MADAYANTI (Leaf)
Madayanti consists of dried leaves of Lawsonia inermis Linn. (Fam. Lythracem); a small, elegant bush with fragrant flowers, cultivated and naturalised all over the country.
SYNONYMS
Sanskrit : Nil Madayantika
Assamese : —
Bengali : Mehadi
English : Henna
Gujrati : Mendi
Hindi : Mehandi
Kannada : Goranta, Korate, Madarangi
Kashmiri : —
Malayalam : Mailanelu
Marathi : Mendi
Oriya : —
Punjabi : Mehndi
Tamil : Marudum
Telugu : Gorinta
Urdu : Mehendi, Hina
DESCRIPTION
a) Macroscopic
Leaves simple, 2 to 3 cm in length, 1 to 1.5 cm in width, greenish-brown to dull green; entire, lanceolate; apex mucronate, base tapering, petiole short and glabrous; odour, aromatic when crushed; taste, sweet, mucilaginous and slightly astringent.
b) Microscopic
Petiole -shows concavo-convex outline; epidermis consisting of single layered cells covered by thick, striated cuticle; below epidermis 2 to 4 layered collenchyma and 3 to 4 layered parenchyma having intercellular spaces; pericycle 2 to 4 layered, stele bicollatera1; cambium a thin strip present between xylem and phloem; phloem consisting of usual elements; xylem mostly composed of tracheids and vessels.
Midrib -shows upper and lower epidermis covered externally by thick and striated cuticle; epidermis followed by 2 to 4 layers of collenchymatous cells, circular in shape with angular thickening; beneath which are 3 or 4 layers of parenchymatous cells, isodiametric with intercellular spaces; stele crescent-shaped, consisting of usual elements traversed by medullary rays; phloem fibres seen in the phloem region; a few parenchymatous cells contain rosette and prismatic crystals of calcium oxalate.
Lamina – shows upper and lower epidermis composed of tangentially elongated cells covered externally by a thick striated cuticle; some large epidermal cells form mucilage sacs projecting into adjacent palisade zone; anomocytic stomata distributed on both surfaces; mesophyll composed of 1 to 3 layers of palisade tissue and 2 to 4 layers of spongy parenchyma; palisade cells filled with chloroplasts, spongy parenchyma oval to circular in shape, oil globules present in palisade and spongy parenchyma; rosette and prismatic crystals of calcium oxalate also present in spongy parenchyma; mesophyll traversed by vascular strands composed of xylem surrounded by phloem with a patch of sclerenchymatous fibres on abaxial side; average stomatal index 10 to 15 and 15 to 18 in upper and lower surface the respectively; palisade ratio 5 to 8 on both surfaces; vein islet number 30 to 45.
Powder – Dark brown; shows fragments of thin-walled, parenchyma cells, wavy thinwalled epidermal cells in surface view, anomocytic stomata, rosette and prismatic crystals of calcium oxalate, a few oil globules, and vessels showing spiral thickenings.
IDENTITY, PURITY AND STRENGTH
Foreign matter Not more than 2 per cent, Appendix 2.2.2.
Total Ash Not more than 11 per cent, Appendix 2.2.3.
Acid-insoluble ash Not more than 3 per cent, Appendix 2.2.4.
Alcohol-soluble extractive Not less than 18 per cent, Appendix 2.2.6.
Water-soluble extractive Not less than 25 per cent, Appendix 2.2.7.
T.L.C.
T.L.C. of alcoholic extract of the drug on Silica gel ‘G’ plate using Toluene : Ethylacetate (9:1) shows in the visible light three spots at Rf. 0.35, 0.60 and 0.63 (all grey). Under U.V. (366 nm) seven spots appear at Rf. 0.18, 0.26, 0.35, (all violet), 0.39, 0.61, 0.68 (all reddish violet) and 0.73 (violet). On spraying with 5% Methanolic Sulphuric acid regent and heating the plate at 105oC for ten minutes five grey colour spots appear at Rf. 0.09, 0.41, 0.61, 0.70 and 0.95.
CONSTITUENTS – Glycosides, colouring matter (Lawsone), Hennotannic acid, Essential Oil containing β-Ionone.
PROPERTIES AND ACTION
Rasa : Tikta, Kasaya
Guna : Laghu, Ruksa
Virya : Sita
Vipaka : Katu
Karma : Kaphasamaka, Pittasamaka
IMPORTANT FORMULATIONS – Madayanyadi Curna
THERAPEUTIC USES – Bhrama, Jvara, Kandu, Kustha, Raktapitta, Kamala, Raktapittahara, Mutrakrcchra, Vrana.
DOSE – 5-10ml (Svarasa)
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