Boerhavia diffusa

Scientific name: Boerhavia diffusa L.

Synonym: Boerhavia repens var. diffusa (L.) Hook f.

Synonym 2: Boerhavia coccinea Mill.

Botanical family: NYCTAGINACEAE

Vernacular names

(In territories with significant traditional TRAMIL use)

Martinique:

patagon

Geographical distribution

Tropical and subtropical regions.

Botanical description

Perennial herbaceous up to 1 m. Suborbicular leaves, ovate or oval, 2 to 5 cm, apex obtuse to round and sometimes acute, base rounded; they are paler on the underside. Fascicles of flowers arranged in a long panicle, minute flowers, with the calyx from 1.5 to 2 mm and the blade from 0.8 to 0.9 mm in heads forming peaks; purplish-red perianth. Obovoid fruit, 2.5 to 3 mm, 5-angular.

Voucher(s)

Longuefosse&Nossin, 5, HAVPM

The leaves of Boerhavia diffusa are a food of relatively widespread human consumption in India.

For sore throats:
prepare a decoction with 30 grams of fresh leaves in 4 cups (1 litre) of water, boil for 10 minutes in a covered vessel. Cool, strain (filter) and gargle 3 times a day.

For use of the leaf juice:
Adequately wash 30 grams of leaf and crush in a mortar with a little water (approximately 15 cubic centimetres) until the juice is pressed out. Pour into a spoon and gargle. Repeat 3 times a day.

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

According to the information available:

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

Not for use during pregnancy, breastfeeding or in children under 10 years of age.

TRAMIL Work¹⁴
The freeze-dried aqueous extracts (decoction and juice) from fresh leaves administered orally (5 g/kg) in male mice did not produce toxic effects.

The aqueous extract from dried leaves orally (500, 1000 and 2000 mg/kg) for 30 days in mice and albino rats revealed a LD₅₀ > 2000 mg/kg and did not cause death or obvious signs of toxicity or haematological changes¹⁶.

The hydroalcoholic extract of the whole dried plant, orally (500 mg/kg) in mice and rats, in the carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatotoxicity model, was found to be hepatoprotective; up to a dose of 2 g/kg it showed no signs of toxicity¹⁷.

No data are available to recommend medicinal use during pregnancy, breastfeeding or in children younger than 12 years of age.

TRAMIL Work²

Preliminary phytochemical screening (leaf)

alkaloids: -	saponins: -
steroids, terpenoids: +	phenols and tannins: ++
flavonoids: +	hydrolysable tannins: +
iridoids: -	phenylpropanoids: -
coumarins: +	aldehydes: -
lactones: +	glycosides: +

The whole plant contains organic acids: boerhavic acid³, oxalic acid⁴; xanthone: hypoxanthine-9-L arabinofuranoside⁵; alkaloids: punarnavine^6-7 and steroid : β-sitosterol⁸.

The green stem contains furanoxanthone: boerhavine and boerhavic acid⁹.

In the leaf there are terpenes: 3,4-dihydroxy-5-methoxycinnamoyl-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3-O-(2”-
rhamnosyl)-robinobioside, 3,5,4’-trihydroxy-6,7- dimethoxyflavone 3-O-galactosyl(1 --> 2) [eupalitin 3-O-
galactosyl(1 --> 2) glucoside], caffeoyltaric acid, 3-O-robinobioside kaempferol, eupalitin 3-O-galactoside; quercetin, kaempferol, quercetin 3-O-robinobioside and quercetin 3-O-(2”- rhamnosyl)-robinobioside¹⁰. In addition, phenylpropanoids, indolic compounds, norisoprenoids and acids: oxalic, ketoglutaric, pyruvic, quinic and fumaric¹¹.

TRAMIL Work¹²
The aqueous (decoction) and ethanolic (10% tincture) leaf extracts, in vitro (10 mg/ml), were active as antimicrobials against Staphylococcus aureus, but showed no effect on Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, S. flexneri, Candida albicans or Escherichia coli.

TRAMIL Works^13-14
The aqueous extract (decoction) and the freeze-dried fresh leaf juice (1 g/kg) orally in mice, in models of pain induced by acetic acid and hot plate, showed analgesic activity; the juice was more active. In the carrageenan model under the same experimental conditions, they showed no anti-inflammatory effect.

The ethanolic extract (80%) of the dry aerial parts in vitro (100 μg/ml) was active against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella paratyphi A and Staphylococcus aureus, but it was inactive against Bacillus anthracis, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus vulgaris, Shigella sonnei and Vibrio cholerae¹⁵.

Pharmacopoeia

Ed.3

References

1 LONGUEFOSSE JL, NOSSIN E, 1990-95
Enquête TRAMIL. Association pour la valorisation des plantes médicinales de la Caraïbe AVPMC, Fort de France, Martinique.

2 BELTRAN C, JIMENEZ S, GOMEZ A, BELTRAN J, GARCIA G, GOMEZ H, 2010
Screening fitoquímico de hoja de Boerhaavia diffusa (infusión, deccoción y extracto etanólico (maceración). Trabajo TRAMIL. Grupo de Investigación en Química de Medicamentos, Universidad de Cartagena, Colombia.

3 AGARWAL RR, DUTT SS, 1934
Chemical examination of punar-nava or Boerhavia diffusa Linn. Proc Acad Sci 4:73-76.

4 MATHAMS RH, SUTHERLAND AK, 1952
The oxalate content of some Queensland pasture plants. Queensland J Agric Sci 9:317-334.

5 AHMAD K, HOSSAIN A, 1968
Isolation, structure, synthesis and biological action of hypoxanthine-9-L-arabinofuranoside. Pak J Biol Agr Sci 11(2):41-44.

6 AGARWAL RR, DUTT SS, 1935
Chemical examination of punarnava or Boerhavia diffusa Linn. II Isolation of an alkaloid
punarnavine. Proc Acad Sci United Provinces Agra Audh India 5:240-242.

7 BASU NK, LAL SB, SHARMA SN, 1947
Investigations on Indian medicinal plants. Q J Pharm Pharmacol 20(1):38-42.

8 SRIVASTAVA DN, SINGH RH, UDUPA KN, 1972
Studies on the Indian indigenous drug, punarnava (Boerhavia diffusa Linn.). Part V. Isolation
and identification of a steroid. J Res Indian Med 7(3):34-36.

9 ROIG J, 1988.
Plantas Medicinales, Aromáticas y Venenosas de Cuba. 2a ed. La Habana, Cuba: Editorial Científico-Técnica.

10 FERRERES F, SOUSA C, JUSTIN M, VALENTÃO P, ANDRADE PB, LLORACH R, RODRIGUES A, SEABRA RM, LEITÃO A, 2005
Characterisation of the phenolic profile of Boerhavia diffusa L. by HPLC-PAD-MS/MS as a tool for quality control. Phytochem Anal 16(6):451-458.

11 PEREIRA DM, FARIA J, GASPAR L, VALENTÃO P, DE PINHO PG, ANDRADE PB, 2009
Boerhavia diffusa: metabolite profiling of a medicinal plant from Nyctaginaceae. Food Chem
Toxicol 47(8):2142-2149.

12 CACERES A, GONZALEZ S, GIRON L, 1998
Demostración de la actividad antimicrobiana de plantas TRAMIL en base a los usos populares en la cuenca del Caribe. Laboratorio de productos fitofarmacéuticos Farmaya y Facultad de Ciencias Químicas y Farmacia, Universidad de San Carlos, Guatemala, Guatemala.

13 SOUZA BRITO AR, HIRUMA-LIMA CA, 1996
Toxicidade aguda e atividade analgésica de estratos brutos de plantas do Caribe. Informe TRAMIL. Dep. de Fisiología y Biofísica, Universidad de Campinas, Campinas, Brasil.

14 HIRUMA-LIMA CA, GRACIOSO JS, BIGHETTI EJB, GERMOSEN-ROBINEAU L, SOUZA BRITO AR, 2000
The juice of fresh leaves of Boerhavia diffusa L. (Nyctaginaceae) markedly reduces pain in mice. J Ethnopharmacol 71(1/2):267-274.

15 AYNEHCHI Y, SALEHI SORMAGHI M, SHIRUDI M, 1982
Screening of Iranian plants for antimicrobial activity. Acta Pharm 19(4):303-308.

16 ORISAKWE OE, AFONNE OJ, CHUDE MA, OBI E, DIOKA CE, 2003
Sub-chronic toxicity studies of the aqueous extract of Boerhavia diffusa leaves. J of Health Science 49(6)444-447.

17 CHANDAN BK, SHARMA AK, ANAND KK, 1991
Boerhavia diffusa: a study of its hepatoprotective activity. J Ethnopharmacol 31(3):299307.

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.

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