Portia Health Dictionary

Portia: From 1 Different Sources


(Latin) Piglike woman; an offering Portiah, Porsha, Porscha
Health Source: Medical Dictionary
Author: Health Dictionary

Thespesia Populnea

Soland. ex Correa.

Synonym: Hibiscus populneus Linn.

Family: Malvaceae.

Habitat: Coastal regions of India and the Andamans; and also grown as an ornamental.

English: Portia tree, Tulip tree, Umbrella tree, False Rosewood.

Ayurvedic: Paarisha, Kapitana, Paarshvpippala, Gardabhaanda.

Siddha: Poovarsu.

Action: Specific for skin diseases. Root, fruit and leaf—used in psoriasis, scabies and other cutaneous diseases. Lupenone, lupeol and alkanes show activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Bark— used for the treatment of haemorrhoids and chronic dysentery. Leaf— anti-inflammatory.

The flowers gave populnetin, herba- cetin, populneol, quercetin and its gly- cosides, kaempferol and its glycosides, rutin, gossypol, beta-sitosterol and its glycosides, nonacosane, lupenone, myricyl alcohol, lupeol and gossypetin.

Presence of thespesin (0.4%) and herbacetin has been reported from fruits. Thespesin has been proved to be optically active gossypol. Gossypol occurring in cotton plant is optically inactive, whereas the gossypol from T. populnea has a high dextro-rotation. It exhibits antifertility, anti-tumour, anti-amoebic and anti-HIV activities.

The ethanolic extract of fruits showed antiviral and anticancer activity in mice.

Dosage: Root—50-125 mg powder. (CCRAS.)... thespesia populnea



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