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 Botany
Koron-koron is a small tree, growing to a height of 40 feet. Leaves
are smooth, somewhat leathery, broadly ovate, peltate, 15 to 18 centimeters long, 8 to 10 centimeters wide, pointed at
the tip, broad and rounded at the base, with petioles up to 7 to 12 inches long.
Blade is 5- to 9-nerved. Inflorescence is terminal or at the axils
of the leaves, 10 to 20 centimeters long. Flowers are hairy, whitish and about one centimeter in diameter. Fruit is ellipsoid or somewhat rounded and 1.5 to 3 centimeters long. Involucre is greatly enlarged.
Distribution
- Found along the seashore, occasionally
extending inland on slopes at low altitudes from central Luzon (Zambales and Quezon) to Palawan, Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago.
- Also occurs in Sri Lanka to tropical East Africa and Madagascar, and through Malaya to tropical Australia and Polynesia.
Constituents
- Fruit contains an alkaloid, 0.7 per
cent, resembling berberine.
- Seeds contain an oil, 51%, used in the same way as those of Aleurites in some parts of the Dutch Indies in making candles.
- Oil is red brown; feebly drying, which contains stearin. It is inedible.
- Study of root-bark led to the isolation of eight compounds: desoxypodophyllotoxint , thalicarpine, dehydrothalicarpine, ovigerine, hemanger-ine, hemando-nine and two unknown substances. , mp. 219-220" and mp. 269-270°. Desoxypodop-hyllotoxin(I) and thalicarpineflll) exhibited a distinctively cytotoxic activity againstnasopharynx carcinoma was reported by S.M. Kupchan er. aI.*»°>. Dehydrothalicarp-ine(IV) is merely a dehydro product of thalicarpine(III) at C-6a and C-7 of aporphinemoiety. The isolation of dehydrothalicarpine(IV) made the first instance fromHemandia ovigera L. Comparison of their components distribution in each part ofHemandia ovigem was shown in Table 1.
Properties
Bark and leaves considered cathartic and depilatory.
Parts
utilized
Leaves, oil, roots.
Uses
Folkloric
In the Philippines, the oil is used as a hair restorer;
also used for dandruff.
The root is chewed to counter the effects of eating poisonous crabs
or fish.
Leaves and seeds, when eaten, cause purging and dizziness.
In the Moluccas, the heartwood
at the base of the trunk used for treating hemorrhages.
The bark and leaves used as cathartic and depilatory.
Others
In the Dutch Indies, oil used to make candles.
Studies
 • Twigs Constituents:
Fractionation of ethyl acetate extract of HO twigs isolated two new
naturally occurring aryltetralin lignans along with 8 known compounds.
Two exhibited significant inhibition of the transformation of murine
epidermal JB6 cells.
• Antitumor:
HO reported to possess alkaloid possessing inhibitory activity against
the Walker intramuscular carcinosarcoma 256 test system.
•
Seed Constituents / Lignans:
Study isolated a new lignan, hernolactone from the seeds of HO besides
six previously reported lignans.
• Deoxypodophyllotoxin / Anticancer: The seeds of HO contain 2.4% DPT (deoxypodophyllotoxin). DPT is a form of epipodophyllotoxin, a basic skeleton of the anticancer drug etoposide. HO presents a possible source for the mass production of etoposide.
• Antiplatelet Aggregation / p-Quinonoide Aporphine Alkaloids: Study isolated 3 minor p-quinonoid aporphine alkaloids (sonodione, demethysonodione and norsonodione) and ovigerine, hernangerine, N-methylhernangerine, (+)-malekulatine and isovanillin from the stem bark of Hernandia sonora. Compounds 4-8 showed moderate antiplatelet aggregation activity in vitro.
• Tumor-Inhibitor / Thalicarpine: A tumor-inhibitor thalicarpine, the first dimeric benzylisoquinoline-aporphine alkaloid, had been isolated from the stem-bark of Hernandia ovigera.
• Cytotoxicity: Study (1975) of root-bark led to the isolation of eight compounds: desoxypodophyllotoxint , thalicarpine, dehydrothalicarpine, ovigerine, hemanger-ine, hemando-nine and two unknown substances. , mp. 219-220" and mp. 269-270°. Desoxypodophyllotoxin and thalicarpine exhibited a distinctively cytotoxic activity againstnasopharynx carcinoma.
Availability
Wild-crafted.
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