Misai Kuching

Misai Kuching
Scientific Name	Orthosiphon stamineus
Family	Lamiaceae
Common Names	Misai Kuching (Malay) cats whiskers
Synonym	O. aristatus (Blume) Miq., O. longiflorum Ham., O. grandiflorum et aristatum Bl., O. spiralis Merr., O. grandiflorus Bold. Clerodendranthus spicatus (Thumb).
Plant material of interest	Leaves, flowers and stem tips.

{slider=General Appearance}

40 to 80 cm high. The stem is quadrangular and globrous to pubescent with crossed,  opposite leaves. The leaves are about 75 mm long, usually short-petioled, ovate-lanceolate with an irregularly coarse, roughly serrate to dentate (or occasionally crenate) margin. The upper surface is brownish-green, the lower surface gray-green with strong, protruding ribs and glandular punctate markings. The flowers usually are arranged in a whorl of 6 (occasionally 10) blooms. The calyx tube is short with an upright-curved upper lip. The corolla is blue to light violet. The corolla tube is about 2 cm long with a broad upper lip that has 3 indentations. The lower lip is narrow and ovate-lanceolate. The 4 stamens are blue and 2.5 to 3 cm long. The style is as long as the stamen, and the ovary has a disk. The fruit breaks up into 4 oval-oblong nutlets with bumpy surfaces. The herb has a weak, unusual smell reminiscent of a cattle pen. The taste is salty, bitter and astringent.

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{slider=Chemical Contents}

Triterpene saponins: (up to 4.5%): aglycone hederagenin. Flavonoids: in particular more highly methoxylized examples (0.2%) including eupatorin, sinensetin, scutella­rine tetramethyl ethers, salvigenin. Volatile oil (0.02-0.06%): including among others β-caryo­phyllene, α-humulene, caryophyllene-epoxide. Caffeic acid derivatives: 2,3-dicoffeoyltartrate, rosmaric acid, 2-caffeoyl tartrate. Diterpene ester: orthosiphole A to E, (diterpene dibenzoyl diacetyl ester of primarane type).

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{slider=Traditional Uses}

To treat kidney stones, nephritis, Gout, High Blood Pressure, Diabetes, rheumatism, anti-allergenic and others.

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{slider=Pharmacology}

For kidney and bladder stones, infections of the urinary tract. The essential oil of the drug, which contains sesquiterpenes, is antimicrobial and antiphlogistic. In folk medicine, it is used for the above conditions and also for gout and rheumatism.

Antypyretic

O. stamineus extract lowered the hyperthermia (Yam et al 2009).

Anti-inflammatory and analgesic agent

O.stamineus extract significantly reduced the edema 3 and 5 h after the swelling was induced. The extract also significantly exhibited as pain-killing activity.

Antimicrobial

Antimicrobial against Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Streptococcus mutants. Whole O. stamineus plants (powdered) were extracted using various concentrations (0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%) of methanol. O. stamineus extracted with 50% methanol, 75% methanol and fraction 5 of a 50% methanolic extract demonstrated inhibitory activity against Vibrio parahaemolyticus.

Hepatopreotective agentO. Stamineus aqoeous extract can be used to reduced bilirubin concentration to a normal level in juandiced subjects.

Hypoglycemic agent

The extract significantly decreased plasma glucose concentration in a dose-dependent manner in both normal and diabetic rats. The extract at 1.0 g/kg was most effective in decreasing plasma glucose concentrations and the response was closed to the result of glibenclamide (5 mg/kg). After repeated daily oral administrations of the extract for 14 days, the extract significantly reduced plasma glucose concentration in diabetic rats at days 7 and 14. By the end of the study, plasma triglyceride concentration was lower in the extract-treated diabetic rats than untreated ones. Furthermore, plasma HDL-cholesterol concentration was significantly increased in diabetic rats treated with the extract. In perfused rat pancreas, the extract did not increase insulin secretion in the presence of 5.5 mM glucose, but 100 g/ml extract potentiated glucose-induced insulin secretion. These findings suggested that O. stamineus is effective for alleviating hyperglycemia and improving lipid profile in diabetic rats. Unlike some pharmaceutical diuretics, which are thought to increase the risk of diabetes by promoting glucose intolerance, O. stamineus can actually maintain blood sugar levels. When the extract was given to normal and diabetic rats, it significantly decreased plasma glucose concentration in a dose-dependent manner. After repeated daily oral administrations of the extract for 14 days, the extract significantly reduced plasma glucose concentration in diabetic rats at days 7 and 14. By the end of the study, plasma triglyceride concentration was lower in the extract-treated diabetic rats than untreated ones. Furthermore, plasma HDL-cholesterol concentration was significantly increased in diabetic rats treated with the extract.8 “Our findings suggested that O. stamineus aqueous extract is effective for alleviating hyperglycemia and improving lipid profile in diabetic rats,” the researchers wrote

(Ahamed Basheer MK & Abdul Majid AM 2010).

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{slider=Toxicity}

Toxicity of the methanol extract of O. stamineus was evaluated by the incident of lethality, side-cage observation and blood serum biochemical parameters. No lethality or adverse toxic signs were seen during the experimental period. A significant decrease in several serum biochemical parameters i.e. AST and ALT and increase in liver weight was observed in young female SD rat after being fed fourteen days with methanol extract of O. stamineus. No delayed toxic effect and lethality was observed in all rats during fourteen days of recovery period. In conclusion, methanol extract of O. stamineus within these range and treatment duration would not cause any severe toxic effects and organ damages in rats (Han C.J. et al 2008). Acute toxicity LD50 was estimated to be > 5000 mg/kg BW (Abdullah NR 2009).

Standardised 50% ethanol extract of O. stamineus did not cause any death nor did it cause abnormalities in necropsy and histopathology findings. There were no acute or subchronic toxicity observed and this extract could be devoid of any toxic risk. The NOAEL for the standardised 50% ethanol extract of O. stamineus is 5000 mg/kg per day for 28 days (Mohamed E.A.H. et al 2011).

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{slider=Reference}

Abdullah NR, Z. Ismail, Z. Ismail (2009). Acute toxicity of Orthosiphon stamineus Benth standardized extract in Sprague Dawley rats. Phytomedicine 16 (2-3) Pg 222-226. Abstract. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17498941

Ahamed basheer MK & Abdul Majid AMS (2010) Medicinal Potentials of Othosiphon Stamineus Benth. Webmed Central Cancer 1(12):WMC001361. http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/1361

Han C.J., A. Hussin and S. Ismail (2008), Toxicity study of Orthosiphon stamineus Benth (Misai Kuching) on Sprague Dawley rats. Tropical Biomedicine 25(1); 9-16.

Mohamed E.A.H., C.P.Lim, O.S. Ebrika, M.Z. Asmawi, A. Sadikun & M.F. Yam (2011). Toxicity evaluation of standardized 50 % ethanol extract of Orthosiphon stamineus. Journal of Ethnopharmacology Vol 133 (2), Pg 358-363.

http://www.mykucingtea.com/Misai%20Kuching-Scientific%20Validation.html#ref11

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