Catalpa longissima

Scientific name: Catalpa longissima (Jacq.) Dum. Cours.

Synonym: Bignonia longissima Jacq.

Botanical family: BIGNONIACEAE

Vernacular names

(In territories with significant traditional TRAMIL use)

Haiti:

bwa dchèn
bwadoèn

Dominican Republic:

roble

Other vernacular names

Haiti:

bwa dchèn
bwa dchen
bwadchèn
roble/bwa dchèn

roble

Geographical distribution

Native to Jamaica and Hispaniola. Introduced in the Lesser Antilles and northern South America.

Botanical description

Tree up to 25 m tall. Simple elliptic-lanceolate leaves, up to 12 cm, acuminate. White flowers, with red lines, yellow inside, petals of 1 cm. Very narrow and long capsule, up to 60 cm, sometimes more and 3 mm wide; feathery-pubescent seeds.

Voucher(s)

Jiménez,126,JBSD

amenorrhoea

bark, decoction with salt, orally¹

stomach pain

bark, decoction, orally¹

For stomach pain or delayed menstruation (amenorrhoea): prepare a decoction with 20 grams of pieces of bark in 4 cups (1 litre) of water, with or without a pinch of salt depending on use, boil for 10 minutes in a covered vessel. Leave to cool, strain (filter) and drink 1 cup every 6 hours.

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

According to the information available:

The use for stomach pain and delay in the menstrual period (amenorrhea) is classified as REC based on the significant traditional use documented in the TRAMIL surveys, the toxicity studies and the scientific information published.

If deterioration is observed in the patient or if the stomach pain persists for more than 3 days, seek medical attention.

Not for use during pregnancy because it can cause miscarriage, nor while breastfeeding or in children under 3 years of age.
Do not use for more than 7 consecutive days on all types of patients.

TRAMIL Work⁴
The aqueous bark extract (decoction, 10 minutes), neutralised at pH 7 (25 g/kg) orally in mice did not produce death or obvious signs of toxicity; the intraperitoneal LD50 was 17.26 ± 4.28 g/kg. Daily administration of the extract (6.25, 12.5 and 18.75 g/kg) for 30 days did not cause death during the study.

TRAMIL Work⁷
The aqueous and organic fractions of the crude bark extract, up to 5 g/kg orally in mice, did not induce obvious signs of toxicity.

There is no information available documenting the toxicity of use in children or during breastfeeding.

The bark contains tannins².

The stem contains triterpenes: β-amyrin; steroids: β-sitosterol; alkanes: N-triacontane and quinones: emodin, lapachol and β-lapachone³.

TRAMIL Work⁴
The aqueous extract (decoction, 10 minutes) of neutralised bark at pH 7 (12-124 mg/ml) in the model of isolated rat uterus in oestrus, showed oxytocic activity. The preparation significantly increased the amplitude of the contractions, while the tone and frequency changed little.

TRAMIL Work⁵
The aqueous and organic fractions obtained from the crude hydroalcoholic extract (70%) from the bark (1 g/kg) orally in rats, in the indomethacin-induced gastric ulcer model, statistically significantly inhibited the formation of lesions. In the ethanol-induced gastric ulcer model, the fractions showed a 40% inhibition of the lesions. None of the fractions (1 g/kg) showed analgesic activity in the acetic acid-induced contortion test in mice.

Amyrin is attributed with analgesic and antipyretic activity, β-sitosterol is used in the treatment of prostate diseases⁶.

Pharmacopoeia

Ed.3

References

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

2 CHAUHAN AK, DOBHAL MP, UNIYAL PN, 1988
Phytochemical investigation of Catalpa longissima L. Part I. Herba Pol 34(1/2):3-5.

3 DUKE J, 1999
Chemicals and their biological activities in: Catalpa longissima (Jacq.) Dum.Cours. Dr. Duke’s Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases. USDA-ARS-NGRL, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Beltsville, USA, Nov.20,2000. URL: www.ars-grin.gov/ duke/

4 HERRERA J, 1988
Determinación de actividades biológicas de vegetales utilizados en medicina tradicional. Trabajo TRAMIL. Dep. de Farmacología, Facultad de Salud, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia.

5 SOUZA BRITO A, 1995
Actividad farmacológica de Catalpa longissima. Trabajo TRAMIL. Dep. de Fisiología y Biofísica, Universidad de Campinas, Campinas, Brasil.

6 NEGWER M, 1987
Organic-chemical drugs and their synonyms (an international survey), 6th ed. Berlin, Germany: Akademie-Verlag.

7 SOUZA BRITO A, 1995
Toxicidad aguda de Catalpa longissima. Trabajo TRAMIL. Dep. de Fisiología y Biofísica, Universidad de Campinas, Campinas, Brasil.

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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Catalpa longissima

Vernacular names

Haiti:

Dominican Republic:

Haiti:

Geographical distribution

Botanical description

Voucher(s)

Pharmacopoeia

References

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