Ziziphus Mauritiana: Chemical Structure and Uses

• Biological source :

It consist of fresh leaf extract of Ziziphus mauritiana.

• Taxonomical classification :

Fig 4 : Ziziphus mauritiana leaf

Kingdom : Plant

Subkingdom: Viridaeplantae

Phylum : Tracheophyta

Subphylum : Euphyllophytina

Division : Magnoliophyta

Subdivision : Angiosprm

Class : Magnoliopsida

Subclass : Rosidae

Order : Rosales

Family : Rhamnaceae

Tribe : Paliureae

Genus : Ziziphus

Species : Mauritiana^[42]

Vernacular Names :

Languages Vernacular Names

Arabic – Beri, Bor, Nabbak El Fil, Nabbak-El-Fil, Nobig, Sidr

English – Aprin, Baer, Baher, Bahir, Ber, Beri, Bor, Chinee Apple,

Indian Plum, Indian-Cherry, Indian-Plum, Jujube, Ma-Tan,

Malay-Jujube, Mangustine, Manzana (Apple), Manzanas,

Manzanita, Perita Haitiana, Phutsa, Ponsigne, Putrea, Sour

Jujube, Tao, Tao Nhuc, Widara, Yunnan Jujube, Yunnan

Tamil – Elandhai

Hindi – Ber

Sanskrit – Ajapriya, Badara, Karkandhu

Gujarati – Bordi^[43]

• Synonyms :

• Rhamnus jujube
• Ziziphus jujube
• Ziziphus sororia
• Manasa arborea
• Ziziphus trinervia
• Ziziphus orthocantha
• Ziziphus rotundata
• Ziziphus abyssinicus
• Sarcomphalus mauritianus^[44].

• Growth and distribution :

Ziziphus mauritiana, is present usually in the tropical and sub-tropical regions. It is mainly present in India and is now seen in tropical regions like Africa, Afghanistan, China, Malaysia, Australia and in around Pacific regions. The plant form dense stands and is invasive in some regions like Fiji and Australia. These days it an environmental weed in Northern Australia causing problems. It is grows very fastly with a medium life span, that can quickly reach up to 10–40 ft. tall. The plant is also known as Ziziphus mauritiana Narkeli kul, Ber, Boroi, Dongs, Bor, Beri ^[45].

• Macroscopic characters :

• Ziziphus mauritiana is a thorny and evergreen shrub. Bark dark grey colour or dull black colour, irregularly fissured. It grows as a compact shrub of 3-4 m tall in severe climatic conditions
• Leaves are variable, alternate, in 2 rows, oblong elliptic in shape, 2.5-6 x 1.5-5 cm, rounded tip or somewhat notched base; exceptionally wavy-toothed on edges, shiny green and no hairs at the top; dense, whitish, soft hairs underneath.
• Inflorescence of the plant is axillary cymes, 1-2 cm long, with 7-20 flowers of 2-3mm; peduncles are 2- 3 mm long; greenish colour-yellow colour, indistinctly fragrant; pedicels are 3-8 mm long; calyx with 5 deltoid lobes, hairy outer, glabrous inner; petals are 5 and are subspathulate, concave, reflexed.
• Fruit is a drupe and globose to ovoid shape, grows 6 x 4 cm in cultivation, usually much smaller when wild; fruit skin is smooth or rough, glossy, thin but tougher, yellowish colour to reddish colour or blackish colour; flesh white, crisp, juicy, sub acid taste to sweet taste, becoming mealy in fully ripe fruits.
• Seed is a tuberculate and irregularly furrowed stone with 1-2 elliptic brown kernels sssof 6 mm long. The name ‘Ziziphus’ is often erroneously written as Zizyphus ^[46].

• Microscopic characters of leaf :

• In Z. mauritiana, the abaxial leaf surface was characteristically densely pubescent, with numerous stomata arranged in the interveinal regions, whereas the adaxial surface was glabrous, with comparatively few, sunken stomata.
• Leaf hairiness, hypostomatous distribution and sunken stomata are all characteristic features of species that exist in drought‐prone regions. Transverse sections from fresh leaf lamina material showed that both Ziziphus species have characteristic C₃ anatomy, with an abundance of mucilaginous material exclusively localized in the adaxial epidermal cells which stained intensely with the mucopolysaccharide stain, alcianblue.

• The mucilage‐cell contents also indicates a high polysaccharide content throughout the cell. When stained with the PAS/toluidine blue‐O combination for light microscopy, there was no discernible nucleus, vacuole or cellular organelles in the epidermal mucilage cells, but with numerous starch grains and nuclei clearly visible in the mesophyll parenchyma.
• Mucilage, produced in Golgi, accumulates initially between the plasmalemma and the cell wall, and after prolonged mucilage deposition, the remaining cytoplasm becomes compressed against the outer periclinal cell wall and degenerates^[47].

Fig 5 : Micriscopy of leaf of Z. mauritiana

• Chemical Constituents :

• Plant contains crude protein, fat, fiber, ash, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, sodium, chlorine, Sulphur.
• They also contain ceryl alcohol and the alkaloids, protopine and berberine, quercetin, kaempferol, sitosterol, stigmasterol, lanosterol, diosgenin.
• The leaves contain flavonoids, tannins, oses and holosides, mucilages, sterol, triterpenoids, cardiotonic glucosides, and leucoanthocyanes.
• Plant also contain Protein, Fat, Fiber, Carbohydrates, Reducing Sugars, Non-Reducing Sugars, Ash, Calcium, Phosphorus, Iron, Carotene, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Niacin, Citric Acid, Ascorbic Acid, Fluoride, Pectin. The fresh fruits also contain some malic and oxalic acid and quercetin. Protein, Fat, Carbohydrates ,Sugar, Fiber.
• Major characteristic constituents aretriterpenes and triterpene saponins, including alphitolic, betulinic, maslinic, oleanolic, ursolic,3-O-trans-alphitolic, 3-O-cis-p-alphitolic, 3-O-cis-p-coumaroylalphitolic, 3-O-trans-pcoumarylalphitolicacids; and zizyphus saponins I, II, III, jujuboside B, spinosin and swertisin^[48].

• Uses :

1. Traditional uses :

• The fruits of wild trees are considered cooling, anodyne, astringent,stomachic, stypic & tonic. The kernels are reported to have a sedative effect & for relief from abxominal pain in pregnancy. They are also given as antidote to aconite – poisoning and used in poultices & other application for wounds. The seeds are used as antidiarrhoeal.
• Leaves are eaten with catechu as astringent. It is regarded as diaphoretic and are prescribed for typhoid in children. They are also used as poultices. In soar throat, a leaf decoction is used as gargle.
• Paste of leaves and twigs are applied to abcess, boils and curbuncls to promote suppuration and stangury.
• Bark is sometimes used in india for tanning purposes. A decoction of bark is used in the treatment of diarrhoea and dysentery. It is also used as astringent in gingivitis. Juice of bark is purgative and externally applied to gout & rheumatism.
• Decoction of root is beneficial in fever & powder of root is used for old wounds an ulcers^[49].

2. Scientifically proven uses :

• Antihyperglycemic activity of aqueous extracts of leaves has been evaluated on hyperglycaemia induced by oral administration of glucose in rabbits.
• Anti carcinogenic activity of leaf extract has been evaluated. Extract has showed significant action on cancer cells.
• Anti ulcer activity also have been evaluated by using anti ulcer models in rats.
• Survey of literature reveals that plant has been reported for antiteroidogenic, antianxyiolytic, sedative and hypnotic.
• Also it has antimicrobial and radioprotection^[50].

Division of pharmacology, RIPER, ATP.Page 32