Centella asiatica- Indian pennywort, the anti-aeging, IQ promoter drug, കുടങ്ങള്‍, வல்லாரை , मण्डूक पर्णी , ब्राह्मी भूति .

Centella asiatica-Mandookaparni

It is one of the major rasayana oushadhas in ayurveda. It manily helps in strenghtening the nerves in the brain.

Family : Aapiaceae

Scientific name : Centella asiatics Urb. , Hydrocotyle asiatica Lin.

In Malaya and Ceylon Hydrcotyle javanica is considered to be Mandookaparni while in North India Bacopa moneri belonging to the family Scrofulareaceae is used in medicinal preparations where ever mandookaparni is there. There is also a black variety of mandookaparni which is grown in wild.

Nomenclature in India :

Sanskrit : Mandookaparnika, Mandooki, Brahmi, Saraswathi.

Hindi : Brahmamandooki, Khulakudi.

Gujarathi : Brahmi.

Bengali : Thulakusi.

Telugu : Babbasa.

English : Indian pennywort.

Names :

In South Asia, other common names of centella include సరస్వతి ఆకు (sarswathi aku) in Telugu; കുടവൻ (kudavan), മുത്തിൾ (muththil), or കുടങ്ങൽ (kudangal) in Malayalam; থানকুনি (thankuni) in Bengali; ගොටුකොල (gotu kola) in Sinhala; मधुकपर्णी (mandukaparni) in Sanskrit; ब्राम्ही / ब्राह्मी (brahmi) in Marathi: ಒಂದೆಲಗ (ondelaga) in Kannada; வல்லாரை (vallaarai) in Tamil; brahmi booti in Hindi; perook inManipuri; মানিমুনি (manimuni) in Assamese; timare in Tulu; tangkuanteh in Paite; ब्रह्मबुटि (brahmabuti) or घोड टाप्रे (ghod-tapre) in Nepali; and खोलचा घायँ (kholcha ghyan) in Newari (Nepal Bhasa).

In India, particularly, it is popularly known by a variety of names: bemgsag, brahma manduki, brahmanduki, brahmi, ondelaga or ekpanni (south India, west India), sarswathi aku(Andhra Pradesh), gotu kola, khulakhudi, mandukparni, mandookaparni, or thankuni (Bengal), depending on region. Bacopa monnieri is the more widely known Brahmi; both have some common therapeutic properties in Vedic texts and are used for improving memory. C. asiatica is called brahmi particularly in north India,^[9][10] although that may be a case of mistaken identity introduced during the 16th century, when brahmi was confused with mandukaparni, a name for C. asiatica.^[11] [12] Probably the earliest study of mandookaparnias medya rasayana (improving the mental ability) was carried out at the Dr. A. Lakshmipathy Research Centre (now under CCRAS).^[13]

In Southeast Asia, it is known as ស្លឹកត្រចៀកក្រាញ់ (sleuk tracheakkranh) in Khmer; မြင်းခွာပင် (mying khwar ) in Burmese; ใบบัวบก (bai bua bok) in Thai; rau má ("mother vegetable") in Vietnamese; pegagan or antanan in Indonesian; takip-kohol (literally "snail lid")^[14] or yahong yahong ("little bowl") in Filipino; and pegagan or pegaga in Malay.

In East Asia, it is known as 雷公根 (lei gong gen; literally "thunder god's root") or 崩大碗 ("chipped big bowl") in Chinese; and 병풀 (byeong-pul, literally "bottle/jar plant") in Korean.

Distribution : Seen all throughout India in marshy and shady places. Seen by sides of streams and canals.

Botanical description :

It is a slender, herbaceous, creeper. Stems are long, prostate, filiform, often reddish and with long internodes, rooting at nodes. Leaves are long petioled, 1.3 to 6.3 cm in diameter, several from rootstick and 1 to 3 cm from each node of stem. They are orbicular, reniform, rather broader than long, glabrous on both sides and with numerous slender nerves from a deeply cordate base. Fruit 8mm long, ovoid, hard with a thick pericarp.

Phytochemistry :

The glycosides, brahmosides and brahminosides have been isolated with their genin brahmic acid. Presence of isobrahmic acid, and betulic acid have also been shown. The Madagascar variety contains different glycoside known as asiaticoside. Asiaticoside is not found in the Sri Lankan variety but a related compound, centelloside, and triterpenic acids, centoic acid and centallic acids have been reported. It has been shown that, the more common one containing asiaticoside and madecassoside and the less common one showing the additional presence of arabinosine in the saponins thus forming brahmoside and brahminoside. The sapogenins and the flavonoids components were the same in both varieties.

Ayurvedic pharmacology :

Guna : laghu

Rasa : tikta, kashaya

Veerya : sheeta

Vipaka : katu

Dosha : kapha pitta hara

Karma : vayasthapana, medhya, kanthya, varnya, rochana, hridya.

Pharmacology :

Alcoholic extract prolonged the hypnotic effect of sodium phenobarbitone in mice and rats. It reduced the amphetamine toxicity by 20 to 30 % in mice. No protection was seen against convulsions produced either by metrazol in miceor by electric shock seizures in rats. Significant fall in rectal temperaure of rats which was maximum at two hours, was shown with a dose of 100 mg/kg..A mixture of brahmoside and brahminoside glycosides from the plant increased the hexobarbitone induced sleeping time, antagonizing the amphetamine induced agitation in mice. The Centella glycosides when injected into anasthetized rats significantly lowered the blood pressure. Both the alcoholic extract and the glycosides extract decreased the acetylcholine and histamine content of the whole brain homogenate of albino rats. In hibition of the increase in acetylcholine in the brain in stressed rats was observed. However, catecholamines were increased.

Clinical usage :

The whole plant and the juice of the leaves is traditionally used in various mental disorders. It is regarded as one of the best  drugs. Six week treatment in patinets of anxiety neurosis reduced anxiety levels and showed improvement in the mental fatigue rate and immediate memory span. Significant improvement in both general ability and behavioural pattern was obtained with the powder of the plant in a dose of 05 g/day in 30 mentally retarded children within 12 weeks. In a double blind study of 57 children with an intelligence quotient score ranging from 90 to 110, significant improvement was observed in the intelligence quotient in children treated with a dose of 0.5 g/day of the powder for one year. In a double blind study of the plant in mentally retarded children, Appa rao et al observed a significant increase in the general mental ability , overall general adjustment and mental concentration at the end of six months.

Indications

1.Anxiety neurosis

2.Minor memory disturbances

3.As a psychotropic agent

According to ayurveda :

It is kapha pitta nasana. It enhances intellect and memory power. It is diuretic. It enhances the contractility of heart muscles. It nourishes all the seven dhatus or tissues and is anti-aging. The chemical called brahmoside is a sleep inducing drug. So this drug is useful in insanity, seizures and mental retardation. It is also beneficial for skin diseases.

Useful parts : whole plant.

Therapeutical uses :

-for small children , inorder that their intellect and memory develops, one ounce of juice of this plant mixed with butter given in the morning and evening is beneficial

-for seizures, insanity and insomnia the drug cures it

-the kalka and rasa of this drug made into a ghee taken 10gm regularly twice daily cures debility, intellectual problems, cures aeging

-for skin diseases and ulcers the juice of this palnt or oil prepared out of this palnt cures it

-this plant is also effective in elephentiasis, syphilis, cough, asthma, heart problems, diabetes etc..