Ophiorrhiza mungos (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Ophiorrhiza mungos L.

Protologue: Sp. pl. 1: 150 (1753).

Family: Rubiaceae

Ophiorrhiza mungos L. - 1, flowering branch; 2, flower; 3, flower bud; 4, flower, corolla removed; 5, opened corolla

Vernacular names

• Mongoose plant (En)
• Malaysia: pokok sumpu badak
• Philippines: payang payang gubat (Tagalog), kayotimokan (Bagobo), lumai (Bikol).

Distribution

From India, Sri Lanka, to Indo-China, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java and the Philippines.

Uses

In Peninsular Malaysia, the plant is used as a poultice for keeping the skin moist and soft. In India, a decoction of the leaves, roots and bark is made into a bitter tonic and stomachic. The species name is from the story that mongoose eat this plant when bitten by a snake; however, its anti-snakebite activity is unfounded.

Observations

• A semi-woody, erect, normally glabrous herb, 10-50(–-80) cm tall.
• Leaves elliptical to elliptical-lanceolate, 4-12 cm × 2-6 cm, base and apex pointed, petiole 8-25 mm long, stipules 4-5 mm long, linear, caducous.
• Cyme more or less flat-topped, 2-12 cm in diameter, branches subumbellate, spreading, hairy or glabrous, bracts absent.
• Pedicel short, calyx teeth very short, corolla white, tube 7-8 mm long, lobes short, obtuse, keeled.
• Capsule 2-3 mm long, 6-8 mm in diameter.

O. mungos occurs in primary and secondary forest, in moist localities, up to 400 m altitude.

Selected sources

• [74] Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr, R.C., 1964—1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. Vol. 1 (1964) 647 pp., Vol. 2 (1965) 641 pp., Vol. 3 (1968) 761 pp.
• [135] Burkill, I.H., 1966. A dictionary of the economic products of the Malay Peninsula. Revised reprint. 2 volumes. Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol. 1 (A—H) pp. 1—1240, Vol. 2 (I—Z) pp. 1241—2444.
• [215] Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1948—1976. The wealth of India: a dictionary of Indian raw materials & industrial products. 11 volumes. Publications and Information Directorate, New Delhi, India.
• [225] Dachriyanus, Arbain, D., Putra, D.P., Sargent, M.V., Susila, R. & Wahyuni, F.S., 2000. Indole alkaloids from two species of Ophiorrhiza. Australian Journal of Chemistry 53(3): 221—224.
• [542] Kitajima, M., Fischer, U., Nakamura, M., Ohsawa, M., Ueno, M., Takayama, H., Unger, M., Stockigt, J. & Aimi, N., 1998. Anthraquinones from Ophiorrhiza pumila tissue and cell cultures. Phytochemistry 48(1): 107—111.
• [786] Perry, L.M., 1980. Medicinal plants of East and Southeast Asia. Attributed properties and uses. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States & London, United Kingdom. 620 pp.
• [838] A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon (various editors), 1980—2000. Volume 1—9. Amerind Publishing Co., New Delhi, India. Volume 10—14. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Main genus page

• Ophiorrhiza

Authors

• G.H. Schmelzer & N. Bunyapraphatsara