Koenig.
Family: Zingiberaceae.
Habitat: Throughout the moist parts of India, up to 2,000 m. Also grown in gardens of Assam and South India.
English: Ginger Lily.
Ayurvedic: Shati (related species).
Action: Anti-inflammatory, antirheumatic, febrifuge, tranquilizer.
The rhizomes gave furanoditerpene, hedychenone, an anti-inflammatory principle, also cytotoxic principles as labdane-type diterpenes.The essential oil from rhizome shows anthelmintic and mild tranquil- izing property. The essential oil contains alpha- and beta-pinene, limo- nene, carene, and its oxide, linalool and elemole in varying concentrations. The essential oil also gave borneol, methyl salicylate, eugenol and methy- lanthranilate.
Ham. ex Smith.
Synonym: H. album Buch-Ham. Ex Wall.
Family: Zingiberaceae.
Habitat: Central Himalaya at 1,1002,500 m, East India and hills of South India.
English: Spiked Ginger Lily.
Ayurvedic: Shathi, Shati, Gand- hashathi, Gandhapalaashi, Kapu- urkachari, Suvrataa, Gandhaarikaa, Gandhavadhuu, Gandhamuulikaa.
Unani: Kapuurkachari.
Siddha/Tamil: Poolankizangu, Kichilikizangu.
Folk: Ban-haldi (Kumaon).
Action: Rhizome—carminative, spasmolytic, hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, antiemetic, antidiarrhoeal, analgesic, expectorant, antiasthmatic, emmenagogue, hypoglycaemic, hypotensive, antimicrobial, anthelmintic, insect- repellent.
The rhizome shows hypotensive effect in dogs at low doses, lowers blood pressure in high doses.EtOH (50%) extract—anti-inflammatory and hypoglycaemic; gave encouraging results in tropical pulmonary eosinophilia in clinical studies. Alcoholic extract of the plant—vasodilator, mild hypotensive and antiseptic in animals. Essential oil from rhizome—mild tranquilizer in male albino rats; antimicrobial.Rhizome gave sitosterol and its glu- coside, a furanoid diterpene—hedy- chenone and 7-hydroxyhedychenone. The essential oil contains cineole, gamma-terpinene, limonene, beta- phellandrene, p-cymene, linalool and beta-terpineol as major constituents.The oil inhibits the growth of several fungi. The ethanol (95%) extract showed antibacterial activity. The 50% extract showed antimalarial activity in vitro against Plasmodium berghei strain.
Dosage: Rhizome—1-3 g powder. (API Vol. I.)... hedychium spicatum
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