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<big>''[[Aerva]]'' Forssk.</big>
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:Protologue: Fl. aegypt.-arab.: 170, cxxii (1775).
== Major species ==
*''Aerva lanata'' (L.) A.L. Juss. ex Schultes, *''A. sanguinolenta'' (L.) Blume.
== Origin and geographic distribution ==
== Properties ==
Several alkaloids have been isolated, including aervine, methylaervine, aervoside, aervolanine, canthine-6-one and β-carboline-1-propionic acid in ''A. lanata'' . Several flavonoid glycosides have also been isolated and identified from this species, e.g. narcissin, aervitrin and 4 flavonoid β-coumaroylglycosides, together with 2 feruloylamides and other phenolic compounds. The compounds β-sitosterol, campesterol and chrysin have been isolated from ''A. lanata'' plants cultivated in Egypt and β-sitosterol, daucosterol, syringic acid, vanillic acid, feruloyltyramine and feruloylhomovanillylamine have been isolated from plants cultivated in Russia. Glucose, galactose and xylose were the predominant carbohydrates in hydrolysates from leaves and flowers.
Preliminary tests in India on rats to study the effects of fresh juice and aqueous extracts of ''A. lanata'' on the chemically induced nephrotic syndrome, and as anti-inflammatory, diuretic and steroidal agent showed positive results. An ethylacetate extract of the dried whole plant exhibited antimalarial activity. The diuretic effect has also been studied in humans. An extract (200 ml of a 50 g/l infusion) was reported to induce diuresis; the urine output was significantly elevated with extract from fresh plants, when compared with the control group which received the same quantities of water or isotonic saline. Furthermore, of the different parts of the plants tested, the flowers were found to be most effective in inducing diuresis. However, the nature of the diuresis (aquaretic or saluretic) was not defined, since only the urine flow was estimated. In a more comprehensive double-blind setting with healthy volunteers these results could not be repeated: the ''A. lanata'' extract did not significantly increase urine flow, sodium excretion, potassium excretion, or urine and plasma osmolality as compared to water or a diluted infusion of tea prepared to resemble the ''A. lanata'' extract as closely as possible in colour and taste. The influence on the formation of urinary (bladder) stones was investigated in the rat. It was shown that ''A. lanata'' did not affect the formation or dissolution of urinary stones of the phosphate type.
Leaves of ''A. sanguinolenta'' contain a potent inhibitor of plant virus infection. Leaf extracts mixed with the virus inoculum of tobacco mosaic virus and sunhamp rosette virus caused almost total inhibition of virus infectivity. The resistance to virus infection induced by the extract is systemic and long lasting. Leaf extracts of ''A. sanguinolenta'' , applied as 4% foliar spray, delayed the appearance of disease symptoms caused by yellow mosaic virus on mung bean, but they could not be used to control the disease.
== Adulterations and substitutes ==
Java tea ( ''Orthosiphon aristatus'' (Blume) Miq.) is another herb which is reputed for its diuretic activity, and which is prescribed to treat similar complaints and in similar preparations.
== Description ==
*Perennial, erect or somewhat clambering, dioecious or polygamous herbs up to 200 cm tall, often almost woody at base, often divided from near the base into ascending or erect branches; branches often unbranched for a considerable length, terete, densely clothed with appressed or patent whitish hairs. *Leaves alternate or opposite (often on a single specimen), simple and entire, densely clothed with appressed white hairs on both surfaces (but especially beneath); petiole short, stipules absent. *Inflorescence an axillary and terminal spike, solitary or fascicled and sometimes forming a paniculate inflorescence. *Flowers small, usually bisexual but sometimes unisexual, solitary in the axil of persistent bracts, subtended by 2 bracteoles, white or tinged with purple; tepals 5, free, hairy; stamens 5, filaments connate at base, free parts subulate, about half as long as tepals, alternating with shorter staminodes, anthers 2-celled; ovary superior, 1-celled, compressed, glabrous, style very short with 1-2 stigmas. *Fruit a much compressed utricle, about 1 mm in diameter, bursting irregularly, 1-seeded. *Seed reniform, shiny black.
== Growth and development ==
== Other botanical information ==
Three ''Aerva'' species have been reported to occur in the Malesian area, but one of these ( ''A. curtisii'' Oliv.) has been transferred to a new genus ''Psilotrichopsis'' together with the continental South-East Asian species ''A. cochinchinensis'' Gagn.
== Ecology ==
== Literature ==
* Amin, K.M.Y., Ahmed, S. & Khan, N.A., 1994. Anti-nephrotic syndrome ethnic drug Bishiri Booti (Aerva lanata) - experimental study of relevant pharmacological actions. Ethnobiology in human welfare: abstracts of the fourth international congress of ethnobiology, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India, 17-21 November, 1994. p. 94.
* Zapesochnaya, G.G., Pervykh, L.N. & Kurkin, V.A., 1991. A study of the herb Aerva lanata. Chemistry of Natural Compounds 27(3): 336-340.
== Selection of species ==
*[[Aerva lanata (PROSEA)|''Aerva lanata'']]
*[[Aerva sanguinolenta (PROSEA)|''Aerva sanguinolenta'']]
== Authors ==