PILUH (Fruit)
Piluh consists of fruit of Salvadora persica Linn. var.wightiana (Planch.ex Thw.) Verdc, syn. S. persica Linn. (Fam. Salvadoracem), a perennial, woody, glabrous shrub, distributed in the arid tracts of Punjab and north western parts of India.
SYNONYMS
Sanskrit : Gudaphala, Sransi, Pilu
Assamese : Arak, Irak
Bengali : Peelugachh, Jhal
English : Salt bush, Toothbrush Tree
Gujrati : Peelu, Khareejal
Hindi : Pilu, Jhak, Peelu, Kharjal
Kannada : Gonimara, Kankhina, Genumar
Kashmiri : —
Malayalam : Uka
Marathi : Pilu, Khakhan
Oriya : —
Punjabi : Peelu
Tamil : Kotumaavali, Chittuva, Perungoli, Udhaiputtai
Telugu : Gogu, Varagogu, Gunia
Urdu : —
DESCRIPTION
a) Macroscopic
Fruits are 3 to 5 mm in diameter, ellipsoid-ovoid, occasionally with a small pedicel attached; surface greenish or greenish-brown to dark brown in colour, with irregular wrinkles, sometimes shrunken; pericarp thin, easily separable, exhibiting creamish to dull brown seed, odour characteristic and taste bitter.
b) Microscopic
The epidermis is single layered consisting of thick walled, radially elongated cells covered externally with cuticle, the mesocarp differentiated into three zones, the outer and inner zone exhibiting thin walled parenchyma cells while a continuous zone of sclerenchymatous tissue with vascular bundles embedded in it is present in the middle region; testa shows single layered epidermis of thin walled cells followed by parenchymatous cells of the embryo containing aleurone grains and occasional oil globules.
Powder – Powder shows fragments of parenchymatous cells with aleurone grains and oil globules; scalariform, reticulate as well as border-pitted vascular elements; thick walled epidermal cells in surface view and sclereids.
IDENTITY, PURITY AND STRENGTH
Foreign matter Not more than 2 per cent, Appendix 2.2.2.
Total Ash Not more than 15 per cent, Appendix 2.2.3.
Acid-insoluble ash Not more than 4 per cent, Appendix 2.2.4.
Alcohol-soluble extractive Not less than 12 per cent, Appendix 2.2.6.
Water-soluble extractive Not less than 40 per cent, Appendix 2.2.7.
T.L.C.
T.L.C. of alcoholic extract on precoated Silica gel ‘G’ plate (Merck), using n- Butanol; Acetic acid; water (4:1:5), in visible light shows three spots at Rf.0.23, 0.80 (both light green) and 0.46 (light yellow); under UV (366 nm) two white spots appear at Rf.0.37 and 0.46; under UV (254nm) three spots appear at Rf.0.37 (white), 0.46 and 0.80 (both pink), on exposure to Iodine vapours four yellow spots appear at Rf.0.10, 0.37, 0.46 and 0.80, on spraying with vanillin sulphuric acid and heating the plate at 110oC for 10 minutes, six spots appear at Rf. 0.10, 0.23 (both violet), 0.37, 0.40, 0.46 and 0.80 (all orange).
CONSTITUENTS – β- sitosterol, sterol glycoside, benzyle isothioagnate, traces of alkaloid, fixed oil, sugar and fat, non-saponifiable portion of oil consists of dibenzylurea and dibenzlethiourea.
PROPERTIES AND ACTION
Rasa : Madhura, Katu, Tikta
Guna : Laghu, Snigdha, Tiksna
Virya : Usna
Vipaka : Katu
Karma : Sothahara, Bhedana, Dipana, Kaphahara, Rasayana, Vatahara, Virecana, Vednasthapana, Sirovirccaka, Vidahi
IMPORTANT FORMULATIONS – Misrakasneha
THERAPEUTIC USES – Asmari, Arsa, Anaha, Gulma, Jvara, Mutrakrcchra, Sarpavisa, Udararoga, Visavikara, Bastivikara
DOSE – 3-6 g.
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