Indian Medicinal Plants An Illustrated Dictionary

Litsea stocksii Hook. f.
Family ◮ Lauraceae.
Habitat ◮ The hills of western Deccan
Peninsula.
Folk ◮ Pisi, Posha (Maharashtra).
Action ◮ Leaves—an infusion is
given in irritation of bladder and
urethra.
The seeds yield a fat consisting mostly
of lauric acid with a small amount of
oleic acid.
The leaves are mucilaginous.
Lobelia chinensis Lour.
Synonym ◮ L. radicans Thunb.
Family ◮ Campanulaceae, Lobeliaceae.
Habitat ◮ Nepal, Chota Nagpur
and Khasi hills at altitudes of 900–
1,500 m.
Action ◮ Plant—used in China for
fevers and asthma. Root—considered
depurative and antirheumatic
in Indo-China. The plant is one
of the constituent of a tincture
formulation used for the treatment
of scars.
The rhizomes of the plant are reported
to contain the polyfructosan,
lobelinin.
Lobelia inflata Linn.
Family ◮ Campanulaceae; Lobeliaceae.
Lobelia inflata Linn. 381
Habitat ◮ Native to eastern United
States; imported into India.
English ◮ Indian Tabacco, Pukeweed.
Ayurvedic ◮ Devanala (var.).
Action ◮ Antiasthmatic, antispasmodic,
broncho-dilator, expectorant,
mild sedative and relaxant.
Used as a tabacco deterrent (as a major
ingredient in many antismoking
mixtures).
Key application ◮ In the treatment
of asthma, bronchitis. (German
Commission E.) Asrespiratory
stimulant. (The British Herbal
Pharmacopoeia.)
Lobelia contains piperidine alkaloids,
mainly lobeline, with lobelanine,
lobelanidine, norlobelanine, isolobinine.
Lobeline stimulates respiration
in animals by stimulating respiratory
centre and at high doses stimulates the
vomiting centre.
Lobeline has similar but less potent
pharmacological properties to nicotine
but 1/20–1/5 as potent.
Lobeline (0.5%) has also been used
as an active ingredient in skin-lightening
preparations.
Clinical research could not demonstrate
lobeline efficacy greater than
placebo in smoking cessation. It was
disallowed as an ingredient in antismoking
products in the US in 1993.
(Natural Medicines Comprehensive
Database, 2007.)
The leaves contain beta-amyrin palmitate
which possesses sedative and
antidepressant properties comparable
to the antidepressant drug mianserin.
Methanolic extract of leaves exhibited
antidepressant activity.
L