Botany
Malais-is is a vine or climbing shrub reaching a height of 4 to 8 meters, smooth except for young branchlets and inflorescences. Leaves are leathery, oblong-ovate to elliptic-oblong, 4 to 10 cm long, 2.5 to 4 cm wide, smooth, somewhat rough or sandpapery on the undersurface, with entire or obscurely toothed margins, the tip pointed and the base rounded or pointed. Female inflorescence is densely hairy. Fruit is oval, 6 to 7 mm long, red, stalkless, occurring in clusters on the axils of leaves, and 1 to 2 to each receptacle.

Distribution
- In thickets and forest at low and medium altitudes from northern Luzon to Mindanao and Palawan.
- Also occurs in China and Taiwan to Malaya, Australia, and Polynesia.

Properties
Rubbing against the stem can cause a burning sensation.

Parts used
Leaves.

Uses
Edibility
Seeds eaten raw or cooked.
Flesh is reportedly edible.
Folkloric
Decoction of leaves adminstered to women after childbirth.
Others
• Rope: Vine is used for tying purposes, as in construction of fish corrals. Bark fiber can be made into rope; used as string for dillybags and fishing nets.

Studies
• Studies: Studies

Availability
Wild-crafted.