Moringa pterygosperma

Scientific name: Moringa pterygosperma Gaertn.

Synonym: Moringa oleifera Lam.

Botanical family: MORINGACEAE

Vernacular names

(In territories with significant traditional TRAMIL use)

Haiti:

bambou-bananier
ben olifère
benzoliv
graines benné

Geographical distribution

Native to northwest India, it is commonly grown in tropical regions all over the world.

Botanical description

Tree 5 to 10 m, the trunk is generally slim and irregular. Leaves alternate, pinnate, oblong, short petiole; leaflets opposite, numerous, short petioles, 1-2 cm, obtuse, entire, pale. Numerous, white, aromatic flowers in axillary panicles; petals slightly longer than the sepals. Linear capsule, triangular, sloping, up to 45 cm long, dehiscent, ash-yellow in colour; seeds generally winged, oleaginous.

Voucher(s)

Rouzier,129,SOE

burns

seed, oil, applied locally¹

The Moringa pterygosperma seed is a food of relatively widespread human consumption.

For burns:
wash the wound with boiled water and soap. Apply the cold extracted seed oil to the affected area. Cover with a dressing or clean cloth and change twice a day.

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

According to the information available:

The use for burns is classified as REC based on the significant traditional use documented in the TRAMIL surveys and the toxicity studies.

Traditional use should be limited to superficial burns (epidermal damage) that are minor (less than 10% of the body surface) and
located outside high-risk areas such as the face, hands, feet and genitals.

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

Not for use during pregnancy, breastfeeding or in children under 5 years.

TRAMIL Works²⁰
The oil and the emulsion (235 g of dried seeds/l of water), in topical application for 4 hours (patch with 0.5 ml) and directly
without patches (0.25 ml of oil) on 6 cm² of healthy and damaged skin, in 3 New Zealand albino rabbits (OECD no. 404 and OPPTS 870.2500 EPA models), did not cause oedema or erythema after 72 hours of observation.

TRAMIL Work²¹
The seed oil (0.4 to 250 μg/ml expressed as dry seed weight), added to a human fibroblast culture medium, showed no toxic effect.

TRAMIL Work¹³
The aqueous extract (infusion) of seeds and leaves (5 g/kg), orally in mice, showed no evidence of toxicity.

The crushed seed, orally in rats for 6 weeks, did not produce toxic effects or histological alterations in any of the 28 internal
organs that were examined²².

The cotyledons of the seed were toxic in fish, protozoa and bacteria by causing acetylcholinesterase inhibition. However, it does not constitute a risk to human health at concentrations used for nutritional, medicinal or water purification purposes²³.

The LD₅₀ of pterygospermin, orally in mice, was 350-400 mg/kg²⁴.

Ingestion of large quantities of fruit can produce toxic effects²⁵.

The benzenoids derived from the phenylacetic acid of roasted seeds are attributed with mutagenic action on the micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE) in rats and in some cases, with genotoxic activity^4-5.

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

TRAMIL Work²
100 g of seeds yields no less than 20 ml of oil, considering that 21% of the weight of the seed is fixed oil, which is the biologically active concentrate mentioned in traditional use.

The seed contains fixed oil (21%)³: oleic (67.5%), stearic (10.5%) acids⁴; benzenoids: 4 (α-L-rhamnosyloxy)phenylacetonitrile, 4-hydroxyphenylacetonitrile and 4-hydroxyphenylacetamide^5-6, moringin⁵, niazirin⁷, benzyl carbamate derivatives; miscellaneous: niazimicin⁷; sulfur compounds: 4(α-L-rhamnosyloxy) benzyl glucosinolate⁸, pterygospermin⁹, 4-(α-L-rhamnosyloxy)-benzyl isothiocyanate and derivatives^5,10-11; sterols: daucosterol derivatives⁷.

TRAMIL Works^12-13
Topical application of an ointment made with seed extract reduced the healing time in mice in an experimental model of by Staphylococcus aureus-induced pyoderma, with similar behaviour to neomycin.

TRAMIL Works^13-14
The aqueous seed extract (infusion 750 mg/ml, 1 g/kg), intravenously in the carrageenan-induced rat leg oedema
model, was active as an anti-inflammatory. Infusions of dried bark, leaves and flowers were inactive in the same test.

The seeds, added to water tanks, are capable of making the water drinkable for human consumption¹⁵ .

Pterygospermin demonstrated in vitro activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus^16-19. This compound showed antifungal effects against filamentous fungi and broad spectrum antimicrobial effects against gram + and gram - microorganisms, including Micrococcus pyogenes var. aureus¹⁹.

Pharmacopoeia

Ed.3

References

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

2 CARBALLO A, 1995

Cálculo de concentración y dosis de las drogas vegetales TRAMIL: Mensuraciones farmacognósticas y aproximaciones técnico-
clínicas. Laboratorio provincial de producción de medicamentos, Sancti Spiritus, Cuba.

3 DELAVEAU P, BOTTEAU P, 1980
Huiles à intérêt pharmacologique, cosmétologique et diététique. IV.- Huiles de Moringa oleifera. Plantes Médicinales and
Phytothérapie 14(1):29-33.

4 KHAN FW, GUL P, MALIK MN, 1975
Chemical composition of oil from Moringa oleifera. Pak J For 25(2):100-102.

5 VILLASENOR IM, FINCH P, LIM-SYLIANCO CY, DAYRIT F, 1989
Structure of a mutagen from roasted seeds of Moringa oleifera. Carcinogenesis 10(6):1085-1087.

6 VILLASENOR IM, LIM-SYLIANCO CY, DAYRIT F, 1989
Mutagens from roasted seeds of Moringa oleifera. Mutat Res 224(2):209-212.

7 GUEVARA AP, VARGAS C, SAKURAI H, FUJIWARA Y, HASHIMOTO K, MAOKA T, KOZUKA M, ITO Y, TOKUDA H, NISHINO
H, 1999
An antitumor promoter from Moringa oleifera Lam. Mutat Res 440(2):181-188.

8 VILLASENOR IM, DAYRIT FM, LIM-SYLIANCO CY, 1990
Studies on Moringa oleifera seeds. II. Thermal degradation of roasted seeds. Philippine J Sci 119(1):33-39.

9 BADGETT BL, 1964
Part one: The mustard oil glucoside from Moringa oleifera, seed. Part two: Ascorbic acid analogs with deoxy side chains. Ph.D. thesis. Rice University, Houston, Texas, USA.

10 EILERT U, WOLTERS B, NAHRSTEDT A, 1981
Antibiotic principle of seeds of Moringa oleifera and Moringa stenopetala. Planta Med 42(1):55-61.

11 DAYRIT FM, ALCANTAR AD, VILLASENOR IM, 1990
Studies on Moringa oleifera seeds. Part I. The antibiotic compound and its deactivation in aqueous solution. Philippine J Sci 119(1):23-32.

12 CACERES A, LOPEZ S, 1991
Pharmacological properties of Moringa oleifera. 3: Effect of seed extracts in the treatment of experimental pyodermia. Fitoterapia
62(5):449-450.

13 CACERES A, LOPEZ S, 1992
Informe TRAMIL sobre Moringa pterygosperma. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas y Farmacia, Universidad de San Carlos USAC,
Guatemala, Guatemala.

14 CACERES A, SARAVIA A, RIZZO S, ZABALA L, DE LEON E, NAVE F, 1992
Pharmacologic properties of Moringa oleifera. 2: Screening for antispasmodic, antiinflammatory and diuretic activity. J Ethnopharmacol 36(3):233-237.

15 AL AZARIA JAHN S, 1981
Traditional water purification in tropical developing countries. Existing methods and potential application. Eschborn, Germany: Ed
GTZ.

16 KERHARO J, 1969
Un remède populaire sénégalais: le “nebreday”(Moringa oleifera Lam). Plantes médicinales et phytothérapie 3:214-219.

17 RAGHUNANDANA R, GEORGE M, 1949
Investigation of plant antibiotics. III. Pterygospermin: The antibacterial principle of Moringa pterygosperma Gaernt. Indian J Med Res 37:159-167.

18 DAS B, KURUP P, NARASIMHA R, 1957
Antibiotic principle of Moringa pterygosperma VII: Antibacterial activity and chemical structure of components related to
pterygospermin. Indian J Med Res 45:195-196.

19 KURUP PA, NARASIMIHA RAO PL, 1954
Antibiotic principle from Moringa pterygosperma IV: Effect of addition of vitamins and aminoacids on the antibacterial activity of
pterygospermin. Indian J Med Res 42:101-107.

20 LOPEZ M, BOULOGNE I, BACALLAO Y, BRITO G, ACOSTA L, CABRERA H, MORON F, 2012
Recherche d’irritabilité topique sur peau saine et abîmée (selon les méthodes OECD et Acute dermal irritation) de Moringa oleifera
Lam. Travail TRAMIL. Laboratorio Central de Farmacología, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas “Dr. Salvador Allende”, La Habana, Cuba.

21 WENIGER B, 1992
Activités biologiques (cytotoxicité, effet sur la croissance, effet inmunomodulateur) de drogues végétales de la Caraïbe utilisées par voie locale contre les brûlures, dans des systèmes de cellules animales et humaines en culture. Rapport TRAMIL. Faculté de
Pharmacie, Université de Strasbourg, Illkirch, France.

22 BERGER MR, HABS M, JAHN SA, SCHMAHL D, 1984
Toxicological assessment of seeds from Moringa oleifera and Moringa stenopetala, two highly efficient primary coagulants
for domestic water treatment of tropical raw waters. East Afr Med J 61(9):712-716.

23 GRABOW W, SLABBERT JL, MORGAN WSG, JAHN SAA, 1985
Toxicity and mutagenicity evaluation of water coagulated with Moringa oleifera seed preparations using fish, protozoa, bacterial, coliphage, enzyme and Ames Salmonella assays. Water SA (Pretoria) 11(1):9-14.

24 INGEL TH, BHIDE BV, 1951
Chemical Investigation of the gum from the drumstick plant Moringa oleifera. Curr Sci 20:107- 108.

25 OLIVER-BEVER B, 1986
Medicinal plants in tropical West Africa. London, England: Cambridge University Press.

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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