Desmodium gangeticum (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

1, plant habit; 2, branch with infructescence; 3, flower; 4, mature pod (Achmad Satiri Nurhaman)

Desmodium gangeticum (L.) DC.

Protologue: Prodr. 2: 327 (1825).

Synonyms

• Hedysarum gangeticum L. (1753),
• Meibomia gangetica (L.) O. Kuntze (1891).

Vernacular names

• Indonesia: daun bulu ayam (Malay, Manado), daun picah (Sundanese), waliketupa (Javanese)
• Malaysia: akar katah, serengan, kemani bali
• Philippines: dikit-dikit (Tagalog), pega-pega (Cebu Bisaya), andudukut (Sulu)
• Laos: tük hma:, do:yz tük hma:, ph'è:ng kh'am h'o:yz
• Thailand: i-nio, yaa tuet maeo, nuut phra phuu (Trang)
• Vietnam: cây thóc lép, cỏ cháy, bài ngài.

Distribution

Tropical Africa, tropical and subtropical Asia, throughout the Malesian region and Oceania; introduced in the West Indies.

Uses

In Java, a decoction of the leaves is used against stones in the gall bladder, kidneys or bladder. In Malaysia, a decoction of the root is employed to treat diarrhoea or as a sedative for children. The roots are applied to the gums against toothache, and the leaves to the head against headache. In Vietnam, the roots are considered diuretic and prescribed in case of oedema. A decoction is used externally to clean wounds and ulcers. It is also used in Indo-China to treat coughs, swellings, dysentery and kidney problems. In Thailand, the roots are used as a diuretic and the whole plant as an anthelmintic. In India, the roots are reported to be applied as a febrifuge, bitter tonic, expectorant, alterative, diuretic and astringent, and in the treatment of diarrhoea, chronic fever, biliousness, snake bite and poisoning. The fibrous stems are reported to be useful for paper production, and in the Philippines they are used to make prawn traps. Conflicting information exists on its usefulness as a green manure.

Observations

• A much branched, erect shrub, or a prostrate to ascending subshrub 30-200 cm tall, rootstock thickened, young stems hairy.
• Leaves 1-foliolate, stipules narrow and tapering to a point, 7-15 mm long, leaflet (1-)2.5-18 cm × (0.8-)2-8 cm, very variable in shape and size, chartaceous, upper surface variously hairy, lower surface densely hairy, lateral veins 6-12, usually extending to the margin, persistent.
• Inflorescence a terminal or axillary raceme or panicle, 10-30 cm long.
• Flowers in clusters of 2-4, calyx 4-lobed, densely covered with minute hooked hairs and longer straight hairs, corolla white to pale yellow or rose to violet, androecium diadelphous.
• Pod linear, variably incurved, 1.2-2.5 cm × 2-2.5 mm, (4-)6-8-jointed, covered with minute hooked hairs, articles broadly oblong.
• Seeds pale yellow, reniform, 1.5-1.8 mm × 2-2.5 mm.

D. gangeticum is a very common weed in Malesia, mainly found in anthropogenic habitats in the lowlands, under everwet or seasonal conditions. In Indo-China it is found in savannas and deforested terrains, in hedges and along forest paths, up to 1900 m altitude.

Selected sources

• Backer, C.A. & Bakhuizen van den Brink Jr, R.C., 1963-1968. Flora of Java. 3 volumes. Noordhoff, Groningen, the Netherlands. Vol. 1 (1963) 647 pp., Vol. 2 (1965) 641 pp., Vol. 3 (1968) 761 pp.
• Banerjee, P.K. & Ghosal, S., 1969. Simple indole bases of Desmodium gangeticum (Leguminosae). Australian Journal of Chemistry 22: 275-277.
• 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.
• 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.
• Dy Phon, P., Ohashi, H. & Vidal, J.E., 1994. Légumineuses - Desmodiées [Leguminosae (Fabaceae) Papilionoideae - Desmodieae]. In: Lescot, M., Vidal, J.E. & Vidal, Y. (Editors): Flore du Cambodge, du Laos et du Viêtnam [Flora of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam]. Vol. 27. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France. 154 pp.
• Ghosal, S. & Banerjee, P.K., 1969. Alkaloids of the roots of Desmodium gangeticum. Australian Journal of Chemistry 22: 2029-2031.
• Hacker, J.B., 1990. A guide to herbaceous and shrub legumes of Queensland. University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, Australia. 351 pp.
• Heyne, K., 1950. De nuttige planten van Indonesië [The useful plants of Indonesia]. 3rd Edition. 2 volumes. W. van Hoeve, 's Gravenhage, the Netherlands/Bandung, Indonesia. 1660 + CCXLI pp.
• Huang, T. C. & Ohashi, H., 1993. Leguminosae. In: Huang, T. C. (Editor): Flora of Taiwan. 2nd Edition. Vol. 3. Editorial Committee of the Flora of Taiwan, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. pp 160-395.
• Iwu, M.M., Jackson, J.E., Tally, J.D. & Klayman, D.L., 1992. Evaluation of plant extracts for antileishmanial activity using a mechanism based radiorespirometric microtechnique (RAM). Planta Medica 58: 436-441.
• Knaap van Meeuwen, M.S., 1962. Preliminary revisions of some genera of Malaysian Papilionaceae V. A census of the genus Desmodium. Reinwardtia 6(3): 239-276.
• Latha, P. & Govindasamy, S., 1997. Gangetin - a reproductive inhibitor in male rats. Phytotherapy Research 11(6): 466-468.
• Latha, P., Govindasamy, S. & Balakrishna, K., 1997. Effect of gangetin on fertility of male rats. Phytotherapy Research 11(5): 372-375.
• Matthew, K.M., 1981-1988. The flora of the Tamilnadu Carnatic. 4 volumes. The Rapinat Herbarium, St. Joseph's College, Tiruchirapalli, India.
• Nguyen Van Duong, 1993. Medicinal plants of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Mekong Printing, Santa Ana, California, United States. 528 pp.
• Ohashi, H., 1973. The Asiatic species of Desmodium and its allied genera (Leguminosae). Ginkgoana No 1. Academia Scientific Books, Tokyo, Japan. 318 pp.
• Pedley, L. & Rudd, V.E., 1996. Fabaceae (Leguminosae) subfamily Faboideae (Papilionoideae) tribe Desmodieae. In: Dassanayake, M.D. & Clayton, W. D. (Editors): A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon. Vol. 10. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. pp. 149-198.
• Purushothaman, K.K., Chandrasekharan, S. & Balakrishna, K., 1975. Gangetinin and desmodin, two minor pterocarpanoids of Desmodium gangeticum. Phytochemistry 14: 1129-1130.
• Quisumbing, E., 1978. Medicinal plants of the Philippines. Katha Publishing Co., Quezon City, the Philippines. 1262 pp.
• Sprent, J.I. & McKey, D. (Editors), 1994. Advances in legume systematics. Part 5. The nitrogen factor. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, United Kingdom. pp. 241.
• Tran Dinh Ly, 1993. 1900 Loai cay co ich o Viet nam [1900 useful plant species in Vietnam]. Hanoi, Vietnam. 544 pp.
• Verdcourt, B., 1979. A manual of New Guinea legumes. Botany Bulletin No 11. Office of Forests, Division of Botany, Lae, Papua New Guinea. 645 pp.

Main genus page

• Desmodium (Medicinal plants)

Authors

N. Setyowati-Indarto & M. Brink