Crinum (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Crinum L.

Protologue: Sp. pl. 1: 290 (1753); Gen. pl. ed. 5: 141 (1754).

Family: Amaryllidaceae

Chromosome number: x= 11;C. asiaticum: 2n= 22, 33,C. latifolium: 2n= 22,C. zeylanicum: 2n= 22, 33

Major species

Crinum asiaticum L.

Vernacular names

• Cape lily, giant lily (En). Lis de brousse (Fr)
• Indonesia: bakung
• Malaysia: bakong
• Vietnam: náng.

Origin and geographic distribution

Crinum consists of approximately 100 species and occurs throughout the tropics, often cultivated as ornamentals, and sometimes escaped and naturalized. Two species are indigenous to Malesia, C. asiaticum and C. gracile E. Mey.

Uses

Many Crinum species are planted throughout the tropics as ornamentals, but their medicinal uses are also widely known. The bulb and roots of C. asiaticum are taken throughout the region as an emetic and diaphoretic, acting without griping or purging effects. They have a strong, unpleasant smell. In New Guinea, juice from the bulb is drunk regularly for about 2 months as an alleged cure for gonorrhoea. In India, the bulb is officially listed in the Pharmacopoeia, and is taken as a bitter tonic, laxative and expectorant. It is used in biliousness, in strangury and in other urinary problems. In Indonesia, the bulbs are used to poultice wounds and as an antidote for poisoned arrows, snakebites and poisonous insects. In the Philippines and Thailand, the bulbs are prepared as an ointment and the leaves as an emollient for external use on inflammations of toes and fingers, or bruises and sprains. The leaves are also widely applied in South-East Asia for rheumatic pains, fever or headache, either oiled and heated to wilt or pounded. The juice of the leaves with a little salt is used for earache. In Vietnam, the fresh juice of the leaves is drunk as a vomitory. In Indonesia, a rub with the pounded leaves is applied to stimulate perspiration, and the oiled, heated leaves are helpful in strangury.

The bulbs of C. latifolium and C. zeylanicum are extremely acrid and the juice is said to cause inflammation of the skin and the mucous membranes. When roasted, they are used as rubefacient in rheumatism, or crushed on piles and abscesses to cause suppuration. The juice of the leaves is used for earache. In West Africa, the bulbs of C. zeylanicum are known to cause diarrhoea that is difficult to control.

The bulbs of the cultivated C. jagus (Thomps.) Dandy (synonym C. giganteum Andr.) and the aerial parts of C. kirkii Baker are used for open sores in tropical Africa. In South-East Asia, they are planted as ornamentals.

The bulb of C. defixum Ker Gawl., commonly planted as an ornamental in India, is considered nauseant, emetic, emollient and diaphoretic. In India, the whole plant is used in the treatment of burns, whitlow and carbuncles. In Peninsular Malaysia and Thailand, the crushed leaves are used for poulticing headaches and fevers.

Production and international trade

Crinum is used medicinally on a local scale only.

Properties

The family Amaryllidaceae is known to contain isoquinoline alkaloids, biosynthetically derived from the amino acid tyrosin, which are mostly concentrated in their bulbs. For example, the bulb and stem of C. asiaticum contain as principal alkaloids: lycorine (or narcissine) and galanthamine, together with haemanthine, 3-acetylhamaine, 6-oxycrinamine, 6-methoxycrinamine, crinidine and (+)-crinamine, (-)-augustine, (-)-buphanisine, and (-)-amabiline. In addition, the bulbs of C. asiaticum var. japonicum Baker contain the alkaloid N-demethyl-galanthamine, the fruits of C. asiaticum contain O-demethylcrinamine, and the bulbs of both C. asiaticum and C. augustum Roxb. contain the isoquinolines palmilycorine, hippadine and lycoriside.

Several of the alkaloids mentioned display various pharmacological effects. The main isoquinoline, lycorine, has some properties which resemble the indole alkaloid yohimbine, and it is sometimes used in veterinary medicine as an aphrodisiac. In low doses lycorine causes salivation, vomiting, diarrhoea, and at higher doses paralysis and collapse. Furthermore, lycorine shows strong inhibitory effects on tumour cell apoptosis induced by polymorphonuclear leukocyte-derived calprotectin using MM46 mouse mammary carcinoma cells, and the compound inhibits polio and measles viruses. Lycorine, augustine and crinamine also show general cytotoxic and antimalarial activity, while augustine also shows a high inhibition of tobacco mosaic virus, potato X carlavirus, potato X potexvirus and potato Y potyvirus on tomatoes.

Galanthamine is a potent cholinesterase inhibitor and an analgesic, which is at present under investigation for clinical use (e.g. in treatment of Alzheimer disease). Palmilycorine and lycoriside were also found to inhibit the growth of ascites tumour cells, and hippadine showed significant anti-fertility effects in a rat testes model.

The petroleum, chloroform and ether extracts of the aerial parts of C. asiaticum were tested for their anti-inflammatory effects in mice. The chloroform and ethanol extracts given orally at a dose of 50 mg/kg caused a significant reduction in carrageenan-induced hind paw oedema. The chloroform fraction of the ethanol extract caused dose-dependent reduction in bradykinin-induced contractions of isolated rat uterus and guinea-pig ileum preparations. The MeOH, BuOH and CHCl₃fractions of the leaves were screened for activity in the brine shrimp lethality test. The MeOH extract was most potent, and also exhibited activity against murine P388 D1 cells and the formation of potato disk crown gall tumours. In addition, the sap from the bulbs of C. asiaticum at a concentration of 0.1% shows antifeedant and deterrent properties of the locust Schistocerca gregaria .

The bulbs of C. zeylanicum contain the amines tyramine and zeylamine, and also the alkaloids lycorine, 3-acetyl hamaine, 6-oxycrinamine and 6-methoxycrinamine. Aqueous and ethanolic extracts of C. zeylanicum exhibited a high mortality rate against the mollusc intermediate hosts, Biomphalaria pfeifferi and Lymnaea natalensis , of schistosomiasis and fascioliasis. These extracts, however, also show toxic effects on fish and aquatic insects.

The bulbs of C. latifolium and C. defixum contain the alkaloids 9-O-demethylhomolycorine and 5-α-hydroxyhomolycorine. The stem fluid of C. latifolium also contains 2-epilyocorine and 2-epipancrassidine, and the bulbs pratorimine and pratosine, as well as hippadine, pratorinine, ambelline and lycorine. The sap from the bulbs of C. defixum shows antifeedant activity against the larvae of the mustard sawfly ( Athalia proxima ).

Finally, the commonly observed dermatitis, due to the handling of the bulbs of Crinum , was found to be induced by the raphides of calcium oxalate found in their tissues.

Adulterations and substitutes

Ipecacuanha ( Psychotria ipecacuanha (Brot.) Stokes (synonym Cephaelis ipecacuanha (Brot.) A. Rich.) is used as a substitute for Crinum bulbs, as an emetic.

Description

Bulbous herbs, usually the top of the bulb developing into a short false stem; bulblets developing from the bulb. Leaves radical, rarely biseriate, linear to lanceolate, margins entire, sometimes undulating; sessile or basally subpetiolate. Inflorescence umbellate, 1-many-flowered; scape (peduncle) lateral, solid, bracts 2, large, papery and reflexed when dry, several smaller ones between the flowers. Flowers actinomorphic or slightly zygomorphic, bisexual, subsessile or pedicelled; tepals in 2 whorls of 3, subequal, united at the base into a long, narrow tube; stamens 6, inserted at the throat, filaments free, anthers medifixed, linear, often curved; ovary inferior, 3-celled, 1-many-ovuled, style filiform, long, stigma entire, small. Fruit a subglobose capsule or a berry, indehiscent or irregularly dehiscent, with a fleshy or membranous wall, few seeded. Seed globose or somewhat flattened, greenish or greyish.

Growth and development

Crinum grows best in direct sunlight with part-day shade or in bright, filtered light, avoiding full sunlight when the leaves are young. Pollination is done by insects such as bees and bumble-bees.

Other botanical information

Amaryllidaceae differ from closely related families like Iridaceae and Liliaceae in having alkaloids. Within Amaryllidaceae , 2 large groups are recognized, a more primitive group without corona (e.g. Amaryllis , Crinum and Galanthus ) and a more progressive group with corona (e.g. Hymenocallis , Narcissus and Pancratium ). Crinum is a close-knit genus, and differences between species are quite subtle. The Hypoxidaceae are sometimes included in the Amaryllidaceae or Liliaceae , but is considered a separate family here.

Ecology

Crinum occurs naturally in savanna at low altitudes, and on sandy localities, including coastal and riverine forests.

Propagation and planting

Crinum is propagated by fresh seed or bulblets (offsets). The seeds are sown singly in sandy loam with leaf mulch, and are kept rather dry until germination. Somatic embryogenesis was obtained from compact flower bud calli on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium, and was also possible with bulb scale segments, but at a lower rate. Best results were obtained with shoot tips, on MS medium supplemented with 4 mg/l naphthalene acetic acid and 8 mg/l butyric acid. Adding adenine sulphate at 60 mg/l increased shoot development, and 2 mg/l of indole butyric acid was most effective for rooting. Survival rate of transplanted micropropagated plantlets was more than 95%.

Husbandry

The bulbs of Crinum are sensitive to transplanting and may take several years to establish and reach their potential stature. Once established however, they reproduce rapidly from offsets, ensuring the overcrowded conditions that stimulate flowering, especially in pots. Crinum needs an annual top dressing to promote flowering.

Diseases and pests

In India and Vietnam, C. asiaticum is attacked by several fungi causing leaf spot, e.g. Cercospora criniicola , Phomopsis crini and leaf blight, Helminthosporium sp.

Harvesting

The leaves or bulbs of Crinum are harvested mainly from garden plants whenever needed.

Yield

In Russia, the highest total alkaloid content (1.6%) in the bulbs of C. asiaticum is found at the end of the growing season, after the first frost.

Handling after harvest

The leaves and bulbs of Crinum are mainly used fresh, but the leaves are sometimes dried before use.

Genetic resources and breeding

As most Crinum are widely planted as ornamentals, there seems to be no risk of genetic erosion. Breeding is only done for ornamental purposes.

Prospects

The alkaloids present in Crinum show an interesting array of pharmacological properties. Some of them are well investigated, for example of galanthamine as a cholinesterase inhibitor, but for most of them which showed potential, more research is needed for a full evaluation of their possibilities in future medicine.

Literature

• Dassanayake, M.D., 2000. Amaryllidaceae. In: Dassanayake, M.D. & Clayton, W. D. (Editors): A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon. Vol. 14. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. pp. 15-28.
• Geerink, D.J.L., 1993. Amaryllidaceae (including Hypoxidaceae). In: Kalkman, C., Kirkup, D.W., Nooteboom, H.P., Stevens, P.F. & de Wilde, W.J.J.O. (Editors): Flora Malesiana. Series 1, Vol. 11. Rijksherbarium/ Hortus Botanicus, Leiden, the Netherlands. pp. 353-373.
• Quisumbing, E., 1978. Medicinal plants of the Philippines. Katha Publishing Co., Quezon City, the Philippines. pp. 171-172.
• Sakar, M., Rady, M. & El-Bahr, M., 1998. Towards commercial production of ornamental bulbs in vitro. Egyptian Journal of Horticulture 25(1): 113-128.
• Samud, A.M., Asmawi, M.Z., Sharma, J.N. & Yusof, A.P., 1999. Anti-inflammatory activity of Crinum asiaticum plant and its effect on bradykinin-induced contractions on isolated uterus. Immunopharmacology 43(2-3): 311-316.
• Yui, S., Mikami, M., Kitahara, M. & Yamazaki, M., 1998. The inhibitory effect of lycorine on tumor cell apoptosis induced by polymorphonuclear leukocyte-derived calprotectin. Immunopharmacology 40(2): 151-162.

Authors

Wardah