Mirabilis jalapa

Scientific name: Mirabilis jalapa L.

Synonym: Nyctago jalapa (L.) DC.

Botanical family: NYCTAGINACEAE

Vernacular names

(In territories with significant traditional TRAMIL use)

Guadeloupe:

bel dinuy
belle de nuit

Dominican Republic:

buena noche

Other vernacular names

Guadeloupe:

belle de nuit
Belle de nuit (bel dinuy)

Geographical distribution

Widely distributed in tropical America.

Botanical description

Herbaceous, up to 1.5 m; branched stem with erect or ascendingbranches. Leaves ovate, apex acute or attenuate, base rounded or subcordate (heart shaped), frequently ciliate, sometimes pubescent; peduncles almost always 1 to 2 mm long. Numerous flowers clustered at the tops of the branches, often surrounded
by reduced leaves, calyx-like involucre, campanulate. Perianth of 3 to 5.5 cm in length, of varied colours, expanded limb; 5 stamens, slightly protruding from the perianth. Achenes with five prominent radial ribs, verrucous texture, uniform or variegated in colour, light brown, brown or very dark brown.

Voucher(s)

Zanoni,42676,JBSD
Fournet,4676,GUAD
Balz,6,INRA
Boulogne,TB,12,UAG

For bruises, sprains and boils:

wash the injury with boiled water and soap, apply a sufficient amount of the crushed leaves directly onto the injury to cover the affected area. Cover with a dressing or clean cloth and change every 12 hours.

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

According to the information available:

The use for bruises, demisi (sprains) and boils is classified as REC based on the significant traditional use documented in the TRAMIL surveys, the toxicity studies and the scientific information published.

All topical application must follow strict hygiene measures in order to prevent contamination or additional infection.

If deterioration is observed in the patient or the skin infection or sprain persists for more than 5-7 days, seek medical attention.

Not for use during pregnancy, breastfeeding or in children under 8 years of age.

TRAMIL Work¹⁷
Crushed fresh leaves (0.6 g/6 cm2 of healthy skin) topically in New Zealand albino rabbits, 3 males (1.5 kg), OECD 404 Acute Dermal Irritation model, 3 sites were used and were separated in retention boxes. After 4 hours, the patch was removed, readings for erythema and oedema were taken at 1, 24, 48 and 72 hours; no clinical signs were shown, and therefore it was classified in the non-irritant category.

The ethanolic leaf extract, single dose (10, 30, 100, 300 mg/kg) orally in mice, did not cause the death of any animals¹⁰. With regard to the side effects, it did not alter locomotive activity, body temperature, gastrointestinal transit and did not produce gastric lesions¹⁰.

The external application of the leaf juice and its aqueous maceration did not produce clinical effects suggesting irritability or hypersensitivity on human skin¹³.

The hydroalcoholic extract from the aerial parts, intraperitoneally in mice, showed a maximum tolerated toxic dose of 1 g/kg¹⁴.

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

The leaves contain carbohydrates: 2-carboxyarabinitol⁵, steroids: campesterol, β-sitosterol; alkanes: N-dotriacontane, N-hentriacontane, N-heptacosane, hexacosan-1-ol, N-hexacosane, N-nonacosane, N-octacosane, N-pentacosane, N-pentatriacontane, N-tetracosane, N-tetratriacontane, N-triacontane, tricosan-12-one, N-tricosane, N-tritriacontane; alkanes of C4: tartaric acid; lipids: lignoceric acid⁶.

Aerial parts contain steroids: brassicasterol, β-sitosterol, stigmasterol; triterpenes: oleanolic acid, ursolic acid⁷;flavonoids: quercetin⁸.

Phytochemical screening of the aerial parts shows: alkaloids (-), flavonoids (+), steroidal saponins (+)⁸, iridoids (+)⁹

The raw leaf extract (1-100 mg/kg), orally in adult male Swiss albino mice (25-35 g), in the model of writhing induced by intraperitoneal injection of acetic acid at 0.6%, with morphine (10 mg/kg) orally as a positive control, reduced the number of abdominal contortions in 30 minutes induced by acetic acid administered one hour after oral treatment with maximum inhibitions of 65 ± 13%, with a calculated ID₅₀ of 5.5 mg/kg. In
the tail-flick test (1-100 mg/kg), measuring the reaction time of the tail-flick after submerging it in a hot bath at 48 °C, a significant anti-nociceptive effect was also obtained (10 mg/kg).
This effect started at 0.5 and lasted up to 1 h after treatment¹⁰.

The aqueous extract (cold maceration), freeze-dried, from dried leaves (200 and 400 mg/kg), was
administered orally in Wistar rats (150-200 g) in the carrageenan anti-inflammatory model, with diclofenac sodium (10 mg/kg) as a positive control, administered 30 min. before injecting carrageenan as a phlogistic agent in the subplanar region of rats’ legs. The dose of 200 mg/kg impeded oedema formation by 15%, 26.4%, 31.3% and 39% at 1, 2, 3 and 4 hours, respectively. At the 400 mg/kg dose, the percentages of inhibition were 25.6%, 35%, 50% and 56.3% at 1, 2, 3 and 4 hours respectively¹¹.

The plant demonstrated antibacterial and antifungal activity on biological agents causing pyoderma and
dermatomycosis¹².

The juice and the aqueous maceration of the leaves, applied externally, showed clinically proven anti-inflammatory activity on skin conditions caused by fungi in humans.¹³.

The hydroalcoholic extract from aerial parts, in female rats, did not induce uterine stimulation¹⁴.

The dried leaf tincture (30 μl/disc) in vitro did not behave as an antimicrobial against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus or Candida albicans¹⁵.

The decoction of dried flowers, leaves and roots, in vitro (1 g/ml), acted as a fungicide against Epidermophyton floccosum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, but was inactive against Microsporum canis and Trichophyton mentagrophytes¹⁶.

Pharmacopoeia

Ed.3

References

1 EDOUARD JA, 1992
Enquête TRAMIL. Lycée agricole, Baie-Mahault, Guadeloupe.
2 GERMOSEN-ROBINEAU L, GERONIMO M, AMPARO C, 1984
Encuesta TRAMIL. enda-caribe, Santo Domingo, Rep. Dominicana.
3 BALZ E, BOYER A, BURAUD M, 2007
Enquête TRAMIL à Marie-Galante. U. Bordeaux 3, U. Paris XI Chatenay-Malabry,
UAG, Guadeloupe.
4 BOULOGNE Isabelle, 2009
Enquête TRAMIL, (Terre-de-Bas et Terre-de-Haut) Les Saintes, UAG, Guadeloupe.
5 MOORE B, ISIDORO E, SEEMANN JR, 1993
Distribution of 2-carboxyarabinitol among plants. Phytochemistry 34(3):703-707.
6 BEHARI M, ANDHIWAL C, STREBL M, 1976
Some chemical constituents of the leaves of Mirabilis jalapa. Collect Czech Chem
Commun 41:295.
7 SIDDIQUI S, SIDDIQUI B, ADIL Q, BEGUM S, 1990
Constituents of Mirabilis jalapa. Fitoterapia 61(5):471.
8 WOO W, CHI H, YUN H, WOO L, 1976
Phytochemical screening of Korean medicinal plants I. Yakhak Hoe Chi 20:138-144.
9 CHI H, KIM H, LEE S, 1981
Iridoid-containing Korean medicinal plants (I). Korean J Pharmacog 12:19-22.
10 WALKER CI, TREVISAN G, ROSSATO MF, FRANCISCATO C, PEREIRA ME, FERREIRA J, MANFRON MP, 2008
Antinociceptive activity of Mirabilis jalapa in mice. J of Ethnopharmacol 120:169-175.
11 SINGH M, KUMAR V, SINGH I, GAUTTAM V, KALIA AN, 2010
Anti-inflammatory activity of aqueous extract of Mirabilis jalapa Linn. leaves. Pharmacognosy Res 2(6):364-367.
12 JUAREZ A, 1985
Estudio de la acción antibacteriana y antimicótica in vitro e in vivo de la planta Mirabilis jalapa en piodermias y dermatomicosis. Tesis Mag. Sc. no 46 39, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
13 CARBALLO A, 1994
Plantas medicinales del Escambray cubano. Apuntes científicos. Laboratorio provincial de producción de medicamentos. Sancti Spiritus, Cuba.
14 DHAR M, DHAR M, DHAWAN B, MEHROTRA B, RAY C, 1968
Screening of Indian plants for biological activity: part I. Indian J Exp Biol 6:232-247.
15 CACERES A, GIRON L, ALVARADO S, TORRES M, 1987
Screening of antimicrobial activity of plants popularly used in Guatemala for the treatment of dermatomucosal diseases. J Ethnopharmacol 20(3):223-237.
16 CACERES A, LOPEZ B, GIRON M, LOGEMANN H, 1991
Plants used in Guatemala for the treatment of dermatophytic infections. 1. Screening for antimycotic activity of 44 plant extracts. J Ethnopharmacol 31(3):263-276.
17 LOPEZ M, MOREJON Z, BACALLAO Y, ACOSTA L, MORON F, 2009
Irritabilidad dérmica primaria de hojas frescas machacadas de Mirabilis jalapa L. Investigación TRAMIL. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas “Dr. Salvador Allende”, Laboratorio Central de Farmacología, C. Habana, Cuba.

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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Mirabilis jalapa

Vernacular names

Guadeloupe:

Dominican Republic:

Guadeloupe:

Geographical distribution

Botanical description

Voucher(s)

Pharmacopoeia

References

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