INTRODUCTION:

The plants were used long before the prehistoric era for medicinal purposes. Ayurveda, the classical medical system is still widespread in many respects. Increasing population, insufficient drug supplies, prohibitive cost of therapies, the adverse effects of certain synthetic medicinal products and the growth of resistance for infectious disease medicines, have resulted in greater focus on the use of plant material as a source for a wide range of medicinal products^1-3.

Roughly 25 percent is obtained from trees, shrubs, or herbs from all prescription drugs. Nature has given our country a huge wealth of medicinal plants, which means that India is sometimes referred to as the world's medicinal garden.

The Saraca asoca medicinal plants were thus one of the main plants used since ancient times. Asoka or Ashoka is a Sanskrit meaning, "no sadness" or "no pain." Ashoka is one of India's most mythical and holy trees. Ashoka, known as Saraca asoca or Saraca indica of the family Caesalpiniaceae. Universally recognized as the binomial Latino name.

Saracaasoca is an evergreen shrub or small tree with a thick horizontal crown of up to 10 meters in height. The circumference of the bole may be 10cm. The tree is a key herbal medicine in Ayurveda. Bark is picked from the wild, and sold on local markets, alone and in a range of formulations. Saraca asoca is one of India's largest sacred trees, both Hindus and Buddhists, with beautiful flowers widely used to decorate temples. In certain parts thereof, this small tree has been affected largely by the loss of its habitat and over-exploitation^4-6.

HABITAT:

It is found all over Indian subcontinent. The tree is thought to originate in the Western Ghats and Deccan plateau. It is also available in the central and eastern Himalayas. It is known to occur at 750 meters above sea level (40), a perennial plant which can range in colour from dark green to greyish green. The lenticles are round and squared against each other. The seeds are commonly reddish-brownfibres⁷.

Common Name:

Asoka, True Asoka, Sita Asoka, Vanjuldrum, Raktapallava, Hempushpa, Nata^36-41

Vernacular Name⁸

Kan - Ashokadamara, Kengalimara

Sanskrit - Kankeli, Asoka, Gandhpushpa

English - Asoka tree

Hindi - Ashoka, Anganpriya

Marathi - Ashoka

Bengali - Ashoka, Oshok

Gujrati - Asupala, Ashopalav

Telugu - Asok

Kannada - Asokada, Kankelimara

Panjabi - Ashok Fig: Saracaasoca plant

Tamil and Mal.- Asogam

Scientific Classification:

Kingdom : Plantae

Division : Magnoliophyta

Class : Magnoliopsida

Order : Fabales

Family : Caesalpiniaceae

Genus : Saraca

Species : Asoca

Part used:

Bark, Seed, Flower.

Externally – The drug is used as a local application for pain and in various types of poisoning.

Internally – It is indicated in painful condition of viscera.

Systemic⁹

1. Gastro-intestinal tract – In diarrhoea, dysentery, worm infestation and thirst.

2. Cardiovascular system – The flower is indicated in edema and haemorrhages.

3. Reproductive system – In menorrhagia, dysmenorrhoea, leucorrhoea and other uterinedisorders.

4. Urinary system – Powdered seed is used in dysuria and stones in the urinary tract.

Medicinal uses:

Ashoka is a common medicinal herb in Ayurveda, where a range of conditions relating to the reproductive system are said to be especially helpful. Bark is antifungal, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, astringent, demulcent, diuretic, powerfully hemostatic, oxytococcal, neural tonic, cold, sedative, vermicide, uterine tonsillitis, it is used to treat many conditions, particularly those affecting the urinary system and is considered a very effective treatment under all kinds of women's reproductive system conditions.^10-13

It has a powerful effect on the muscles of the uterus and is particularly helpful for the treatment of uterine hemorrhage.^14-15 It is highly astringent and has a desirable effect on the uterine and ovarian tissues, Blossoms are diuretic.

Biological and pharmacological properties of Saraca asoca: contemporary studies:

The historical documents of Ayurveda and the various ethnobotanical uses of the plant motivated many research groups in India and elsewhere to examine their useful claims regularly and to test all new pharmaceutical characteristics. The following section examines recent literature-based research on Saraca asoca biology and pharmacology.¹⁶

Antibacterial:

Methanolic, ethanolic, acetone and aqueous extracts of bark, dried flower buds and leaves of S. asoca have been shown to have antibacterial properties in recent research. They've been tested against a variety of pathogenic bacteria, including Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhus, S. typhimurium, S. typhi, S. viballerup, S. enteritis, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Klebsiella pneumonia, K. aerogenes, Shigellaboydis, S. sonnei, S. flexneri, S. dyserteriae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, P. vulgaris, Vibrocholerae, Proteus vulgaris, etc.As a result, given the increasing resistance of several human pathogenic bacteria to known main antibiotics, this plant appears to be a helpful resource for finding single molecular antibiotics in the future^17-20.

Table 1. Various commercially sold Ashoka-based herbal drugs/formulations*

Trade name	Form	Indications recommended for	Company
Evecarea	S	Menstrual disorders	Himalaya
Menosana	T	Menopause-related indications	Himalaya
Femiplexa	C	Leucorrhoea	Charak
Ashotonea	T	Excessive bleeding, stress	Solumiks
Ovoutolinea	S and T	Menorrhagia, dysmenorrhea, irregular menstruation, postmenopausal syndrome	Zandu
Restonea	T	Premenstrual tension, menopausal syndrome, genitourinary diseases	Maharishi Ayurveda
Menorexb	C	Menorrhagia, dysmenorrhea, irregular menstruation	AryaVaidya Pharmacy
Ayapona	T.	Menorrhagia, metrorrhagia, pubertal and enopausal bleeding, etc	Alarsin
Ashokristaa	S	Leucorrhoea, dysmenorrhea, menorrhagia, dysfunctional uterine bleeding, Several gynecological disorders	Several
AsokChurna	b	Leucorrhoea, dysmenorrhea, gynaecological disorders	Hidco
PradarantakChurna	P	Leucorrhoea, irregular menses, premenstrual syndrome, ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids, dysfunctional uterine bleeding	Charak
Femohillsa	C	Leucorrhoea, menorrhagia, dysmenorrhea, lower back pain	Herbalhills
Menocrampa	T	Spasmodic and lower back pain, stress and mood swings	Solumiks
Pradarsudhaa	S	Leucorrhoea, menorrhagia	PatanjaliAyurved
M2-Tonea	T	Irregular menses, gynaecological disorders	Charak
Masturina	S	Irregular menses, leucorrhoea, dysmenorrheal, uterine inflammation	Hamdard
Shveta	C	Leucorrhoea, menorrhagia, dysfunctional uterine bleeding	Shree Dhanvantari Herbals

*Source: Internet. This is not a comprehensive list. aAshoka + other herbs, bAshoka only; cAshoka + ayurvedic formulation; S, Syrup; T, Tablets; C, Capsules and P, Powder.

Table 2. Different Pharmacological activity of Saraca asoca plant parts.

Sr No.	Part used	Phytoconstituents	Pharmacological activity (Year)
1	Leaves, bark, flowers, Seeds	Carbohydrates, saponins, terpenoids, tannins, proteins.	Larvicidal activity (2009)
2	Leaves, flower, Bark, seeds	Carbohydrates, saponins, terpenoids, tannins, and proteins.	Antimicrobial, Anticancer, Anti-menorrhagic, Dermatophytic Activity (2009)
3	Leaves.	Alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins and tannins	Central Nervous, System Depressant Activity (2010)
4	Flowers	Flavonoid	Skin Cancer (2012)
5	Seeds	Flavonoid	Antipyretic activity (2012)
6	Leaves	Carbohydrates, saponins, terpenoids, tannins	Antimicrobial activity (2013)
7	Bark, leaves and flowers	Catechin, epicatechin, epigallocatechin	Anti-microbial activity (2013)
8	Leaves	Carbohydrates, terpenoids, tannins	Anthelmintic activity (2014)
9	Leaves	Carbohydrates, terpenoidssaponins,	Antibacterial activity (2014)
10	Bark, Flowers, Seeds,	Tannin and catechol	Menorrhagia, Antimicrobial, Anticancer, Anti-oxytocic Activity (2015)
11	Leaf and bark	Phenols and flavonoids	Antioxidant activity (2015)
12	Bark	Alkaloids, carbohydrates, flavonoids, steroids, saponins and tannins	Hepatoprotective (2015)
13	Bark, flower, leaves	Alkaloids, Flavonoids, Glycosides, Saponins, Phenols, Steroids, Tannins	Antibacterial Activity (2016)
14	Bark	Flavonoids, saponins, glycosides, tannins,	Osteoporosis. (2016)
15	Fresh flowers and leaves	Alkaloids, carbohydrates, flavonoids, steroids, saponins and tannins	Antimicrobial activity (2016)

Larvicidal:

In the fight against communicable diseases like malaria, dengue fever, and filariasis, eliminating the threat of insects like mosquitoes is a top priority. The mosquito Culexquinquefasciatus has been shown to be markedly reduced by petroleum ether and chloroform extracts of the bark, leaves, and flowers of S. indica, thus managing insect vector breeding.

Anti-Nephrolithiatic:

S. asoca root has been used to treat urinary passage obstruction caused by kidney stones and is noted for its ability to dissolve oxalic acid stones in the kidneys²¹.

Anti- cancer activity:

The Saraca asoca flowers have a principle of anti-cancer (a flavonoid fraction) which is shown as an obstacle to two stage carcinogenesis skin and is shown to be 50 per cent cytototoxic (in vitro), respectively in Dalton's lymphoma ascites (180 tumor cell) and Sarcoma (38 mug, 55mug, respectively). Saraca indica ethanolic extract has been shown to prevent breast cancer. In an In-vitro test, the lectin "Saracin," which is isolated from the seed integument, induced apoptosis in human T- lymphocytes^22-25.

Dermatoprotective Activity:

References on Saraca asoca to improve skin complexion are available in standard book. Large numbers of researches were carried out on extracts of Ashoka plants and reported that the root, bark and seed extract of S. asoca are useful for the treatment of skin-related complications such as eczema, psoriasis, acne, dermatitis, herpes-kushta/visarpa, bone, pruritis^17,18. Flavonoids are found in S. asoca flower extract, which has demonstrated that 7,12-dimethyl-benzanthraceen is used in reduce tumours. It also improves skin teeth, causes quick skin injury treatments, reduces freckles and external skin inflammation. Seed extract against dermatophytic fungi have been reported to be effective^26-29.

CNS depressant and brain tonic:

CNS depressant activity depends on the polarity of the petroleum ether, chloroforms, methanol and aqueous leaf extracts, and from which the extract of methanol is shown to exert the maximum CNS depressing activity in albino mice. The activity was investigated with the assistance of an Actophotometer by using phenobarbitone. The locomotive activity in mouses reduced by 67.33% significantly with Saraca asoca extract. The depressant mechanism can be related to the activation in a CNS of glycosides, Flavonoids, saponins and tannins in gamma- aminobutyric acid (GABA) receivers present in the plant extract that culminate in anxiety, muscle recreation and sedation^30-33.

Anti-menorrhagic activity:

The dried bark Ashoka was used in India for menorrhagia. In the case of uterine disorders, Saraca asoca dried bark and flower are given as a tonic for ladies. Also used to treat all menstrual cycle disorders is Saraca asoca stem bark. In Sri Lanka Ashoka bark was used for menorrhagia and menstrual disorders. Ashoka barks are used to stimulate the uterus like ergot, but without producing tonic contraction. The use of uterine sedative and hot water extracts is similar to ergot. Also used as an emmenagogue in menorrhagia, uterine sedative, uterine conditions as well as in several preparations associated with female disorders. In Pakistan, Saraca asoca bark used for uterine and menorrhagia conditions. In India Saraca asoca dried bark, which is used as a menorrhagia astringent in the body, also as a refrigerant, demulcent, uterine disorder, regular abdominal menstrual pain, used for uterine problems. The aqueous extract of the bark contains active ingredients, one stimulating and the other relaxing of the guinea pig's plain muscle. It is reported that the drug stimulates the uterus, thus increasing and prolonging the contraction. It is also reported that crystalline glycoside stimulates uterine contraction^34-35.

Anti-asthmatic activity:

The Syzygium cumini ethanolic extract higher dose as shown delayed onset of pre-convulsion when compared with the SEE extract lower dose. SEE at higher dose produced delayed onset of pre-convulsion induced byhistamine, but lower dose did notcause any significant effect.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

The author is grateful to the authorities of CRPS for the facilities.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Received on 15.04.2021 Modified on 07.05.2021

Res. J. Pharmacognosy and Phytochem. 2021; 13(3):131-135.

DOI: 10.52711/0975-4385.2021.00022