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Family Euphobiaceae / Phyllanthaceae
Tuai
Bischofia javanica Blume
JAVA CEDAR
Qiu feng

Scientific names Common names
Andrachne apetala Roxb. ex Wall. Tuai (Tag.)
Andrachne trifoliata Roxb. Bishopwood (Engl.)
Bischofia cummingiana Decne. Java cedar (Engl.)
Bischofia javanica Blume Javanese bishopwood (Engl.)
Bischofia leptopoda Müll.Arg. Needle bark (Engl.)
Bischofia oblongifolia Decne.  
Bischofia roeperiana Decne.  
Bischofia toui Decne.  
Bischofia trifoliata (Roxb.) Hook.  
Microelus roeperianus (Decne.) Wight & Arn.  
Phyllanthus gymnanthus Baill.  
Stylodiscus trifoliatus (Roxb.) Benn.  
Bischofia javanica Blume is an accepted name. World Flora Online

Other vernacular names
ASSAM: Uriam.
BENGALI: Kainjal.
CHINESE: Qiu feng.
FIJIAN: Koka.
FRENCH: Bois de l'eveque.
HINDI: Bhillar, Kaen, Kot semla, Paniala, Pankain.
INDIAN: Romaviruksha pattai.
INDONESIAN: Cingkam, Sikkam.
JAPANESE: Akagi.
JAVANESE: Gintungan.
LAO: Foung fat, Khom fat.
MYANMAR: Aukkyu, Ye-pandauk,
TAMIL: Thondi.
THAI: Pradu-som, Toem.
VIETNAMESE: Nhoi.

Botany
Bischofia javanica is a fast-growing, medium to large tree, 12-50 m tall, evergreen or deciduous, with a dense, rounded crown. Bole is straight, stout, and cylindrical, up to 159 cm in diameter, branchless part short but sometimes up to 20 m long. Bark surface is fissured and scaly with small thick shaggy scales, reddish brown to purplish brown; inner bark fibrous, spongy, pink, exuding a red sap. Leaves are arranged spirally, compound with 3 leaflets, glabrous; stipules oblong-triangular, 7-22 mm long, papery; petiole 8-20 cm long; petiolules long and slender; leaflets elliptical to ovate, 6-16 cm by 3-10 cm, base rounded to broadly cuneate, apex acuminate, margin finely toothed, pinnately veined. Inflorescence is an axillary panicle up to 27 cm long. Flowers unisexual, regular, 5-numerous, small, greenish, corolla and disk absent; male flowers with sepals fused at the base, hooded, stamens free, Fruit is a globose drupe, 1-1.5 cm in diameter,r bluish-black, with a horny to leathery skin and fleshy pulp, 3-6-seeded. Seeds are obovoid, about 5 mm long, brown. (3)

Distribution
- Found in China, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines to New Guinea Australia, and the south Pacific.
- Common along streams and medium altitudes.
- In some countries, considered invasive.

Constituents
- Phytochemical screening of methanol extract yielded carbohydrates, cholesterol, proteins, flavonoids, alkaloids, phenols, saponins, tannins, and fatty acids. (4)
- Nutritional analysis of seeds yielded protein 18.69%, carbohydrates 18.91%, crude fiber 5.32%, and ash 6.83%; phosphorus 391.4 mg/100g, calcium 710 mg/199gm, magnesium 610 mg/100gm, copper 2.43 mg/100gm, iron 2.33 mg/100gm, potassium 1.25 mg/100gm, zinc 1.4 mg/100gm, and sodium 0.08 mg/100gm. Seed oil yield was 20.1%. Fatty acids in the seed oil were linolenic acid 56.76%, palmitic acid 12.28%, linoleic acid 12.90%, oleic acid 12.19%, and stearic acid 3.86%. (6)
- Study of methanol extract of leaves isolated five compounds viz. 5'-b-D-glucopyranosyloxyjasmonic acid methyl ester (1), 2-(hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)ethyl-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside (2), hexyl-O-ß-D-glucopyranoside (3), friedelan-3-one (4), and gallic acid (5). (9)
- Study of extracts of leaves yielded n-triacontane, ß-amyrin, friedeline, ß-sitosterol, ursolic acid, chrysoeriol, fisetin, quercetin, luteolin-7-O-glucoside and quercetrin. (10)

Properties
- Studies have suggested antileukemic, antioxidant, DNA topoisomerase inhibitory, antimicrobial properties.

Parts used
Leaves, bark, sap.

Uses

Edibility
- Young, soft leaves eaten raw or cooked; as vegetable, in salads, or as condiment.
- In South Sumatra, used as a spice in cooking.
- Fruits used for making wine. (22)
Folkloric
- Fresh bark used to treat stomachaches.
- Crushed leaves rubbed onto aching stomach.
- In India, bark used for treatment of tuberculosis, body ache, stomach ulcers, mouth ulcers, and inflammatory afflictions. (3)
- Used for treatment of toothache, burns, cough, cracked feed, gastritis, tonsillitis.
- Bark, leaf, root and fruits used for treatment of diphtheria, pharyngitis, burns, allergic conditions.
- In China, roots used for treatment of rheumatic pains and malaria. (3)
- In India, leaves used by people of Tai-Phake community of Assam for stomach ailments. (13) The ethnic communities of Arunachal Pradesh, use leaves and bark for gastric afflictions and jaundice. (18)
- Used by Karo healers of Indonesia for treatment of diabetes. (16)
- The Paliyar tribes in the Maurai District of Tamil Nadu mix the stem bark of B. javanica with coconut oil and apply it over the head to stimulate hair growth. (
19)
- In Kenya, decoction of roots used for stomach infections. (
20)
Others
- Dye: Bark yields a red dye used for staining rattan baskets and bamboo mattings. Inner bark yields a brown dye used to color tapa bark cloth. (2)

- Tannin: Bark yields about 16% tannin used for toughening nets and ropes. (2)
- Wood: Medium-weight and moderately hard. Fresh wood smells of vinegar. Susceptible to Lyctus and dry-wood termite. (2)
- Construction: Used in construction for beams, posts, decks, bridges,railway sleepers, flooring, agricultural implements and for making veneer and plywod. (3)
- Pulp: Potential source of long fibers for pulp and paper production.
- Oil: Used as lubricant.
- Fuel: Not suitable as fuelwood. Used for charcoal production.
- Supplement potential for mallards: Study suggested inclusion of 15% pintoi peanut meal in the duck ration can improve growth and in mallard diucks. (23)

Studies
Antileukemic / Leaves:
Study evaluated the antileukemic activity of leaf extract on human leukemic cell lines U937, K562, and HL60. Results showed significant cytotoxicity (p<0.001) in leukemic cell lines in invitro cell proliferatio assay, with low IC50 (3.5 µg/ml). Results supported the ethnomedicinal use of B. javanica for cancer by mediating through the apoptosis pathway. (5)
Betulinic Acid / Potent DNA Topoisomerase II Inhibitors / Bark: DNA Topoisomerases (Topos) II are target enzymes for anticancer chemotherapeutic drug development. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the chloroform bark extract isolated betulinic acid (1) and its derivatives, betulonic acid (2), 3ß-O-(Z)-cumaroylbetulinic acid (3) and 3ß-O-(E)-coumaroylbetiulinic acid (4). The compounds were found to be catalytic inhibitors of Topo II activities with IC50s ranging from 0.38 to 58 µM. (7)
Antioxidant / Stem Bark: Study evaluated stem bark extract of B, javanica for secondary metabolites and antioxidant activity by DPPH assay. Study yielded flavonoids, glycosides, tannins, and triterpenoids. An ethanolic extract and n-hexane fraction exhibited very strong antioxidant activity with IC50 of 12,248 µg/mL and 39,622 µg/mL, respectively. (8)
Anti-Inflammatory / Stem Bark: Study evaluated the anti-inflammatory activity of an ethanol extract of stem bark on carrageenan induced paw edema model in rats. Results showed effective anti-inflammatory activity at a dose of 200 mg/kbw. (11)
Enhance Proliferative Effects on Skin Fibroblast Cells: Study evaluated 56 plant extracts from 47 medicinal and edible plants to identify plants with bioactive potential for skin care. Extracts from six plants, including Bischofia javanica, showed higher NB1RGB cell proliferation activity (>10%) than the control. (12)
Antimicrobial / Leaves: Study evaluated leaves for bioactive compounds and antimicrobial activity. Phytochemical screening yielded saponins, steroids, glycosides, terpenoids, phenols, tannins, flavonoids, proteins, and carbohydrates. Antimicrobial testing by agar well diffusion method showed highest zone of inhibition against test organism. (13)
Potential as Ingredient of Functional Foods and Cosmeceutical Products / Leaves: Bischofia javanica leaf extract exhibited activities against hyaluronidase, collagenase, tyrosiinase, and urease, suggesting potential use as active ingredient for functional foods and cosmeceutical products. The 50% inhibitory concentration for hyaluronidase was comparable to disodium cromoglycate, a well known hyaluronidase inhibitor used as anti-inflammatory and anti-allergy agent. Extract also inhibited urease with almost same potential as acetohydroxamic acid, reported to suppress Helicobacter pylori-induced gastritis through urease inhibition. (14)
Free Radical Scavenging / Leaves: Study evaluated the free radical scavenging activities of B. javanica and Fraxinus floribunda leaves. Study used DPPH radical, lipid peroxidation and hydroxyl radical scavenging properties at 20-320 µg/ml of extract and isolated compounds. Friedeline 3α-acetate (FA) and ß-amyrin showed significant radical scavenging activity. The IC50s of 168.47, 137.90 and 129.85 µg/ml of ß-amyrin in all assays demonstrate the potent scavenging property. (17)

Availability
Wild-crafted.

 

February 2021

                                                 PHOTOS / ILLUSTRATIONS
IMAGE SOURCE: File:Buschofia javanica,jpg / Vinayaraj / Creatuve Commons Attribution Share Alike 3.0 / click on image to go to source page / Wikimedia Commons
 

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Bischofia javanica / Synonyms / World Flora OnLine
(2)
Bischofia javanica / Tropical Plants Database: Ken Fern / Useful Tropical Plants
(3)
Bischofia javanica / PROTA (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa)
(4)
Am iintegrated exploration of pharmacological potencies of Bischofia javanica (Blume) leaves through experimental and computational modeling / Md Riad Chowdhury, Kamrul Hasan Chowdhury, Nazim Uddin Chy Md et al / Heliyon, Sept 2020; 6(9) e04895 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04895
(5)
Antileukemic activity of the leaf extract of Bischofia javanica Blume on human leukemic cell lines / Sutharson Lingadurai, Soma Roy, Rajan Vedasiromoni Joseph, Lila Kant Nath / Indian J Pharmacol, 2011 April; 43(2): pp 143-149 / DOI: 10.4103/0253-7613.77348 / PMID: 21572647
(6)
Chemical composition, mineral and nutritional value of wild Bischofia javanica seed / R Indra, R K Bachheti, J Archana / International Food Research Journal, 2013; 20(4): pp 1747-1751
(7)
Betulinic Acid and Its Derivatives, Potent DNA Topoisomerase II Inhibitors, from the Bark of Bischofia javanica / Shun-ichi Wada, Reiko Tanaka / Chemistry & Biochemistry, May 2005; 2(5): pp 689-694 /
|DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cbdv.200590045
(8)
Antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract and n-hexane fraction from Sikkam (Bischofia javanica Blume) stem bark / Kadriyani Jambak, Marline Nainggolan, Aminah Dalimunthe / Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research and Development, 7(2): pp 1-5 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.22270/ajprd.v7i2.486 / ISSN: 2320-4850
(9)
Chemical Constituents of Bischofia javanica / Nguyen Thi Mai / Vietnam Journal of Science and Technology, 2017; 56(2) / DOI: https://doi.org/10.15625/0866-708X/55/2/8608
(10)
Chemical Investigation of Bischofia javanica Blume / D R Gupta, R P Dhiman, S Naithani, B Ahmed / Pharmazie, 1988; 43(3): pp 222-223
(11)
Characterization and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Ethanol Extract of Sikkam (Bischofiia javaniica Blume) Stem Bark / Aswan Pangondian, Marline Nainggolan, Aminah Dalimunthe / Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research and Development, 8(4): pp 16-20 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.22270/ajjjprd.v8i4.770 / ISSN: 2320-4850
(12)
Screening of Medicinal and Edible Plants in Okinawa, Japan, for Enhanced Proliferative and Collagen Synthesis Activities in NB1RGB Human Skin Fibroblast Cells / Makoto Takahashi, Yonathan Asikin, Kensaku Takara, Koji Wada / Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry / eISSN: 1347-6947, pISSN: 0916-8451
(13)
Screening of Bioactive Compounds and Antimicrobial Properties from Plant Extracts of Biscofia javanica / Minakshee Sarmah, Nibir Kashyap, Dimpee Sonowal, Priety Chakravarty / International Research Journal on Advanced Science Hub, 2020; Vol 2, Special issue ICARD: pp 256-260
(14)
Potential Use of Bischofia javanica as an Active Ingredient of Functional Foods and Cosmeceutical Products Possessing Hyaluronidase, Collagenase, Tyrosinase and Urease Inhibitory Effects / Florin Barla, Asako Horinishi, Naoki Harada, Hiroshi Inui et al / Japanese Journal of Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2010; 7(2) / pISSN: 1348-7922 eISSN: 1348-7922
(15)
Bischofia javanica / World Agroforestry Database
(16)
Medicinal plants used in the treatment of diabetes in Karo ethnic, north Sumatra, Indonesia / Raja Nasution Barita, T Alief Aththoricik, Suci Rahayu / IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 2018; 139(1): pp 012038 / DOI:10.1088/1755-1315/130/1/012038
(17)
Free Radical Scavenging Activity of Leaves of Bischofia javanica Blume and Fraxinus floribunda Wallich / Lingadurai, Kar Prasanna Kumar, Lila Kant Nath, Shia E Besra and Rajam Veda Siromoni Joseph / PharmacologyOnLine, 2009; 1: pp 1324-1332
(18)
Uses of trees as medicine by the ethnic communities of Arunachal Pradesh, India / Bhabajt Doley, P R Gajurel, P Rethy, and R Buragohain / Journal of Medicinal Plant Research, Jumnne 2014; 8(24): pp 857-863 / DOI: 10.5897/JMPR10.768 / ISSN: 1996-0875
(19)
Ethnobotanical investiigations among tribes in Madurai District of Tamil Nadu / S Ignacimuthu, M Ayyanar, and Sankara Sivaraman K / Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 2006 /
DOI: 10.1186/1746-4269-2-25
(21)
Ethnobotanical survey of traditionally used medicinal plants for infections of the skin, gastrointestinal tract, urinary tract, and the oral cavity in Borabu sub-county, Nyamira county, Kenya / E O Omewenga, A Hensel et al / Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2015; 176: pp 508-514 / DOI: https://10.1016/j.jep.2015.11.032
(22)
Bischofia javanica / Flora of China

DOI: It is not uncommon for links on studies/sources to change. Copying and pasting the information on the search window or using the DOI (if available) will often redirect to the new link page. (Citing and Using a (DOI) Digital Object Identifier)

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