Tinospora cordifolia (WILLD.) HOOK.F. & THOMS

Family : Menispermaceae

Synonym(s) : Tinospora glabra (Burm f.) Merrill. Menispermum cordifolium Willd., Cocculus cordifolius DC, Menispermum glabrum Brum. f.

English Name : Tinospora

Description

It is a large, glabrous, deciduous climbing shrub. The stems are rather succulent with long filiform fleshy aerial roots from the branches. The bark is grey-brown and warty; the leaves are membranous and cordate; the flowers, small, yellow or greenish yellow, in axillary and terminal racemes or racemose panicles; the male flowers clustered and females usually solitary; the drupes are ovoid, glossy, succulent, red and pea-sized; the seeds curved.

Habitat

It is found throughout tropical India, to an altitude of 300m.

Parts Used : Stem

Herb Effects

Antiperiodic, antispasmodic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic.

Active Ingredients

Tinsporine, tinosporide, tinosporaside, cordifolide, cordifol, heptacosanol, clerodane furano diterpene, diterpenoid furanolactone tinosporidine, columbin, and ß-sitosterol.

Medicinal Use

To treat fever (irregular and chronic), jaundice, thrist, vomiting, arthritis, skin diseases, cough, as rejuvenative for purifying breast-milk, eye diseases,secondary syphilis, rheumatism, constipation, tuberculosis, leprosy, as a blood purifier, useful in AIDS and other immune diseases, for cancer patients before and after chemotherapy.

Dosage

Infusion: one-half to one fluidounce (15-30 mils).
Tincture: one-half to one fluidrachm (1.8-3.75 mils).
Concentrated solution: one-half to one fluidrachm (1.8-3.75 mils).

Reference

1. Adhvaryu MR, Reddy MN, Vakharia BC. Prevention of hepatotoxicity due to anti tuberculosis treatment: A novel integrative approach. World Journal of Gastroenterology 2008; 14(30): 4753-4762.
2. Badar VA, Thawani VR, Wakode PT, Shrivastava MP, Gharpure KJ, Hingorani LL, Khiyani RM. Efficacy of Tinospora cordifolia in allergic rhinitis. J Ethnopharmacol. 2005 Jan 15; 96(3):445-9. E pub 2004 Nov 23.
3. Bafna PA, Balaraman R. Anti-ulcer and anti-oxidant activity of pepticare, a herbomineral formulation. Phytomedicine. 2005 Apr;12(4):264-70.
4. Nair PK, Rodriguez S, Ramachandran R, Alamo A, Melnick SJ, Escalon E, Garcia PI Jr, Wnuk SF, Ramachandran C. Immune stimulating properties of a novel polysaccharide from the medicinal plant Tinospora cordifolia. Int Immunopharmacol. 2004 Dec 15;4(13):1645-59.
5. Rawal AK, Muddeshwar MG, Biswas SK. Rubia cordifolia, Fagonia cretica linn and Tinospora cordifolia exert neuroprotection by modulating the antioxidant system in rat hippocampal slices subjected to oxygen glucose deprivation. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2004 Aug 13;4:11.
6. Singh SM, Singh N, Shrivastava P. Effect of alcoholic extract of Ayurvedic herb Tinospora cordifolia on the proliferation and myeloid differentiation of bone marrow precursor cells in a tumor-bearing host. Fitoterapia. 2006 Jan;77(1):1-11. Epub 2005 Dec 2.