Bengali:- Kurchi

Gujrati :- Kadacchal

Hindi:- Kaureya kurchi

Kannada:- Kodasige,Halagatti gida,Halagatti mara

Malayalam:- Kadagapala

Marathi:- Kudasal

Sanskrit:- Kutaja

Tamil:- Krukkalami-palsi

Telugu:- kodisapala

It is the dried stem bark of Holarrhena antidysentrica / Holarrhena pubescens belonging to the family Apocynacece. it is collected from 8 to 10 years old plant and freed from attached wood and peeled into small pieces. It should contain NOT LESS

THAN 2% of total alkaloids of kurchi

• Kurchi is indigenous to India and found throught India and in the parts ascending upto 1000 meters in Himalayan region

• It is also found in the parts ofOrissa Assam Uttar PradeshMaharashtra

Condition:- Dry

Shape :- Longitudinally RECURVED pieces

Size :- Variable

Outer surface :-It is longitudinally wrinkled and bears horizontal lenticels

Inner surface :- Brownish rough and with irregular transverse cracks

Fracture :- Short and granular

Light yellow wood may be seen attached occasionally

CORK CELLS

Thin walled few colorless and few are with yellowish brown matter

STONE CELLS / SCLERIDS

Rectangular to oval in shape, walls striated, pitted and lignified. surrounded by sheath of parenchymatous cells containing calcium oxalate crystals.

MEDULLARY RAYS

Phloem parenchyma traverse the medullary rays at right angles through such pieces are not seen many in number

CALCIUM OXALATE CRYSTALS

Present in the form of prisms scattered all over in the powder

STARCH GRAINS

Few in number, simple grains

Kurchi bark contains steroidal alkaloid up to about 1.8 to 4.5%

They are C21 group of steroidal alkaloids

The active alkaloids are conessine(kurchicine),norconessine,isoconessine, dioxyconessine, conessimine, holarrhimine, holarrhidine, kurchalosssine, kurchessine and regholarrhenines

Conessine is also present in root bark along with some other steroidal alkaloids

The other alkaloids of conanine series have been reported from the bark

In addition to alkaloids kurchi contains gums, resins, tannins, lupeal and beta-sitosterol

CONESSINE

NORCONESSINE

ISOCONESSINE

CONESSIMINE

HOLARRHIDINE

SALKOWSKI REACTION:- To 20 ml of extract add 2ml of chloroform and 2ml of concentrated sulphuric acid shake well. chloroform layer appears red and acid layer shows greenish yellow fluorescence. Indicates the presence of steroidal moiety

LIBERMANN-BURCHARD REACTION:-Mix 2ml of extract with chloroform add 1-2ml of acetic anhydride and 2drops of concentrated sulphuric acid from sides of the test tube. First red then blue and finally green color appears. Indicates the presence of steroidal moiety

Contd…….LIBERMANN’S REACTION:-Mix 3ml extract with 3ml

acetic anhydride heat and cool, add few drops of concentrated sulphuric acid. Blue color appears. Indicates the presence of steroidal moiety

THERAPEUTIC USES

Kurchi bark is antiprotozoal in activity and used to treat amoebic dysentery

Kurchi bark is considered to be stomachic, astringent, tonic, anti-dysenteric, febrifuge and anthelmintic

The dried bark is rubbed over the body in dropsy

Conessine is highly active against Entamoeba histolytica

A traditional preparation of kurchi bark i.e. “kutajarishta” is commonly used specially for chronic amoebiasis

The preparation of kurchine bismuth iodide which contains 23 to 27% total alkaloid is used as anti dysenteric