The uses of sarpaganda is recorded in Hindu texts dating from around 500 BC .

In the west it was unknown till 1943. When an Indian wrote an article about the plant emphasizing the efficiency of its sedative effects in treating high blood pressure. In the United States RESERPINE had a rapid success in replacing the use of electric shock therpy and lobotomy for mental disorders. Extract of plant has also also been used for millennia in India. Alexander the Great administered this drug to cure his general Ptolemy of a poisoned arrow. It was reported that Mahatma Gandhiji took it as a transquiliser. A compound which it contains RESERPINE used to treat high blood pressure and mental disorders including schizophrenia and it was particularly for this purpose in the west from 1954 1957. It has been used for millennia to treat insect stings and the bites of venomous reptiles.

Rauwolfia serpentine

Apocynaceae

Trees or erect or twining shrubs, rarely herbs. Leaves simple, opposite or whorled, quite entire, stipules 0 or sometimes intrapetiolar glands. Flowers are hermaphrodite, regular in terminal or axillary cymes. Calyx inferior, often glandular outside at the base or at the base of the lobe Stamens 5, inserted on the corolla tube, rarely on its mouth , filaments usually short Anthers linear, oblong or sagittate, free or sometimes adhering to the stigma. Pollen granular. Ovary with 2 parietal placentae, Fruits a dry or fleshy, drupe, berry or follicles. Seeds various, sometimes winged, sometimes with one or both extremities crowned with pencil of hairs.

KINGDOM DIVISION CLASS ORDER FAMILY GENUS : : : : :

Plantae

Magnoliophyta Magnoliopside Gentianales Apocynaceae Rauwolfia

SPECIES

serpentina

According to Susrutha Aparajitha

Ahibhuka Ahilaka Ahimardini

Bhadra
Bhujangakshee Chandrika Charmahanti Ishwari Maha suganda

Nakuladya
Nakulesta Nakuli Nandini Patala ganda

 Sarpakshi Sarpangi Suganda Surasa Sarpadini Suvaha Vasara Visha mardini Sarpagandhakya Sarpasugandha

ENGLISH :
HINDI :

Rauwolfia root, serpentine root

Chota chand amelpodi, sarpaganda sarpagandhi, shivanabhiballi

GUJRATHI : KANNADA:

MALAYALAM: chivanavilpuri MARATHI: TAMIL : TELUGU: URDU : harkaya Chivan melpodi patalagni asrel

 Erect, perennial undershrubs, 30 to 40 cm tall. Roots soft brownish, tuberous, zig zag with irregular nodes. Bark pale brown, corky. Leaves simple in whorls of 3 , large, lanceolate, acute or acuminate, glarous, tapering at base, dark green above, pale green below. Flowers bisexual, white, tinged with violet. Fruits in drupes, connate at base, purplish black when ripe,rugose, hard

Sub Himalayan tract from Punjab eastwards to sub Himalayas. Sikkim, Bhutan, Assam,. Lower hills of Gangetic plains. Eastern and western ghats Konkan, cental India, southern India Andaman Nepal, Bangladesh, Burma, Sri lanka, Malaya, Thailand, Java.

Rouwolfia tetraphylla Rouwolfia serpentina

RASA : Tikta GUNA: ruksha VEERYA : ushna VIPAKA: Katu

Dosha karma: kapha vatahara

Dhatu karma: acts on majja and rakta. Karma on mala: acts on purisha(laxative) Karma on organs: acts on heart and brain Visistha karma: nidrajanaka, mastishkashamaka, sramshana, krimigna, hridyavasadaka,raktabharaprashmana, garbhashaya sankochaka, aarthava janana, ama pachana, jwaragna, vishagna, tandrakaraka. According to modern: The root is bitter, acrid, laxative, anthelminthic, ferbrifuge, thermogenic, diuretic and possess sedative properties and are useful in hyper tension, strangury, fever, wounds, colic, cholera, dysentery, worm infestations and irritative conditions of CNS, anxiety, schizophrenia, insanity, ansomnia, epilepsy, giddiness, dyspepsia. The decoction of root used to increase uterine contractions. The juice of leaves is useful in removal of opacities of cornea.

ACTIONS ON DIFFERENT SYSTEMS Nervous System: analgesic, sedative, vata shamaka. Used in insomnia and
irritative conditions of nervous system.

Digestive System: because of ushna veerya and tiktha rasa it acts as

appetizer, anthelminthic.

Circulatory System: its salt reduces the heart rate and dialates the blood
vessels with lowering of blood pressure. Because of this special property of reducing the B.P, it is universally medicine.

Reproductive System: reduces libido and increases menstrual bleeding. It

reduces pain during dysmenorrhoea

Root, leaves.

Unmada, agnimandya, apasmara, mastiska vikara, anidra, krimi roga, amaja vibanda, shola, kashtartava, pralapa, udvega, sarpavisha, bhrama, bala atisara.

Sarpaganda should be given with warm water for VISUCHIKA

Sarpaganda root and ishwari root powdered an administered in ATISARA Root powder is grinned with water and used internally and applied locally also in SARPA VISHA A preparation consisting of sarpaganda, shankapushpi, brahmi, ashwaganda, yastimadhu, kusta, vacha, jatiphala is administered in

SCHIZOPHRENIA.

The root with andrographis, ginger and black salt is used in JWARA.

 In Konkan the root of sarpaganda with aristolchia indica is given in CHOLERA. One part of sarpaganda root along with two parts of kutaja root and three parts of Jatropa curcas along with milk is given in colic pain. The juice of the leaves is instilled into the eye by the natives India and Java to remove the opacities of the cornea. It is used in mental disorders. It is used in rat poisoning. Sarpaganda should be taken with warm water in visuchika

Transverse section of root shows stratified cork consisting of 8 to 10 layers of tabular cells with thickened aslls, with alternating bands of smaller and larger cells. The secondary meristem cells appear polygonal and

isodiametric in tangential section and rectangular aand radically flattened in

transverde section. Phelloderm is composed of 10 to 12 rows of cellulosic parenchyma. The secondary parenchyma consists of parenchyma cells heavily packed with starch grains. Phloem consists of narrow rays of sieve tissue and parenchyma alternating with broader medullary rays. Many cells of phloem parenchyma contain calcium oxalate crystals and remaining parenchyma contain starch granules. Xylem is mainly composed of tracheids and wood parenchyma cells with pitted walls and filled with starch grains, vessels are very few. The secondary xylem has well marked annual rings.

Reserpine, reserpiline, amalicidine, ajmalicine Corynanthine, deserpidine, indobine, indobinine Rescinnamidine, rescinnamine, rescinnaminol, renoxidine Sarpagine, serpentine, serpentitine, yohambinine

 Indolines, ajmalimine, ajmaline, ajmalinine Rauwolfinine, sandwicolidine, sandwicoline, serpinine

The plant grows under a wide range of climatic conditions. Flourishes well in hot humid climate and grow bothh in humid and partial shade. However partial shade is preferred. It requires slightly acidic to neutral soils for good growth. Medium to deep well drained fertile soils, clay loam to silt loam, rich in organic content and soil with 6 to 8.5 pH is best suited. The plant can be propogated by seeds, root cutting, root stumps and stem cutting. THROUGH SEED: The seedling are raised in the nursery and transplanted in the field. Sowing period is variable depending on climate. Germination starts after 15 to 20 days and continues upto 30 to 40 days.

ROOT CUTTING: 5 cm long root cuttings are planted during spring

season. The cuttings begin to sprout with in 3 weeks. These are planted in the field. STEM CUTTING: hard wooded stem cutting of 15 to 22 cm are planted. The plaants are ready for harvesting after an year.

The species like: R. canescens R. densiflora R. perakensis R. micrantha R. beddomei

 R. vomitoria Ophiorrhiza mungos These are used as adulterants and substitutes

Rouwolfia roots are usually marketed under the name of their geographical resources. There is a study demand for the roots and most of the produce is exported because only a fraction of the is used in Indian pharmaceutical firm. The most important center of marketing are Delhi, Amritsar, Sarahranpur, Kolkata and Mumbai. Major areas of export from India are Europe, Japan, USA, Belgium, UK, France etc. The suppilies from recent years have fallen short in demand due to the restrictions imposed by Government of India. At present the commercial supply of R.serpentina are available from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, W.Bengal, Assam, Tamilnadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra. Retail market price- Root- 200 to 250 per kg

Reserpine is reported to be cardio vascular depressant with hypnotic activity and relatively high toxicity. Minimum therapeutic doses of reserpine may give rise to nasal congestion, lethargy, drowsiness, vertigo, gastro intestinal upsets, dyspnea and urticarial rash.

 Higher doses may cause flushing, insomnia, bradycardia, asthenia, oedema, occasionally parkinsonism, and severe mental depression.

Root powder- 3 to 6 gm (sedative, insanity) 1 to 2 gm (antihypertensive)

sarpagandadi churna sarpaganda yoga sarpaganda vati sarpaganda ghanavati

ksharagada