Mimusops elengi

Mimusops elengi

Other Names : Spanish cherry, Medlar, Bullet wood, Maulsari मौलसरी, Kirakuli किराकुली, বোকুল লৈ Bokul lei, மகிழம்பூ Magizhamboo, Ilanni, Bakul, Bakula, Bakuli, Omval, Ranjal, Barsoli, मौलसरी Maulasari, लंकासानी Lankaasaani, वकुल पुष्प Vakul Pushpa
A medium-sized evergreen tree found in tropical forests in South Asia, Southeast Asia and northern Australia.

Chemical constituents

The leaves, twigs, bark, seeds flowers and fruits contain several useful chemicals that are used in various ayurveda treatment methods. The Leaves contain sterols, reducing sugars and tannins, Roots: a steroidal saponin. The Stem and Bark contain spinasterol and taraxerol, flowers, D-mannitol, beta-sitosterol and beta-sitosterol- D-glycoside. The Seeds contain pentacyclic triterpene acids, mimusopic and mimusopsic acids.

Health benefits and Uses of Mimusops elengi

The various extracts of the plant (bark, fruit, leaves, seed, and flowers) have been reported to be cardiotonic, alexipharmic and stomachic, hypotensive, antibacterial, anthelmintic, anti-gastric ulcers, teeth cleaner and renewable sources of energy.

• The bark is acrid and sweet; cooling, cardiotonic, alexipharmic, stomachic, anthelmintic, astringent; cures biliousness and diseases of the gum and teeth. It is used in the treatment and maintenance of oral hygiene. Rinsing mouth with water solution made with bakul helps in strengthening the teeth. It also prevents bad breath and helps keep the gums healthy. Used as a gargle for odontopathy, ulitis and ulemorrhagia
• Tender twigs can be used to brush teeth.
• The bark powder is used along with catechu and pomegranate bark powder in an ayurvedic tooth powder called “Vajradanti”.
• Tonic obtained from the bark is used as tonic, astringent, and to reduce fever.
• The flowers are sweet, acrid, oleagenous; cooling, astringent to the bowels; good for the teeth, causes flatulence. They are used as expectorant; cures biliousness, liver complaints, diseases of the nose, headache, and their smoke is good in asthma.
• The seeds fix loose teeth; as an errhine cures nasal congestion and headache.
• The root is sweet and sour; aphrodisiac, diuretic, astringent to the bowels; good for gonorrhoea; as a gargle, strengthens the gums.
• The fruits are sweet and sour, aphrodisiac, diuretic, astringent to the bowels, good in gonorrhoea.
• The pulp of the ripe fruits is sweetish and astringent and has been successfully used in curing chronic dysentery.
• The leaves are well known for analgesic and antipyretic
• The bark and fruit of this plant are used in the treatment of diarrhea and dysentery.
• The pounded seeds pasted with oil are used for the treatment of obstinate constipation.
• Pillow stuffing made from the dried flowers induces nasal discharge and relieves headache.
• Fruits are used as astringent, coolant and anthelmintic.
• The tender stems are used as tooth brushes, and in cystorrhea, diarrhea and dysentery.
• Flowers are brain tonic and are useful as snuff to relieve cephalalgia.
• Several triterpenoids, steroids, steroidal glycosides, flavonoids, and alkaloids have been reported from this species.
• The various extracts of the plant (bark, fruit, leaves, seed, and flowers) have been reported to be cardiotonic, alexipharmic and stomachic, hypotensive, antibacterial, anthelmintic, anti-gastric ulcers, teeth cleaner and renewable sources of energy.
• Anti-bacterial activity Different solvent extracts of the leaves of Mimusops elengi were prepared and screened for their antibacterial activity against six different bacterial strains including both gram negative strains such as Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris and gram positive strains such as Streptococcus pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. All the tested extracts exhibited significant antibacterial activity in a dose dependent manner.
• Antifungal activity The saponins present in the seeds of the plant demonstrated antifungal activity against some human pathogen.
• The leaves are used as antidote to snake-bite.
• HIV : Anti-HIV activity The triterpene minusopic acid, isolated from seeds of the plant was found to exhibit anti-HIV reverse transcriptase activity. The crude aqueous and methanol extracts of M. elengi inhibited HIV type 1 protease (PR) by more than 70% at a concentration of 0.2 mg/ml.

References

• Khatri DK, Manjulakonka, Juvekar AR. Evaluation of Anti-inflammatory activity of Mimusops elengi extracts in Different In-vitro and In-vivo models. Int J Phar Bio Sci 2014; 5(1):259-268.
• Niranjan K, Singh RK, Adaji MN, Singh RB. Effect of aqueous leaf and bark extracts of Mimusops elengi (Linn.) on radial growth and sclerotial formation of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) De Bary, a Polyphagous fungus. PAT 2009; 5(2):288-300.
• Ali MA, Mozid MA, Yeasmin S, Khan AM, Sayeed MA. An Evaluation of Antimicrobial Activities of Mimusops elengi Linn. Research Journal of Agriculture and Biological Sciences 2008; 4(6):871-874. * Rao KS, Manjuluri PR, Keshar NK. In vitro Antioxidant Activity and Total Phenolic Content of Mimusops elengi Bark. Ind J Pharm Edu Res 2011; 45(1):317-323.
• Ganu G, Garud A, Agarwal V, Suralkar U, Jadhav S, Kshirsagar A. Anti-anxiety activity of Mimusops elengi barks extract in experimental animals. RJPBCS 2011; 2(3):405-410.
• Jerline M, Jyothi G, Brindha P. Effect of Mimusops elengi Linn. Bark extract on Alloxan induced hyperglycemia in albino rats. Journal of Tissue Research 2009; 9(3):19851988.
• Kirtikar KR, Basu BD. Uttaranchal, India: Oriental Enterprises; 2001. Indian medicinal plants with illustrations.
• Basavaraj CK, Purnima A. Diuretic activity of extracts of Mimusops elengi Linn. Bark. Int J Green Pharm. 2010:90–92.
• Manjeshwar SB, Ramakrishna JP, Harshith PB, Princy LP, Rekha B. Chemistry and medicinal properties of the Bakul (Mimusops elengi Linn): A review. Food Res Int. 2011;44(7):1823–1829.
• Bharat G, Parabia MH. Pharmacognostic evaluation of bark and seeds of Mimusops elengi L. Int J Pharm Pharmac Sci. 2010;2(4):110–113.
• Shanmugam S, Annadurai M, Rajendran K. Ethnomedicinal plants used to cure diarrhea and dysentery in Pachalur hills of Dindigul district in Tamil Nadu, Southern India. J Appl Pharmac Sci. 2011;01(08):94–97.
• Sakshi S, Vineet G, Rajiv G, Shubhini AS. Analgesic and antipyretic activity of Mimusops elengi L. (bakul) leaves. Pharmacologyonline. 2011;3:1–6.