Indian Medicinal Plants An Illustrated Dictionary

and South India) is known as Parwati
(Gujarat, Sindh) and Ullar-billar (Punjab).
Ethanolic extract of the leaves and
stem showed anticancer and hypotensive
activities associated with the alkaloidal
fraction which contains bisbenzylisoquinoline
alkaloids (including
pendulin and cocsulin). Presence
of quercitol is reported from nonalkaloidal
fraction.
Dosage ◮ Root—50–100 ml decoction.
(CCRAS.)
Cochlearia armoracia Linn.
Synonym ◮ Armoracia rusticana
Gilib.
Family ◮ Cruciferae, Brassicaceae.
Habitat ◮ Eastern Europe; cultivated
in Britain and the USA. Grown to
a small extent in North India and
hill stations of South India.
English ◮ Horseradish.
Action ◮ Root—used for catarrhs of
the respiratory tract. Antimicrobial
and hyperemic.
The root contains glucosinolates,
mainly sinigrin, which releases allylisothiocyanate
on contact with the enzyme
myrosin during crushing and
2-phenylethylglucosinolate. Crushed
horseradish has an inhibitory effect on
the growth of micro-organisms.
Fresh root contains vitamin C on an
average 302 mg% of ascorbic acid.
A related species, C. cochlearioides
(Roth) Sant & Mahesh, synonym C.
flava Buch.-Ham. ex Roxb. (upper
Cocos nucifera Linn. 163
and lower Gangetic valleys), is used
for fevers.
Cochlospermum gossypium
DC.
Synonym ◮ C. religiosum (Linn.)
Alston.
Family ◮ Cochlospermaceae.
Habitat ◮ Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka,TamilNadu,MadhyaPradesh
and Bihar; cultivated at Agartala in
Tripura.
English ◮ Golden Silk tree, White
Silk Cotton tree.
Unani ◮ Samagh, Kateeraa (substitute
for gum tragacanth).
Siddha/Tamil ◮ Kongilam (flower
juice), Tanaku.
Action ◮ Gum—cooling, sedative,
bechic, useful in coughs, hoarse
throat,diarrhoea,dysentery,
scalding urine. Dried leaves and
flowers—stimulant.
The leaves contain terpenoids, saponins
and tannins. Flowers contain
naringenin and beta-sitosteryl-glucoside
(0.3%). The gum, after hydrolysis,
furnished a mixture of acidic oligosaccharides.
Cocos nucifera Linn.
Family ◮ Palmae; Arecaceae.
Habitat ◮ Cultivated chiefly in
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
English ◮ Coconut Palm.
C