INTRODUCTION:

Treatments based on various plants have historically served as the foundation of sophisticated traditional medicine, predating the established scientific literature by thousands of years. The medicinal value of these plants is derived from chemical substances that have a specific physiological action on the human body.

Curcuma caesia Roxb. is a form of turmeric with bluish-black rhizome, belonging to same family as Curcuma longa, i.e., Zingiberaceae (ginger family). Black turmeric is a perennial rhizomatous lesser-known species of the genus, available in Northeast, Central, and Southern India and also found in South-East Asia and thrives well in moist deciduous forest areas in clayey soil.

Because of their potential medical characteristics, the rhizomes of black turmeric have a high economic value. This plant's rhizome is said to be effective in treating diseases such as piles, leprosy, bronchitis, asthma, cancer, epilepsy, fever wounds, impotency, fertility, tooth ache, and vomiting, among others¹. It grows in rich humid and clayey soils among them curcuma longa. It is broadly cultivated as a medicinal plant in Southeast Asian countries. In India it is found in west Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh. It is a Herb, long-rooted evergreen plant which is normally erect with height ranging from 0.5 to 1.0m.

It is divided into underground large ovoid tuberous rhizome, often called rootstock, and aerial shoot along the leaves. The leaves are generally present in the group of 10-20 and the deep violet-red patch of leaves which runs through the length of the lamina. Usually, the upper side of the leaf is rough, velvety, and broad oblong lanceolate but this character may vary. The Flowering bracts are green with a ferruginous tinge. Petals of flowers may be deep pink or red in color. Pale yellow flowers with reddish border and shorter than their bracts. Inflorescence is a spike, about 15cm long or altogether about 30cm high on basal peduncle. Petiole and sheath are about as long as the blade. Spikes appear before the leaves. Flowers appear in June and July, while fruits mature in September and October. Rhizome is generally of bluish-black and has been used for its unique medicinal and religious properties and with pungent smell and hot bitter taste. It emits a characteristic sweet smell, due to the presence of essential oil. The root of the plant is blue-black. Black turmeric crop is ripened in about 9 months. Turmeric is ready to harvest within 9-11 months of sowing and when the leaves and stem start to turn brown and dry, about seven to 10 months after planting. Black turmeric can be grown well in loam, bullai, matiyar, type of land.

1.1 Curcuma caesia plant

1.2 Curcuma caesia (Black Turmeric)

Botanical classification: According to Benthem and Hooker (1862-1883)²

Kingdom: Plantae

Clade: Tracheophytes

Clade: Angiosperms

Clade: Monocots

Clade: Commelinids

Class : Magnoliopsida

Order: Zingiberales

Family: Zingiberaceae

Genus: Curcuma

Species: C. caesia

Vernacular Names¹:

Hindi: Kali Haldi

Manipuri: Yaingang Amuba or Yaimu; Marathi: Kala-haldi

Telugu : Nalla Pasupu

Bengali : Kala haldi

Mizo : Aihang or Ailaihan

Assamese : Kala haladhi

Malayalam: Kari manjal

Sanskrit : Rajani Nishaa or Nishi or Ratri

Nepali : Kaalo haledo

Kannada : Kariarishina, naru kachora

Tangkhul : Yaimu

Assamese : Kala haladhi

Tamil : Karumanjal;

Unani : Siyah haldi

English : Black Turmeric

Ayurvedic name: Narkachur

Geographical Allocations:

The plant comes from South-East Asia and India. In Southeast Asian nations, it is a plant that is widely cultivated for medicinal purposes.

North-east and central India has a sizable population of this plant.

It grows in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, and the North-East of India. In the Papi Hills of Andhra Pradesh's East Godavari, West Godavari, and Khammam Districts, Curcuma caesiais sporadic.

Phytochemical Constituent:

Phytochemical Alkaloids, phenols, phytosterols, terpenoids, carbohydrates, tannins, glycosides, saponins, quinones, amino acids, oils, and flavonoids were found in Curcuma caesiarhizome extracts in n-hexane, petroleum ether (60:80), benzene, chloroform, ethyl acetate, methanol, and water.

The study of the volatile rhizomes oil of Curcuma caesiarevealed the presence of 30 constituents, accounting for 97% of the oil, with camphor (28%), ar-turmerone (12%), (Z)-ocimene (8%), ar-curcumene (7%), 1,8-cineole (5%), elemene (5%), borneol (4%), bornyl acetate (3%) and curcumene (3%), as the main According to other studies, the main components include diphenylalkanoids, phenylpropene derivatives, terpenoids, flavonoids, steroids, and alkaloids³.

Traditional Uses:

The rhizomes of Curcuma caesiahave historically been used to treat a variety of conditions, including menstrual disorders, leprosy, cancer, wounds, impotence, fertility, toothaches, vomiting, allergies, leucoderma, asthma, tumours, piles, bronchitis, enlargement of the spleen, epilepsy, and gonorrheal discharges. In Manipur, the paste is used to treat contusions, rheumatic arthritis pain, and bruises. Fresh rhizome decoction is used as an anti-diarrheic and to relieve stomach pain. In the event of a snake or scorpion bite, the Khamti tribe of the Lohit district applied a paste made from fresh rhizome. Fresh rhizome juice is combined with mustard oil and given to cattle suffering from dysentery in Assam. Asians use the rhizome of Curcuma caecia to treat tumours, pox, and wounds^4-10.

Pharmacological Action:

Curcuminoids are bioactive substances that have anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, wound-healing, hypoglycemic, anti-coagulant, and anti-microbial properties. Both free radical scavenging and antioxidant activity are displayed by curcuminoids. Curcumin and two related demethoxy compounds, demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxycurcumin, are responsible for the majority of the bioactive substances in the rhizomes. Widely present in plants, flavonoids and phenolic compounds have been shown to have a variety of biological effects, including antioxidant, free radical scavenging, anti-inflammatory, and anti-carcinogenic properties.

A. Anti- Oxidant Activity:

Using the sulphur free radical reactivity with curcumin as a reference indicator, crude methanol extracts of the rhizomes of 11 species, including C. caesia, were tested for their antioxidant properties. C. caesia gave a good degree of radioprotection¹¹. DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging assay is used to measure the antioxidant activity of methanolic extract of C. caesia rhizomes. For 2ml of 500M concentration of DPPH, the IC 50 values of the extract and butylated hydroxytoluene were determined to be 862.35g and 46.25g, respectively. This indicated that the IC 50 value of the methanolic C. caesia extract was comparable to butylated hydroxytoluene¹².

B. Analgesic Activity:

Various extracts made from C. caesia and C. amada rhizomes were tested for their analgesic and antipyretic properties. Using a chemical model of acute pain and rat hyperthermia generated by brewer's yeast, the analgesic and antipyretic properties of the plant extracts were assessed. At dosages of 250 and 500mg/kg of rat body weight, writhing and pyrexia were seen. The analgesic and antipyretic effects of both herbs were present¹³.

C. Anti- Fungal Activity:

C. caesia rhizomes have antifungal action. The essential oil of C. caesia Roxb rhizomes exhibits antifungal properties¹⁴.

D. Anti – Microbial Activity:

Curcuma caecia rhizome had strong antioxidant activity, antibacterial activity, and the ability to inhibit both gramme +ve (S. aureus and B. subtilis) and gramme -ve (E. coli) bacteria. Curcuma caecia ethanolic extract (EECC) shown considerable antibacterial action against Staphylococcus aureus. The presence of phenolic compounds has also been shown to have antibacterial capabilities^11,15.

E. Anti – Inflammatory Activity:

Proteins extracted from the rhizome Curcuma caecia's aqueous soxhlet extraction had strong antioxidant activity that was proven to be heat stable. When evaluated on the carrageenan rat paw model system, it similarly demonstrated strong anti-inflammatory effect at a dosage of 100mg/kg¹⁶.

F. Anti-ulcerogenic Activity:

Curcuma caecia's anti-ulcer efficacy was tested on four groups of albino rats and demonstrated a significant reduction in ulcer index, stomach acid volume, pepsin, free and total acidity, as well as enhanced production of gastric mucus¹⁷. The anti-ulcer efficacy of an ethanolic extract of C. Caesia rhizome. The ulcer index, pepsin activity, free and total acidity, and volume of gastric juice in groups III and IV were significantly lower than in group II, whereas gastric mucus output increased¹⁸.

G. Anthelmintic Activity:

The anthelmintic activity of two popular Curcuma species, C. amada and C. caesia, has been demonstrated. This work tested four extracts of C. amada and C. caesia rhizomes for anthelmintic activity at three distinct concentrations: petroleum ether, dichloromethane, ethanol, and aqueous extract. Each extract was examined at three doses (50mg/ml, 100mg/ml, and 150mg/ml), with the paralysis time and time of death of earthworms determined. All of the extracts from both plants demonstrated dose-dependent efficacy. The results showed that C. caesia ethanol extract (150mg/ml) was the most efficient in producing earthworm paralysis, while both Curcuma species ethanol extract (150mg/ml) and Dichloromethane extract (150mg/ml) were extremely successful in causing death of earthworm¹⁹.

CONCLUSION:

In India, C. caesia is abundantly dispersed. The herb appears to have a wide range of therapeutic effects on many diseases. The plant's rhizomes have been studied for their potential antifungal, anti-asthmatic, anti-smooth muscle relaxant, analgesic, locomotor depressant, anticonvulsant, and muscle relaxant actions, as well as its anti-bacterial, anti-ulcer, anxiolytic, and CNS depressing properties. The plant's rhizomes have sufficient bioactive qualities, as demonstrated by the various animal models. It is also demonstrated that the phytoconstituents can be named. These findings could be an indication of research into various Curcuma caesiaRoxb plant bioactive components and their level of activity. The pharmacological research discussed in this review attest to C. caesia's therapeutic value.

REFERENCES:

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19. Gill R, Kalsi V, Singh A. Phytochemical investigation and evaluation of anthelmintic activity of Curcuma amada and Curcuma caesia-a comparative study. Inventi Impact: Ethnopharmacology vol. 2011.

Received on 17.05.2023 Modified on 23.06.2023

Res. J. Pharmacognosy and Phytochem. 2023; 15(4):327-330.

DOI: 10.52711/0975-4385.2023.00052