Ethnobotanical
Leaflets 13: 668-78 , 2009. Ethnobotany of Acacia jacquemontii Benth. -
An Uncharted Tree of 1K. Choudhary*, 2M. Singh
and 3N.S. Shekhawat 1
Department of Botany and Biotechnology, 2
Biotechnology Laboratory, FASC, Mody Institute of Technology and Science,
Lakshmangarh, Sikar, 3
Department of Botany, *Author
for correspondence: e-mail: kchoudharylmc@gmail.com � Issued�
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Abstract The
present ethnobotanical study describes the traditional knowledge related to
the use of Acacia jacquemontii and
its derived products used by the
tribes and communities reside in the Thar Desert of Rajasthan, Key words: Abortion,
Agroforestry, Gum, Renal disorder, Snake bite, Tribal. Introduction ����� The
Figure
1.� Area investigated for
present work.
Figure
2.
Various tribes Thar Desert of Rajasthan. �������
Acacia jacquemontii Benth. is a member of family
fabaceae, locally called as Bhu-banwali, Raati-banwali (Red colored) Baonli
or Bhunwali. It is a rigid xerophytic shrub or small tree upto 2.5 m high
(Fig. 3). It has characteristic stiff, smooth, brown, zig-zag branches (Fig
4). It has spiny stipules, glabrous ovary, peduncle with a distinct joint.
This plant is distributed throughout semi-arid regions. The flowering and
fruiting in A. jacquemontii takes
place in months of February to May (Bhandari 1978). Flowers are yellow
colored and sweet-scented with head inflorescence. Pod of the plant are short
and broad, 5-7.5 cm long; 8-17 mm broad with compressed, sutures straight and
constricted seeds (5-6 seeds per pod). ������� This plant grow relatively quickly,
coppice readily and are a source of nitrogen in desert ecosystem. The plant
have a fast growing tap root that enables them to utilize moisture stored in
lower soil layers to remain green long in to the dry seasons. The extensive
root system makes them ideal for dune stabilization and preventing soil
erosion. Stem exudates gum out of an injured site on the trunk or branches of
trees, drying into tears or vermiform masses (Fig. 4). It occurs at Johars,
Beeds, Talabs, Oorans, Conservatries, farmer fields and it provides valuable
ecological and economic values. �������� Acacia is
the most significant genus of family: Leguminosae, first of all described by
Linnaeus in 1773. It is estimated that there are roughly 1380 species of Acacia
worldwide, about two-third of them native to Australia and rest of spread
around tropical and subtropical regions of the world (Maslin et al., 2003; Orchard and Maslin, 2003).Gamble, (1918) have
reported more than 40 species of this genus in India in his 'Flora of Madras
Presidency.' Acacia species are commonly known as �Babool� in
Figure
3.
Tree/Shrub of Acacia jacquemontii. pharmacognosy
and pharmacology during last fifty years have revealed that many species of
this genus have been reported to be used against a variety of disease. Acacia
nilotica has been proved as effective medicine in treatment of malaria,
sore throat (aerial part) and toothache (bark) (Jain et al., 2005; Kubmarawa et al., 2007). The methanolic extracts of A. nilotica pods
have been claimed against HIV-PR (Bessong and Obi, 2006). The antiplatelet
aggregatory activity of this species was reported in animal model by Shah et al. (1997) that were possibly due
to blockade of calcium influx through membrane calcium channels on target
cell. Currently, one group of researchers has tested the antiplasmodial
activity of A. nilotica ethyl acetate extract against different
chloroquine resistant and sensitive strains of Plasmodium falciparum (El-
Tahir et al., 1999). The fresh plant parts of this species have been
reported to be most active against Hepatitis C virus by Hussein et al.,
(2000).Currently, numerous herbal
products derived from Acacia species are available in market. Thus,
there is need to explore rest of under estimated Acacia species, so that this information may be valuable resource
for mankind. In present exploration, Acacia jacquemontii Benth were
undertaken for preliminary ethnobotanical medicinal investigation.
Figure
4.
Stems of A. jacquemontii showing
production of gums and pods. Methods ������� Ethnomedicinal survey of selected A.
jacquemontii species were carried out during July 2007 to July 2008 in
Thar Desert of Rajasthan, ������� Diverse research methodologies have
been used in order to understand the ethnobotany of this shrub/tree. The
interviews were conducted with local Ayurvedic vaidyas, tribal peoples and
knowledgeable individuals, ranging in age between 35 and 70 years old. The
persons to be interviewed were selected randomly and no appointment was made
prior to the visits. Tribal peoples and Vaidyas that consented were asked to
give their knowledge about the diseases against which they use A. jacquemontii. Questions were asked
about the method of preparation of the remedies, details of administration,
including the approximate amounts and number of doses per day or week. The
healers were also asked if the remedy had any adverse effect. Tribal peoples
were asked for various traditional uses of plant. The conversations were
performed in the "marwari" language which was fluently spoken by
both traditional tribal peoples and interviewers, and the information was
directly translated and written in English. All the information regarding
plant species, biological forms, habitat, local names and uses were
documented. The information obtained was compared with the published
literature about plant. Results
and Discussions ������� This research contributes to a better
understanding of the uses of A.
jacquemontii in traditional
practice of Ethno-Medicinal Uses The
bark of tree is used to induce spontaneous abortion in women in any stage of
pregnancy. For treatment 100g of fresh bark collected from older trees are
boiled in one glass of water. When � of the liquid remains, the decoction is
strained, cooled, and drunk. The standard treatment is to administer three
such doses per day for three days. It was mentioned that this treatment is
used only when the fetus is suspected of being malformed or the water sack
ruptures prematurely. ������
The bark of tree is also used for snake bites. The dried bark is
converted in form of paste with water. The paste is applied on cut by snake
bite. Fibers extracted from bark are also used to tie on the spot where
scorpion has stung. This is supposed to give relief to the poison. A. jacquemontii
produces dried gum on stem. Gum is copious exudate, which is a nearly
transparent fluid, comes out of an injured site on the trunk or branches of
trees, drying into tears or vermiform masses. Gum of A. jacquemontii is a complex and variable mixture of
arabinogalactan oligosaccharides, polysaccharides and glycoproteins. It is a
highly branched, globular, glycoprotein, which possesses a flexible but
compact conformation. A. jacuemontii
gum has been extensively used by tribal for kidney and renal disorder.
Figure 5. �Ethano-medicines extracted from roots and
bark of A. jacquemontii. ����� For this gum is dried in sun light and
grinded into fine powder by stone.� Two
to three dose of 5g gum powder is given daily to patients. It was confirmed
from various local renal patients who were cured by this treatment. It was
found treatment for six month is sufficient to cure chronic renal
malfunctioning. Gum of this plant is also added in various food preparations
to serve as heath tonic. Especially such food preparation is used by patients
in case of fatal illness, accidents leading to severe injury or by women
after child birth. It is believed that incorporation of gum helps in fast
recovery from such conditions. Gum also has demulcent and astringent
properties and often added for medicine for this purpose. For curing asthma
Gum is boiled and given once a day for one month duration. Gum is also eaten
in sores in mouth. Eco-conservation by
stabilizing sand dunes The
vast sandy tracts which are distributed in the Western and Northern plains of
the state, form the dunes and the plain. The dunes are of two type - the
embryonic, and the stabilized ones. There is no vegetation on the embryonic
dunes except some ephemerals like Gisekia pharnaceoides, Euphorbia
prostrata, Mollugo cerviana, Polycarpaea corymbosa and others which are
the pioneers. When the embryonic dunes are gradually stabilized due to the
growth of sand binders like Leptadenia pyrotechnica, Calotropis procera,
Aerva tomentosa, Saccharam munja, and others , they provide a suitable
habitat for the growth of plant species like Convolvulus, Heliotropium,
Indigofera, Tephrosia, Polygala, and perennials like Echinops
echinatus, Crotalaria medicagenia, and Shrub like Acacia jacqumontii.
A. jacqumontii play a major role
in stabilizing sand dunes due to its extensive root system. Tribal
peoples and communities in investigated area give much emphasis on growing A.
jacquemontii on sand dunes for their stabilization. A
Potential Tree for Agro-forestry Agro-forestry
is an approach to land use based on deliberate integration of trees with crop
and/or livestock production systems (Kang et al. 1999). Agro-forestry is an
ancient practice in Source of fodder, Fuel and
Fibers The
leaves are good source of fodder for goats and camels. The leaves and pods
are thrashed out and used as cattle fodder. The wood of this plant is a very
useful fuel in Indian sub-continent due to its high calorific value. The wood
when burned gives out the intense heat and therefore employed by the
Goldsmith, Silversmith and Gadulia lohar (Ironsmiths). The roots of A. jacquemontii are pulled carefully
by tribal to harvest pleurome (Roots without bark). Extracted pleurome were
used as high tensile ropes or strings for variety of applications. Single
rope may be 30 feet in length. Dried stems and branches are used for
thatching huts, cattle shed and making boundary of agricultural fields. The
bark of the root is used as inocula for fermentation and making local spirit. Conclusion The
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