁰.

Irshad Ali Noor et al, (1982); reported flavonoids constituents of Grewia asiatica. Quercetin, kaempherol and their glucoside detected and isolated from pure leaf extracts of Grewia asiatica ²¹.

Kaempherol Quercetin

Sudhir agrawal et al, (1979); reported phytochemical study of the fruit pulp of Grewia asiatica Linn. The study showed that pelargonidin- 3, 5-diglucoside, quercetin, quercetin 3-O-β-D glucoside and naringenin 7-0-β-D glucoside isolated from the ethanolic extract of pulp and proline, lysine, gluteric acid and phenylalanine also isolated and characterised from fruit²².

Vijaylakshmi et al, (1976); reported a new lactone 3, 21, 24, trimethyl 5, 7-dihydroxy-henriacotanic acid isolated from the flower²³.

OTHER PHYTOCHEMICAL INVESTIGATION ²⁴

· Lupeol, lupenone, betulin and friedelin isolated from plant of Grewia asiatica.

· Isorhametin, isorhmnetin-3-O-rhamnoside, vitexin, and kaempherol-7-O-glucoside are also isolated from leaf extracts of Grewia asiatica.

· β-sterol, quercetin and its 3-O- glycoside, naringenin and its 7-0 glycoside isolated from the flower of Grewia asiatica.

Naringenin

· Grewinol isolated from flower and identified as tetratriacontan 22-ol-13 one.

· Taraxasterol, β-sitosterol , erythrodiol, β-amyrin and butulin isolated from bark of Grewia asiatica

Taraxasterol β-sitosterol

β-amyrin

· Dilphinidina-3-glucosides and cyanidine 3 glucosides isolated from fruits.

· Oil content in seed coat (2%) and in kernel 23.7% oil free kernels contains 34.9% protein linolic acid. 57.7% is major component of oil with lesser amounts of arachidic, hepladecournoid, linoleic, myristic, olic, plasmatic, pallmitic, palmitolic and steric acid.

· Citic acid, sugar, xylose,arabenose , vitamin(mainly A and C), amino acid, glucose of delphinidine and cyanidine ripe berry of Grewia asiatica.

CONCLUSION:

The plant Grewia asiatica has a wide array of pharmacological activities. It is widely used in various traditional system of medicine as a medicine. It has been used since centuries as an, cooling, sweet astringent, demulcent, appetizer; antithirst, tonic, aphrodisiac, in treatment of diarrhoea and biliousness. Recent research carried out indicates its other uses such as anti-diabetic, antimicrobial, antifertility, anti-inflammatory & antiemetic. The plant Grewia asiatica is an important source of various types of compounds with diverse chemical structures as well as pharmacological activities. However, very less work has been done on this plant and there is a wide scope for investigation.

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Received on 05.02.2010 Modified on 15.03.2010

Research J. Pharm. and Tech. 3(1): Jan. - Mar. 2010; Page 1-3