Celastrus paniculatus
Encyclopedia
Celastrus paniculatus is a woody
liana
commonly known as black oil plant, climbing staff tree, and intellect tree (Sanskrit
: jyotishmati ज्योतीष्मती, Hindi
: Mal-kangani माल-कांगनी ). The plant grows throughout India
at elevations up to 1800 m. Oil
from the seed
s is used as a traditional medicine
in Indian
Unani
and Ayurvedic medicine.
C. paniculatus is a deciduous
vine with stems up to 10 centimeters in diameter and 6 meters long with rough, pale brown exfoliating bark covered densely with small, elongated lenticles
. The leaves are simple, broad, and oval, obovate or elliptic in shape, with toothed margins. The Intellect tree, or Celastrus paniculatus, is a climbing shrub, also known as malkangani, found throughout India. The seeds contain fatty acids and alkaloids, and have sedative and antidepressant actions. Botanist M. Daniel states that the seeds are used to sharpen the memory, and Ayurvedic practitioners also use the seed oil as a brain tonic and as a treatment for memory loss. A study published in the August 2004 issue of the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology" found that intellect tree's ability to improve memory loss may be due to its neuroprotective actions.
A study of rats suggested the aqueous extract of Celastrus paniculatus seed has dose-dependent cholinergic activity, thereby improving memory performance.
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/362553-ayurvedic-herbs-for-memory-loss/#ixzz1TpbjPc7X
Woody plant
A woody plant is a plant that uses wood as its structural tissue. These are typically perennial plants whose stems and larger roots are reinforced with wood produced adjacent to the vascular tissues. The main stem, larger branches, and roots of these plants are usually covered by a layer of...
liana
Liana
A liana is any of various long-stemmed, woody vines that are rooted in the soil at ground level and use trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy to get access to well-lit areas of the forest. Lianas are especially characteristic of tropical moist deciduous...
commonly known as black oil plant, climbing staff tree, and intellect tree (Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
: jyotishmati ज्योतीष्मती, Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
: Mal-kangani माल-कांगनी ). The plant grows throughout India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
at elevations up to 1800 m. Oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
from the seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s is used as a traditional medicine
Traditional medicine
Traditional medicine comprises unscientific knowledge systems that developed over generations within various societies before the era of modern medicine...
in Indian
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
Unani
Unani
Unani-tibb or Unani Medicine also spelled Yunani Medicine means "Greek Medicine", and is a form of traditional medicine widely practiced in South Asia...
and Ayurvedic medicine.
C. paniculatus is a deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
vine with stems up to 10 centimeters in diameter and 6 meters long with rough, pale brown exfoliating bark covered densely with small, elongated lenticles
Lenticel
A lenticel is an airy aggregation of cells within the structural surfaces of the stems, roots, and other parts of vascular plants. It functions as a pore, providing a medium for the direct exchange of gasses between the internal tissues and atmosphere, thereby bypassing the periderm, which would...
. The leaves are simple, broad, and oval, obovate or elliptic in shape, with toothed margins. The Intellect tree, or Celastrus paniculatus, is a climbing shrub, also known as malkangani, found throughout India. The seeds contain fatty acids and alkaloids, and have sedative and antidepressant actions. Botanist M. Daniel states that the seeds are used to sharpen the memory, and Ayurvedic practitioners also use the seed oil as a brain tonic and as a treatment for memory loss. A study published in the August 2004 issue of the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology" found that intellect tree's ability to improve memory loss may be due to its neuroprotective actions.
A study of rats suggested the aqueous extract of Celastrus paniculatus seed has dose-dependent cholinergic activity, thereby improving memory performance.
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/362553-ayurvedic-herbs-for-memory-loss/#ixzz1TpbjPc7X