Belimbing Tanah

Belimbing Tanah
Scientific Name	Tacca integrifolia
Synonyms	Tacca cirstata/ T. chantrieri / T aspera Roxb
Family	Teccaceae
Common Name	Janggut Adam, Janggut aung, Kelemoyang air,Sebiak, Belimbing Tanah (Malay), White Bat Plant  (Englisah)

{slider=Geographical & Distribution|closed}

Southeast Asia: West Malaysia, Thailand, Singapora, Vietnam,Laos, Bangladesh, Bhutan,Cambodia, E. India, Indonesia, Myammar, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

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{slider=Appearance}

One meter hight. The plant have cylindric long. The flower are purple colour. Regenerate through rhizom. Filiform bracteoles or small bracts (modified leaves) which arise in the same axil as the flowers. Leaf blade oblong-lanceolate to oblong-elliptic, 50--55 × 18.5--21 cm, base cuneate, apex acuminate, sometimes caudate. Scape ca. 55 cm; involucral bracts 4, outer 2 sessile, narrowly deltoid-ovate, inner 2 long petiolate, spatulate, thin. Perianth purplish black; tube 1--2 cm; lobes 6, in 2 whorls, outer ones narrowly oblong, inner ones broadly obovate. Filaments spatulate at apex. Style extremely short; stigma deeply 3-lobed. Berry narrowly ellipsoid, 4--5 × ca. 2 cm, fleshy, 6-ridged, with persistent perianth lobes. Seeds irregulaly ellipsoid-ovoid.
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{slider=Major Chemical Constituents}

The rhizome contains diarylheptanoids. It rhizome contains ochratoxin A, amino acids, n-triacontanol, castanogenin, betulinic acid, quercetin-3-a-arabinodise, taccalin (Abd Razak M. et al 2007) and taccalonolides (Tinley et al 2003).
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{slider=Traditional Uses}

It has been used for treatment of gastric ulcer, enteritis, hepatitis, controlling blood pressure and improving sexual fuction (Kitjaroennirut et al 2005). In traditional medicine of Myanmar, its rhizome have been used for treatment of skin abrasion, skin diseases, and various kind of cancers. High Blood pressure treatment: All plant boil, and drink twice a day.

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{slider=Pharmacology}

Hypotensive

In the in vitro preparation, the Tacca extract (0.001-3 mg/mL) caused a decrease in both force and rate of spontaneous contraction of isolated atria in a dose dependent manner. These effects were reduced by pre incubation of the atria with atropine (10-7 or 10-6M). For isolated blood vesels, the Tacca extract (0.003-3 mg/mL) caused vasodilation of endothelium-intact thoracic aortic rings pr-constricted with phenylephrine (3x10-6M). This effect disappeared after pre-incubation of blood vessels with atropine (10-6M) or with nitro L-arginine (3x10-4M) or by removing the vascular endothelium. The results suggest that the hypotensive and negative chronotropic effects of the Tacca extract in the rat due to the active components acting via the muscarinic receptors at the blood vessel to cause vasodilatation by stimulating the release of nitric oxide, as well as on the muscarinic receptors at atria to cause the decrease of both rate and force of the atrial contraction (Kitjaroennirut, N et al 2005).

Cytotoxicity

T. integrifolia was found to be highly cytotoxic with IC₅₀ of 15 μg/ml and 27 μg/ml on HFL1 and Hep2 cell lines respectively. Amongst the chemical constituents of T. integrifolia only betulinic acid was reported to be cytotoxic to a specific cell especially melanoma cell lines and neuroblastoma cells but did not affect normal cells (Abd Razak M. et al., 2007).

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{slider=Toxicity Study}

T. integrifolia was found to be toxic to normal cells (HFL1) which suggest that constituent other than betulinic acid may have been involved. The identification of chemicals or compound capable of inducing mutations is crucial in  safety assessment since mutagenic compounds can potentially induce cancer. The rhizome contain taccalonolides which are A, B, C, D, E,F, G,H, I, J, K, L and M. Taccalonolide E and A increased density of cellular microtubules in interphase cells and the formation of thick bundles of microtubules similar to the effects of Taxol (Tinley et al 2003).

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{slider=References}

Abd Razak M, Aidoo K.E. and Candlish G.G.(2007) Mutagenic and cytotoxic properties of three herbal. Tropical Biomedicine 24 (2): Pg49-59.

Kitjaroennirut N, Jansakul, C., & Sawangchote, P.(2005) Cardiovascular effects of Tacca integrifolia Ker-Gawl. Extract in rats. Songklanakarin J. Sci. Technol Vol 27( 2), Pg 281-289.

Shwea H.H., Ayeb M. Seinb M.M., Htayc K.T. (2010). Cytotoxic Steroidal Saponins from the Rhizomes of Tacca integrifolia. Chemistry & Biodiversity  Vol. 7 (3) pg 610-622.

Shu SXJRS Tacca integrifolia Ker Gawler, Bot Mag 36:t 1488.1812 . Flora of China Vol. 24 Pg 274. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?

Tinley, T.L. et al (2003). Taccalonolides E and A: Plant derived steroids with microtubele-stabilizing activity. Cancer Research, 63 (12):Pg 3211-3220.

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