Indian Medicinal Plants An Illustrated Dictionary

in vincamine; others include vinic,
apovincamine, vincadifformin.
Vincamine is hypotensive; increases
blood flow and oxygen supply to
the brain. The vincamine content in
the herb is low and fluctuates greatly.
Overdose of the extract brings about
a severe drop in blood pressure.
Vincamine, as a pure substance is
available for therapeutic administration.
Vinca pusilla Murr.
Synonym ◮ Catharanthus pusillus G.
Don.
Lochnera pusilla (Murr.) K. Schum.
Family ◮ Apocynaceae.
Habitat ◮ West Bengal and throughout
greater part of India, as a weed.
Ayurvedic ◮ Sangkhi, Sangkhaphuli
(The Wealth of India).
Folk ◮ Milagaipoondu (Tamil Nadu),
Kapavila (Kerala), Vishakanegale
(Karnataka), Neru (Andhra
Pradesh) Mirchaai (Bihar).
Action ◮ Plant—oncolytic (tumourresolving).
A decoction of the dried
plant boiled in oil is used in the
treatment of lumbago.
The plant contains ajmalicine, rauwolscine,
vindoline, pusiline and pusilinine,
while leurosine, lochnerinine,
venoterpine, vindorosine and vincapusine
have been isolated from the leaves.
The root gave lochnericine.
Leurosine is cytotoxic. Pusiline and
pusilinine cause marked depression of
the heart.
Vinca rosea Linn.
Vinca rosea Linn. 705
Synonym ◮ Catharanthus roseus
(Linn.) G.Don.
Family ◮ Apocynaceae.
Habitat ◮ Native of West Indies;
commonly grown in Indian gardens.
English ◮ Madagascar Periwinkle.
Ayurvedic ◮ Sadaapushpaa, Sadampushpa,
Nityakalyaani, Sadaabahaar.
Siddha ◮ Nithiya kalyani, Sudukadu
mallikai.
Action ◮ Cytotoxic.
Over one hundred monomeric and
bisindole alkaloids have been isolated.
The indole alkaloid, vincamine, is
a vasodilator; the bisindole alkaloids
vinblastine and vincristine proved tobe
highly effective as cancer chemotherapeutic
agents.
Vinblastine and vincristine are clinically
used in a number of thrombocytopenic
disorders, such as refractory
idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpurea
and haemolytic anaemia.
Vinblastine in combination with
other chemotherapeutic agents (cisplatin
and bleomycin) is used for the
treatment of metastatic testicular cancer;
also against bladder cancer, breast
cancer, non-small cell lung cancer and
Hodgkin’s lymphoma in combination
with other drugs.
Vincristine, in various combinations,
is highly effective in acute leukemia
in children and lymphocytic leukemia;
and pediatric tumours. (The Treatise
on Indian Medicinal Plants.)
V