Acalypha alopecuroidea

Scientific name: Acalypha alopecuroidea Jacq.

Synonym: Acalypha aristata Kunth

Botanical family: EUPHORBIACEAE

Vernacular names

(In territories with significant traditional TRAMIL use)

Dominican Republic:

ajito con pelo

Haiti:

dégonflé

Other vernacular names

Haiti:

Degonfle
Dengonfle ou gwo tèt

Geographical distribution

Native of tropical America.

Botanical description

Herbaceous erect, annual, up to 50 cm. Deltoid to rounded/ovate leaves of 3 to 7 cm, acuminate or cuspidate/acuminate, crenate. Terminal and axillary ears, up to 5 cm; bracts of pistillate flowers from 7 to 9 mm, with long hairs. Capsule of 2 mm in length.

Voucher(s)

Rouzier,59&61,SOE

Jiménez,215,JBSD

flatulence

leaves, decoction with salt, taken orally^1-2

For flatulence:

prepare a decoction with 30 grams of leaves in 4 cups (1 litre) of water and 1 teaspoon (5 milligrams) of salt, boil for 10 minutes in an open vessel. Leave to cool, strain (filter) and drink 1 cup after each meal.

Preparations must never be stored for more than 24 hours, even if refrigerated.

According to the information available:

The use for flatulence is classified as REC based on the significant traditional use documented in the TRAMIL surveys, the toxicity studies and the scientific information published.

Not for use during pregnancy, breastfeeding or in children under 5 years. Not to be consumed for more than 3 consecutive days.

TRAMIL Work¹⁰
The LD₅₀of the aqueous extract from fresh leaves in decoction (30% weight/volume), in a single dose (500, 1000, 2000 and 5000 mg/kg) orally in mice, did not cause death; drowsiness was observed in the first hours after receiving the doses of 2 and 5 g/kg. No other adverse signs were found in the 14 days of observation. The histological study of the organs showed no lesions.

TRAMIL Work¹¹
The ethanolic extract (70%) was prepared with all the parts of the dried and crushed plant (100 g) using dynamic maceration for 90 minutes at room temperature. It was then filtered and concentrated in a vacuum at 45 °C. The raw extract obtained (15 g) was again diluted in 100 ml of 40% ethanol and from this two organic fractions were prepared, one apolar and one polar.

The oral LD₅₀ was determined in male Swiss mice (25-30 g in weight) observed for 14 days and compared with controls; this demonstrated that none of the 2 fractions doses of up to 5 g of extract/kg caused death or obvious signs of toxicity.

In some plants of this genus, the cyanogenic derivatives in the presence of b-glucosidases bring about acute or chronic cyanhydric poisoning when administered orally^12-13. However, cyanhydric acid evaporates by the action of heat during boiling if this is carried out in an open vessel¹⁴.

There is no information available documenting the safety of use in children, during pregnancy or breastfeeding.

TRAMIL Research³

Preliminary phytochemical screening (entire plant)

alkaloids: - saponins: +

quinones: - tannins: +

flavonoids: + polyphenols: +

steroids, terpenoids: -

The presence of cyanogenic derivatives⁴, specifically acalyphin, has been reported in the genus, accompanied by a potent β- glucosidase⁵that releases monosaccharides and hydrogen cyanide in the leaf, which is found at a concentration of approximately 2700 ppm⁶.

TRAMIL Work⁷
The ethanolic extract (95%) from dried leaves showed no in vitro activity against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Aspergillus niger or Candida albicans.

TRAMIL Work⁸
The aqueous extract (decoction) from dried leaves (40 and 80 mg/ml), in vitro did not significantly modify the mobility of rabbit duodenum in an isolated organ bath.

TRAMIL Work⁹
The aqueous extract (30% decoction) from fresh leaves (1 and 5 g/kg) orally in mice, did not significantly modify intestine mobility, in the intestinal transit model with activated carbon at 10% suspended in carboxymethyl cellulose.

Pharmacopoeia

Ed.3

References

1 WENIGER B, ROUZIER M, 1986
Enquête TRAMIL. Service Oecuménique d'Entraide SOE, Port au Prince, Haïti.

2 GERMOSEN-ROBINEAU L, GERONIMO M, AMPARO C, 1984
Encuesta TRAMIL. enda-caribe, Santo Domingo, Rep. Dominicana.

3 WENIGER B, SAVARY H, DAGUIHL R, 1984

Tri phytochimique de plantes de la liste TRAMIL. Rapport TRAMIL. Faculté de Médecine, Université de Haïti, Port au Prince, Haïti. TRAMIL I, Port au Prince, Haïti, Fac. de Médecine/enda-caribe.

4 HEGNAUER R, 1973
Chemotaxonomie der Pflanzen. Eine Übersicht über die Verbreitung und die systematische Bedeutung der Pflanzenstoffe. 6, Dicotyledoneae: Rafflesiaceae — Zygophyllaceae. Basel und Stuttgart, Deutschland: Birkhäuser Verlag.

5 HOSTETTMANN K, LEA PJ, 1987

Biologically active natural products. Oxford, England: Oxford Science Publications.

6 DUKE JA, 1992

Handbook of phytochemical constituents of GRAS herbs and other economic plants. Boca Raton, USA: CRC Press.

7 LE GRAND A, WONDERGEM PA, 1986

Activités antimicrobiennes et études bibliographiques de la toxicologie de dix plantes médicinales de la Caraïbe. Rapport TRAMIL. Dép. de Pharmacognosie, Universités de Groningen & Leyden, Groningen & Leyden, Hollande.

8 DEL ROSARIO PEREZ R, WENIGER B, 1988
Actividad de Acalypha alopecuroidea sobre intestino aislado. Informe TRAMIL. Universidad de Estrasburgo, Es- trasburgo, Francia.

9 MORON F, BETANCOURT J, PINEDO Z, BOUCOURT E, 2000

Efecto de hoja fresca de Acalypha alopecuroidea Jacq. en el tránsito intestinal de ratones in vivo. Informe TRAMIL. Laboratorio Central de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas “Dr. Salvador Allende”, La Habana, Cuba.

10 MARTINEZ MJ, BETANCOURT J, LOPEZ M, MOREJON Z, BARCELO H, LAINEZ A, MONTES ME, REGO R, BOUCOURT E, MORON F, 2000
Toxicidad aguda clásica de hoja fresca de Acalypha alopecuroides Jacq. Informe TRAMIL. Laboratorio Central de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas “Dr. Salvador Allende”, La Habana, Cuba.

11 SOUZA BRITO A, 1995

Toxicidad aguda de Acalypha alopecuroidea. Informe TRAMIL. Dep. de Fisiología y Biofísica, Universidad de Campinas, Campinas, Brasil.

12 POULTON J, KEELER R, TU T, 1983
Handbook of natural toxins 1. New York, USA: Marcel Dekker, p117.

13 NAHRSTEDT A, 1987

Recent developments in chemistry, distribution and biology of the cyanogenic glycosides. In: Hostettmann K, Lea PJ. Biologically active natural products. Oxford, USA: Oxford Science Publications. p167-184,213-234.

14 ARGEHEORE EM, AGUNBIADE OO, 1991
The toxic effects of Cassava (Manihot esculenta Grants) diets on humans: a review. Hum Toxicol 33(3):273-275.

Disclaimer

The information provided is for educational purposes only for the benefit of the general public and health professionals. It is not intended to take the place of either the written law or regulations. Since some parts of plants could be toxic, might induce side effects, or might have interactions with certain drugs, anyone intending to use them or their products must first consult with a physician or another qualified health care professional. TRAMIL has no responsibility whatsoever towards the user for any decision, action or omission made in relation to the information contained in this Pharmacopoeia.

Main navigation

TRAMILibrary

Acalypha alopecuroidea

Vernacular names

Dominican Republic:

Haiti:

Haiti:

Geographical distribution

Botanical description

Voucher(s)

Pharmacopoeia

References

Disclaimer