Symplocos racemosa Roxb.

Scientific Name: Symplocos racemosa Roxb.

Family: Styraceae/Symplocaceae
Genus: Symplocos
Species: racemosa
Local Name: Lodh tree, Lotur bark, Lodhra, Rodhra
Parts Used: stem, bark, seeds, flowers
Plant Description: Symplocos racemosa is a critically
endangered medicinal plant attaining a height up to 10
m. Bark: Bark smooth or rough, grey or in young parts
yellowish. Leaf: Leaves simple, alternate, lanceolate-
oblong, oblong, elliptic or elliptic-lanceolate, margin
serrate, crenate, serrulate or entire, apex acute to
acuminate or obtuse at both ends, surface glabrous or
slightly pilose on the midrib. Flower: Inflorescence is
simple or compound racemes, pubescent or hairy.
Flowers actinomorphic, bisexual, axillary, white in
colour, turning yellow with age. Calyx-lobes broadly
oblong-ovate, connate below, puberulous or glabrous. Corolla lobes connate at base. Stamens
many, anthers as broad as long; connective very small. Style-1, fili form, stigma small, capitate.
Ovary inferior or half inferior, 3– locular, one ovule per locule. Fruit: Drupe purplish black,
oblong, crowned by calyx. Seeds straight.
Constituents: alkaloids like; Loturine - 0.25 %, Colloturine - 0.02 %,Loturidine - 0.06 %,
glycosides, oxalic acid, tri-terpenoids, betulinic acid, phytosterol, ellagic acid, oleanolic acid,
reducing sugar.
Active chemical constituents of S. racemosa

Loturine Symposide

Ellagic acid Salireposide

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 Oleanolic acid Betulinic acid
Action of Herb: Alterant, anti-inflammatory, anti-pyretic, cooling, expectorant, haemostatic,
stomachic, anti-asthmatic, anti-malarial, anti-spasmodic, depressant, febrifuge, hepato-
protective, anti-diarrheal, anti-microbial, astringent, depurative, haematinic, ophthalmic.
Medicinal Uses: treatment of ulcer, acne, bronchitis, earache, arthritis, dysentery, elephantiasis,
baldness, dysphasia, eye diseases, flatulence, haemoptysis, liver diseases, skin diseases, wounds,
gingivitis, leprosy, menstrual disorders, swelling, gonorrhea, leucorrhea, scrofula, tumors.
Dosage: stem bark power 1-3 grams in divided dose per day; water decoction (kashayam) 50-
100ml in divided dose per day.
Side effects: Dry mouth, nausea, headache.
Contraindications: None Specific
Drugs Interactions: No drug interactions known
Microscopic study of S. racemosa
Microscopic examination of S. racemosa bark was carried out by Raghunathan and Mitra (2000).
Transverse section of mature bark of S. racemosa showed a wide cork of thin-walled, rectangular
cells, cork cambium 1-3 layered, secondary cortex consists of parenchymatous cells towards
outer side and rounded cells on inner side. A number of stone cells were found scattered
throughout the region having highly thickened walls with distinct pits, prismatic and cluster of
calcium oxalate crystals, starch grains, secondary phloem, phloem parenchyma, phloem fibres,
stone cells and medullary rays.
Organoleptic evaluation of S. racemosa
Siddiqui et al. (2011) evaluated the organoleptic characters of S. racemosa. See the table below.
Table: Evaluation of organoleptic characters of S. racemosa

Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.

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Analysis of physico-chemical constants of S. racemosa
Siddiqui et al. (2011) assessed the physico-chemical constants of S. racemosa.
Table: Physico-chemical constants of S. racemosa

Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.
Phytochemical analysis of S. racemosa
Phytochemical analysis of S. racemosa was carried out by Siddiqui et al. (2011).
Table: Physico-chemical analysis of S. racemosa

Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.

453
Fluorescence analysis of S. racemosa
Siddiqui et al. (2011) carried out fluorescence analysis of S. racemosa powdered drug and and its
various extracts.
Table: Fluorescence analysis of S. racemosa powdered drug

Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.
Table: Fluorescence analysis of S. racemosa various extracts

Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.

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Thin-layer chromatography of S. racemosa
Thin-layer chromatography of alcoholic S. racemosa extract was carried out by Siddiqui et al.
(2011) using different solvent systems and visualizing agents.

.
Table: Thin-layer chromatography of S. racemosa

Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.

Thin-layer chromatography of alcoholic extract of S. racemosa using n-butanol: acetic acid: water (4:1:5)
solvent system
Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of
Symplocos racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.

455
Thin-layer chromatography of alcoholic extract of S. racemosa using Toulene: Ethyl acetate: methanol
(1:2:1) solvent system
Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.
High Performance Thin-layer Chromatography of S. racemosa
High performance thin-layer chromatography of S. racemosa aqueous and methanolic extracts
was carried out by Tambe et al. (2013)..

Figure: HPTLC chromatogram of methanolic extract of S. racemosa (Resolution at 200nm; vol. 20µl,
mobile phase – ethyl acetate: methanol)

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Figure: HPTLC chromatogram of aqueous extract of S. racemosa (Resolution at 224nm; vol. 20µl, mobile
phase – ethyl acetate: n-butanol)
Tambe R, Kulkarni M, Bhise K. 2013. Preliminary Phytochemical screening and HPTLC fingerprinting of bark
extracts of Symplocos racemosa. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry; 2(3): 45-49.
Anti-acne activity:
Kumar et al. (2007) explored the anti-acne effect of ethanolic extracts of S. racemosa bark by
disc diffusion and broth dilution methods against the growth of Propionibacterium acnes.
Analgesic activity of S. racemosa
Sharma et al. (2013) evaluated the analgesic activity of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of S.
racemosa bark by formalin induced licking and biting and tail flick methods.
Anti-inflammatory activity of S. racemosa
Sharma et al. (2013) assessed anti-inflammatory activity of S. racemosa aqueous and ethanolic
extracts by using carrageenan induced hind paw edema method. The results showed that
ethanolic extract of S. racemosa possessed significant anti-inflammatory activity as compared to
the aqueous extract.
Anti-pyretic activity of S. racemosa
Anti-pyretic activity of ethanolic extract of S. racemosa bark was explored by Vijayabaskaran et
al. (2010) against brewer’s yeast induced pyrexia.
Anti-androgenic effect of S. racemosa
Yadhav et al. (2013) evaluated effective anti-androgenic effect of S. racemosa extract in the
doses of 500mg/kg and 1000mg/kg respectively in the treatment of hyperandrogenemia
associated polycystic ovary syndrome.
Anti-ulcer activity of S. racemosa
Krishna et al. (2013) explored the anti-ulcer activity of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of S.
racemosa in experimentally induced (pylorus ligation and Aspirin-induced) ulcers in rat models.
The aqueous extract of S. racemosa (500mg/kg) was found to be equipotent to the standard drug
Lansoprazole-8mg/kg. See the figures below.

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Figure: Effect of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of S. racemosa on gastric volume and pHLANS-
Lansoprazole; ETH-ethanolic extract; AQE-aqueous

Figure: Effect of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of S. racemosa on free acidity following pyloric ligation
in rats
Krishna G, Divya M, Ramya, Rohita K, Dolly S, Kumar KP. 2013. Pharmacological evaluation of Symplocos
racemosa bark extracts on experimentally induced ulceritis in rat model. Elixir Pharmacy; 55: 12964-12966.
Anti-bacterial activity of S. racemosa
Anti-bacterial activity of petroleum ether and ethanolic extracts of S. racemosa was assessed by
Devmurari (2010). His research work revealed that ethanolic extract of S. racemosa possessed
more potent anti-bacterial activity as compared to the petroleum ether extract.
Table: Zone of inhibition of ethanolic extract of S. racemosa

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 Table: Zone of inhibition of Petroleum ether extract of S. racemosa

Devmurari VP. 2010. Antibacterial evaluation and phytochemical screening of Symplocos racemosa Roxb.
International Journal of PharmTech Research. 2(2): 1359-1363
Effectiveness of S. racemosa in treating female reproductive disorders
Saraswathi et al. (2012) studied the effectiveness of S. racemosa ethanolic extract in two doses
100mg/kg and 200mg/kg respectively in treating female reproductive dysfunctions in rats by
using cold restraint stress method.
Anti-cancer activity of S. racemosa
Ravel et al. (2009) explored the cytotoxic activity of different extracts of S. racemosa bark using
the XTT salt based cytotoxicity aasay in 96 micro plate format against one leukaemia and one
cervical cancer cell line. Butanolic extract of S. racemosa revealed the most significant cytotoxic
activity against HeLa cell line.

References

Devmurari VP. 2010. Antibacterial evaluation and phytochemical screening of Symplocos racemosa Roxb.
International Journal of PharmTech Research. 2(2): 1359-1363
Hanumant U, Bhusnar, Dheeraj H, Nagore, Sanjay U, Nipanikar. 2014. Phytopharmacological profile of Symplocos
racemosa: A review. Pharmacologia: 76-43.
Jadhav M, Menon S, Shailajan. 2013. Anti-androgenic effect of Symplocos racemosa Roxb. against letrozole
induced polycystic ovary using rat model. Journal of Coastal Life Medicine; 1(4): 309-314.
Krishna G, Divya M, Ramya, Rohita K, Dolly S, Kumar KP. 2013. Pharmacological evaluation of Symplocos
racemosa bark extracts on experimentally induced ulceritis in rat model. Elixir Pharmacy; 55: 12964-12966.
Raghunathan K, Mitra MK. 2000. Pharmacognosy of Indigenous Drugs. Central council for Research in Ayurveda
and Siddha. New Delhi, Inwswwdia: 199-213.
Ravel BP, Patel JD, Patel BA, Ganure AL. 2009. Potent in vitro anticancer activity of Symplocos racemosa bark.
Rom. J. Biol. Plant Biol. 54: 135-140.
Saraswathi CD, upta SK, Sreemantula S. 2012. Protective effect of Symplocos racemosa bark on cold restraint stress
induced reproductive changes in female rats. Journal of Natural Products. 5: 251-258.
Sharma SK, Sharma SM, Saini V, Mohapatra S. 2013. Evaluation of analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity of
Symplocos racemosa. Int. Res. J. Pharm. 4: 136-139.
Siddiqui N, Latif A, Rehman S, Abdullah. 2011. Anti-microbial screening and spectral studies of Symplocos
racemosa Roxb. Hamdard Medicus; 4 (2): 29-34.
Tambe R, Kulkarni M, Bhise K. 2013. Preliminary Phytochemical screening and HPTLC fingerprinting of bark
extracts of Symplocos racemosa. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry; 2(3): 45-49.
Vijayabaskaran M, Babu G, Venkateswaramurthy N, Yuvaraja KR, Sivakumar PB, Jayakar B. 2010. In vitro
antioxidant potential of ethanolic bark extract of Symplocos racemosa Roxb. Int. J. Pharm. Technol; 2: 320-328.

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