 Botany
Bengal hemp is an erect, stiff branched, half-woody herb, usually about 1 meter high, with all the parts finely hairy. Leaves are simple, linear-oblong to oblong, 4 to 10 centimeters in length. Flowers are scattered, on terminal racemes, 8 to 20 centimeters long. Calyx has long lobes and densely covered with brown hairs. Corolla is yellow and about 2.5 centimeters long. Hairy pods are oblong, and about 3 centimeters long.
Distribution
- Occasionally cultivated in the Philippines.
- Naturalized in the Ilocos Norte Province.
- Introduced from India.
Constituents
- Leaves contain an abundance of mucilage, a little solid fat and a resin soluble in ether.
- Phytochemical screening of ethanol extract of flowers and seeds yielded steroids, triterpenes, flavonoids, phenolics and glycosides.
Properties
- Leaves are considered refrigerant, demulcent, emetic, purgative, emmenagogue and abortive.
- Root is astringent.
- Seeds are corrective of blood.
Parts used
Roots, seeds, leaves.
Uses
Folkloric
- Infusion of bitter leaves are used externally and internally for gastric and bilious fevers accompanied by skin diseases like impetigo and psoriasis. Also used as emmenagogue.
- Root is used for colic and as astringent in epistaxis.
- Seeds used to purify the blood.
- Powdered seeds, mixed with oil, used to make the hair grow.
- In India, used for anemia, impetigo, menorrhagia, psoriasis.
 Studies
• Anti-Inflammatory / Anti-Ulcerogenic: Study showed CJ extract significantly inhibited adjuvant induced arthritis in rats. It also possessed anti-ulcerogenic property which may be due to an appetite suppresant effect.
• Toxicological Studies on Seeds: Study showed the administration of a dose of 200 mg/kg of extracts of seeds on liver, kidney, spleen and adrenals of adult rats caused significant alterations. Organ net weight decreased, histology showed disintegration necrosis and degeneration in the liver, renal tubular cell degeneration and exfoliation, zona glomerulosa hypertrophy in the adrenals, and splenic increase in megakaryotic cells and lymphocytes.
• Antispermatogenic / Hormonal Effects: Study evaluated the antifertility activity of various extracts of Crotalaria juncea seeds in male mice. Results showed decrease in testis and accessory organ weights, with spermatogonia, spermatocytes, spermatids and sperm counts were reduced. The ethanol extract showed the most potent antispermatogenic activity. Study concludes that various extracts arrest spermatogenesis and are likely to have antiandrogenic activity.
• Antibacterial / Seeds and Flowers: Study of ethanol extract of flower and seed parts revealed significant antibacterial activity against E. coli, K. pneumonia, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus and V. cholera. The antibacterial activity may be linked to the phenolic content.
• Seed Oil Fatty Acid / Antioxidant / Anti-Inflammatory / Antibacterial: Study showed (1) high amount of linoleic acid (62%) in C. juncea seed oil. (2) concentration-dependent antioxidant activity (3) dose-dependent anti-inflammatory activity comparable to diclofenac sodium. (4) Moderate antibacterial activity.
• Paper Pulp: Preliminary screening and small scale pulping tests showed the species to possess good pulping characteristics with a potential for a high macerate yield and prepared pulps suitable for a wide variety of end uses. CJ bast fibers are particulartly suitable for cigarette paper use because of high cellulose and low ash content.
Availability
Wild-crafted.
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