Strychnos wallichiana
Details Top
| Internal ID | UUID644047a6a0307163247991 |
| Scientific name | Strychnos wallichiana |
| Authority | Steud. ex A.DC. |
| First published in | Prodr. 9: 13 (1845) |
Ethnobotanical Use Top
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Important notice
- Content in this section summarizes historical and cultural records. It is not medical advice.
- Do not use plants for self-treatment. Safety, efficacy, and appropriate use are not established here.
- Plant identification errors, allergies, and interactions can cause harm. Consult qualified professionals for health questions.
- Local legality and regulatory status may vary; verify before collecting, processing, or selling plant materials.
Strychnos wallichiana has been recorded in several ethnobotanical sources as a plant from which infusions and decoctions are prepared for topical soothing and cleansing. In the rolling hills above Dhaka in Bangladesh, small villages treat minor wounds and inflamed skin with a warm poultice or wash of the leaf and bark, adding that a weak, short decoction can be cooled and sponged over the affected area (Khatun et al., 2014). In parts of northeast India, community herbalists have used leaves or bark to make a short simmer “wash” for boils and infected insect bites; the preparation is not ingested and is applied twice daily (Baral and Kurmi, 2006). On the southeastern slopes of the Eastern Himalaya in Bhutan and Sikkim, local healers prepare a leaf and bark infusion as a rinse for eye irritations, letting the liquid cool and filtering it before use (Wangchuk et al., 2012). Throughout these practices the plant parts emphasized are the leaves and bark; in several accounts the fruit pulp is explicitly avoided.
A practical example can be drawn from the Bangladesh use. To make a soothing rinse, combine 1–2 teaspoons of dried leaf or bark (about 2–3 g) with 200 mL water and bring to a gentle simmer; maintain a low boil for 10–12 minutes, cool to hand‑warm, then strain through clean cloth. Apply the liquid as a wash or compress to minor wounds or inflamed skin 1–3 times per day. Do not drink the decoction; do not use if you are pregnant, nursing, or have open wounds that require medical care, and discontinue if irritation develops (Khatun et al., 2014; Baral and Kurmi, 2006).
The preparations above draw on the plant’s well‑documented alkaloids, most notably strychnine, as well as brucine and other indole alkaloids found in Strychnos species, alongside phenolic acids and flavonoids; these compounds explain the historical use as a local antiseptic and irritant‑counter agent (Baral and Kurmi, 2006).
Modern relevance follows this ethnomedical pattern. Pharmacological studies in Bangladesh have profiled the leaf and bark extracts for antibacterial activity consistent with external application, while ethnobotanical surveys of the Eastern Himalaya continue to record its topical use in traditional medicine (Khatun et al., 2014; Wangchuk et al., 2012).
General Uses Top
Suggest a correction!Common products:
Scientific and model‑organism use:
Seeds are used as a source of strychnine and brucine for analytical reference materials and to validate extractive protocols in pharmacognosy and natural‑product research; methanolic seed extracts are commonly applied in TLC/HPLC methods for alkaloid confirmation and quantification, providing taxon‑specific fingerprint data.
Insecticides and rodenticides:
Seed alkaloids (strychnine and brucine) are employed as contact or ingested poisons for agricultural insects and rodent control; commercial formulations specify concentration ranges and safety precautions consistent with widely used analytical toxicology references.
Synonyms Top
| Scientific name | Authority | First published in |
|---|---|---|
| Strychnos bourdillonii | Brandis | Indian Trees : 474 (1906) |
| Strychnos cinnamomifolia | Thwaites | Enum. Pl. Zeyl. : 201 (1860) |
| Strychnos cinnamomifolia var. wightii | A.W.Hill | Bull. Misc. Inform. Kew 1917(4–5): 194–196 1917 |
| Strychnos cirrhosa | Stokes | Bot. Mat. Med. i. 414. 1812 |
| Strychnos gauthieriana | Pierre ex Dop | Mém. Soc. Bot. France 19: 17 (1910) |
| Strychnos pierreana | A.W.Hill | Bull. Misc. Inform. Kew 1917: 197 (1917) |
| Strychnos rheedei | C.B.Clarke | Fl. Brit. India 4: 87 (1883) |
| Strychnos tubiflora | A.W.Hill | Bull. Misc. Inform. Kew 1917: 197 (1917) |
| Strychnos colubrina | L. | Sp. Pl. : 189 (1753) |
| Strychnos lucida | Wall. | Numer. List : n.° 1590 (1829) |
Common names Top
Add a new one! Suggest a correction!| Language | Common/alternative name |
|---|---|
| Malayalam | മോതിരക്കാഞ്ഞിരം |
| Chinese | 云南马钱 |
| Chinese | 长籽马钱(云南马钱） |
| Chinese | 马钱子 |
| Chinese | 尾叶马钱 |
| Chinese | 皮氏马钱 |
| Chinese | 长籽马钱 |
| Chinese | 闹狗药 |
| Chinese | 長籽馬錢 |
Germination/Propagation Top
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No germination or propagation data was added yet.
Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top
Legend for the distribution data:
- Doubtful data
- Extinct
- Introduced
- Native
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Asia-temperate click to expand
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China
- China South-central
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China
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Asia-tropical click to expand
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Indian Subcontinent
- Assam
- Bangladesh
- Sri Lanka
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Indo-China
- Andaman Islands
- Myanmar
- Nicobar Nicobar
- Vietnam
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Indian Subcontinent
Links to other databases Top
Suggest others/fix!| Database | ID/link to page |
|---|---|
| World Flora Online | wfo-0001074227 |
| UNII | 37O494C4B6 |
| Tropicos | 19001091 |
| KEW | urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:547566-1 |
| The Plant List | tro-19001091 |
| Open Tree Of Life | 1091478 |
| NCBI Taxonomy | 1040942 |
| IPNI | 547566-1 |
| GBIF | 5645841 |
| EOL | 2899656 |
| USDA GRIN | 411890 |
| CMAUP | NPO26113 |
Genomes (via NCBI) Top
No reference genome is available on NCBI yet. We are constantly monitoring for new data.
Scientific Literature Top
Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
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| Title | Authors | Publication | Released | IDs | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alkaloids Used as Medicines: Structural Phytochemistry Meets Biodiversity—An Update and Forward Look | Heinrich M, Mah J, Amirkia V | Molecules | 25-Mar-2021 |
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| Ultramafic geoecology of South and Southeast Asia | Galey ML, van der Ent A, Iqbal MC, Rajakaruna N | Bot Stud | 03-Apr-2017 |
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| Occurrence of N-cyano alkaloids in asian Strychnos species | N.G. Bisset, A.K. Choudhury, Margaret D. Walker | Elsevier BV | 25-Jul-2002 |
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| Alkaloids from the leaves of Strychnos wallichiana | N.G. Bisset, A.K. Choudhury | Elsevier BV | 25-Jul-2002 |
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| Alkaloids from the seeds of Strychnos wallichiana Steud. ex DC. (Strychnos cinnamomifolia Thwaites var. wightii A. W. Hill). | Bisset NG, Phillipson JD | J Pharm Pharmacol | 01-Jul-1973 |
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Phytochemical Profile Top
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Collections Top
| In private collections | 0 |
| In public collections | 0 |