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Botanical Name |
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Adansonia digitata L. |
English
Name |
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Baobab, Cream of Tartar tree, Monkey-bread tree, Lemonade tree |
Family |
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Malvaceae |
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General Info
Description |
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A thornless, deciduous, very peculiar tree, up to 18 m tall, trunk short, bulging, bottle-shaped. Stem is covered with a bark layer, which may be 50-100 mm thick. Bark is greyish brown and normally smooth but can often be variously folded and seamed from years of growth. Leaves are hand-sized and divided into 5-7 finger-like leaflets. Flowers are large and pendulous and up to 200 mm in diameter; they emerge in the late afternoon from large round buds on long drooping stalks and pollination by fruit bats takes place at night. Fruits are large, egg-shaped capsule (often >120 mm), covered with a yellowish brown hairs. Seeds are hard, black and kidney-shaped. |
Herb Effects |
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Used as expectorant and astringent and has antihistaminic properties (leaves); as a febrifuge, anti-dysenteric, antimycotic, antiviral and antimicrobial (fruits) |
Chemistry
Active Ingredients |
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Betulinic acid (bark); ascorbic acid (fruits); tannin, potassium tartrate and catechin (leaves) |
Chemistry
of Active Ingredients |
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Name |
CAS# |
IUPAC Name |
Formula |
Structure |
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Betulinic Acid |
4481-62-3 |
Not Available |
C30H46O3 |
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Ascorbic Acid |
Not Available |
2-(1,2-dihydroxyethy l)-4,5-dihydroxy-fur an-3-one |
C6H8O6 |
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Tannin |
1401-55-4 |
Not Available |
C27H22O18 |
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Catechin |
5323-80-8 |
2-(3,4-dihydroxyphen yl)chroman-3,5,7-tri ol |
C15H14O6 |
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Potassium tartrate |
921-53-9 |
dipotassium (2R,3R)-2,3-dihydrox ybutanedioate |
C4H4K2O6 |
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Pharmacology
Medicinal Use |
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For treating sickle cell anaemia (aqueous extract of the bark); used to treat fevers, to check excessive perspiration, to treat kidney and bladder diseases, asthma, general fatigue, diarrhoea, inflammations, insect bites and guinea worm disease (leaves); used to bath babies in order to promote a smooth skin (infusion of the roots); in the treatment of smallpox and measles as an eye instillation and also used as an antidote to strophanthus poisoning (fruits); to treat amenorrhoea (husk of fruits); applied as a paste to diseased teeth and gums (crushed seeds). |
Dealers
Products
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