Oroxylum indicum

Oroxylum indicum
Plate from book Flora de Filipinas, Gran edicion, Atlas I. by Francisco Manuel Blanco, 1880-1883? where name is Bignonia quadripinnata, Blanco.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Bignoniaceae
Genus: Oroxylum
Species: O. indicum
Binomial name
Oroxylum indicum
(L.) Benth. ex Kurz
Synonyms[1]
  • Arthrophyllum ceylanicum Miq.
  • Arthrophyllum reticulatum Blume ex Miq.
  • Bignonia indica L.
  • Bignonia lugubris Salisb.
  • Bignonia pentandra Lour.
  • Bignonia quadripinnata Blanco
  • Bignonia tripinnata Noronha
  • Bignonia tuberculata Roxb. ex DC.
  • Calosanthes indica (L.) Blume
  • Hippoxylon indica (L.) Raf.
  • Oroxylum flavum Rehder
  • Oroxylum indicum Vent. nom. inval.[2]
  • Spathodea indica (L.) Pers.

Oroxylum indicum is a species of flowering plant belonging to the family Bignoniaceae, commonly called midnight horror,[3] oroxylum,[3] or Indian trumpet flower.[4] It is a tree which can reach a height of 12 metres (39 ft).

Description

The large leaf stalks wither and fall off the tree and collect near the base of the trunk, appearing to look like a pile of broken limb bones. The tree is a night-bloomer and flowers are adapted to natural pollination by bats. They form enormous seed pods that hang down from bare branches. Those long fruits curve downward and resemble the wings of a large bird or dangling sickles or swords in the night.
The seeds are round with papery wings.[5]

Distribution

Oroxylum indicum is native to the Indian subcontinent, in the Himalayan foothills with a part extending to Bhutan and southern China, in Indo-China and the Malesia ecozone.

It is visible in the forest biome of Manas National Park in Assam, India. It is found, raised and planted in large number in the forest areas of the Banswara district in the state of Rajasthan in India. It is reported in the list of rare, endangered and threatened plants of Kerala (South India).

It is also reported from Sri Lanka (Ceylon).[6]

Ecology

Oroxylum indicum lives in relationship with the actinomycete Pseudonocardia oroxyli present in the soil surrounding the roots.[7]

Septobasidium bogoriense is a fungal species responsible for velvet blight in O. indicum.

Uses

The tree is often grown as an ornamental for its strange appearance. Materials used include the wood, tannins and dyestuffs.

Marriage Rituals

Kirat People in Nepal: Sunuwar, Rai, Limbu, Yakha, Thailand: Thai People and Lao: Lao People

As food

It is a plant with edible leaves and stems.[8] The very large young pods, known as Lin mai (ลิ้นไม้) or Lin fa (ลิ้นฟ้า) in Loei, are eaten especially in Isan (Thailand) and in Laos. They are first grilled over charcoal fire and then the somewhat bitter inner pulp is usually scraped and eaten along with lap.[9]

In traditional medicines

The Oroxylum indicum seed is used in the traditional Indian ayurvedic medicine. The root bark is also used, administered as astringent, bitter tonic, stomachic and anodyne. It is included in famous tonic formulations.
The bark of O. indicum or Cortex Oroxyli is a traditional Chinese medicine ingredient.

The bark of O. indicum (Singhala / Sri Lanka: Totila, Totilla) is one of main ingredients in Sri Lankan indigenous medicine (in decoctions) as a remedy for pains in joints or rheumatism.[10]

Pharmacology

The leaf contains chrysin and baicalein.[11] Tetuin, the 6-glucoside of baicalein, is reported in the seeds.[12] Other flavonoids, known for their anti-inflammatory and anti-allergy effects, are also present, though it may need to be used in high doses to get a response. Oroxindin has also been isolated from Oroxylum indicum[13] whereas oroxylin A is reported in the root bark.[14]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Oroxylum indicum (L.) Kurz". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 31 Mar 2016 – via The Plant List.
  2. ↑ "The International Plant Names Index".
  3. 1 2 "USDA GRIN Taxonomy".
  4. ↑ "Ecoport".
  5. ↑ http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=620&taxon_id=200021430
  6. ↑ Theobald, W.L. (1981). Bignoniace. In: Dassanayake, M.D. and Fosberg, F.R. (Eds.). A Revised Handbook to the Flora of Ceylon. Amerind Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi.
  7. ↑ Gu Q et al. (2006)
    Gu, Q., Luo, H., Zheng, W., Liu, Z., and Huang, Y. "Pseudonocardia oroxyli sp. nov., a novel actinomycete isolated from surface-sterilized Oroxylum indicum root." Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. (2006) 56:2193-2197.
  8. ↑ http://epic.kew.org/searchepic/detailquery.do?requiredPage=1&scientificName=oroxylum+indicum&datasources=ipni&datasources=mc&datasources=kr&datasources=libcat&datasources=pmb&datasources=ebbd&datasources=ecbot&datasources=livcoll&datasources=herbcat&datasources=sid&datasources=sepasal&datasources=efz&categories=names&categories=bibl&categories=colln&categories=taxon&categories=flora&categories=misc&detailDatasource=sepasal
  9. ↑ Thai Dishes, Central Part And South
  10. ↑ Jayaweera, D.M.A. (1981). Medicinal Plants (Indigenous and Exotic) Used in Ceylon. Part I (Acanthaceae – Burseraceae). National Science Council of Sri Lanka, Colombo.
  11. ↑ Baicalein, a flavonoid extracted from a methanolic extract of Oroxylum indicum inhibits proliferation of a cancer cell line in vitro via induction of apoptosis.
  12. ↑ Mehta C. R. and Mehta T. P., 1959. Journal of the Indian Chemical Society 36:468
  13. ↑ Oroxindin—A new flavone glucuronide from Oroxylum indicum Vent., A. G. Ramachandran Nair and B. S. Joshi, 1979
  14. ↑ The constitution of oroxylin-A, a yellow colouring matter from the root-bark of Oroxylum indicum, Vent., R. C. Shah, C. R. Mehta and T. S. Wheeler
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