1. INTRODUCTION:

Since the beginning of time, people all over the world have used plants for basic preventive and curative healthcare. In the human race has looked for a number of plants to control sickness. Plants have long been used as the primary source of raw ingredients for pharmaceuticals. India has a rich history of employing medicinal plants in traditional treatments, including the Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani systems. The "Charaka Samhita" and the "Sushruta Samhita" include rather thorough information on some herbs' therapeutic effects. Although more than 500 traditional groups use over 800 plant species to treat various diseases, only lately have about 20,000 medicinal plant species in India been recorded.¹These natural components functioned as the foundation for modern plant roots, bark, seeds, and flowers. They can be inhaled, applied topically, or taken orally.²

Ricinus communis L. (R. communis) is a medicinal plant which grows to a height of about 6 meter and is distributed around various continents including Arabian Peninsula.⁶ Ricinus communis "Castor plant" is a member or part of Euphorbiaceae.⁴Castor plant has been cultivated as far back as 6000 years ago.³ The botanical name of R. communis has been coined by Swedish naturalist Carlos Linnaeus in the 18th century.⁵ Some scholars believe its origin to be from Tropical Africa. In Saudi Arabia, it is commonly known as Kherwa.³ Its distributed in different area of worldwide. India, Ethiopia, Egypt. Now it has other names such as "wonder tree" or "Palma Christi.⁶ Due to the large quantity of oil extracted from R. communis seeds, it has been known as castor oil plant.⁷ R. communis has been used as a therapeutic agent for 4000 years, used as a herbal medicine for treating many different diseases, disorders and also many infections. It has been used as a laxative for 2500 years in Greece and Rome.³ Numerous study has been shown to biological activities of R. communis plant as antimicrobial, antifungal, antioxidant, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic and antiparasites.⁸

This oil is of great application in various perspectives. The various phytochemicals which are found in R. communis are steroids, terpenoids, saponins, alkaloids, flavonoids, anthraquinones, tannins, polyuronides, glycosides and reducing sugar.^9,10,11 The most important plant parts of Ricinus that are utilised for treatment are the root, stem, leaves, fruits, whole of aerial parts, the complete plant and flowers.¹²

2. TAXONOMICAL CLASSIFICATION:¹³

Botanical name : Ricinus communis.

Kingdom : Plantae.

Class : Dicotyledonae.

Order : Euphorbiales.

Family : Euphorbiaceae.

Genus : Ricinus.

Species : Ricinus communis.

3. VERNACULAR NAMES:¹⁴

Kannada : Haralu.

Sanskrit : Eranda, vatari, Gandharvahasta.

English : Castor oil plant, Castor bean.

Hindi : Arand, Erandi.

4. MORPHOLOGY:

Plant:

Ricinus communis is a plant species belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family. It is a tall, glabrous and glaucous, branched shrub. Leaves are alternate, long-petiolate, stipulate, palmately lobed, lobes 7 or more, serrate. Seeds are ellipsoidal or ovoid, slightly flattened, 1-2 cm long, 0.5-1.0 cm wide. Externally smooth, one side even, bearing one prominent raphe and other side slightly raised. Testa blackish-brown or greyish-brown. Odorless; taste, slightly bitter and pungent.^15,16

Leaves:

Leaves are simple, alternate, long purple leaf stalk are attached near the centre of the leaf blades. These are large, star shaped with sharply toothed margins. Borne on a long petiole 10-30 cm with, at the base, long sheathing stipules caducous, leaving a scar around the stem. Lamina palmate, 10 to 30 cm (up to 60 cm) in diameter, from 6 to 11deep lobes tapering and dentate margin. Face green or red, glabrous.¹⁷

Stem:

Multi-stemmed. Stems are covered with white powder and they are hollow inside. Stems produce clear, watery sap when cut.¹⁷

Flowers:

The male flowers are yellowish-green with prominent creamy stamens and are carried in ovoid spikes up to 15 cm long; the female flowers, born at the tips of the spikes, have prominent red stigmas.¹⁷

Fruits:

The fruit is a thorny 3-lobed capsule 1 to 2 cm in diameter, covered with soft spines, each containing one seed.¹⁷

Seeds:

Shiny black seed, or marbled at maturity of 8 x 14 mm in diameter.¹⁷

5. TOXICOLOGICAL STUDY:

Ricinus communis has shown some toxic effects accidentally due to the presence of toxic compound such as ricin and ricinine. The acute toxicity study of Ricinus communis on methanolic extract was carried out as per organization for economic cooperation and development 423 guidelines. R. communis shown no mortality as well as behavioural changes even up to the dose 2000mg/kg.³¹

Fig No. 1: Plant of Ricinus communis

6. PHYTOCHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS:

Leaves of the plant contain alkaloids ricine and flavonoid, tannins, steroid, terpenoids. Flowering heads contain coumarins hyperoxide and flavonoid rutin, alkaloid ricinine. Seeds yield lectin. Castor oil consists of palmitic, stearic, arachidic, hexadecenoic, oleic, linoleic, ricinoleic and dihydroxy stearic acids.¹³

7. PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES:

Traditional uses:

Treatment of abdominal disorders, arthritis, backache, muscle aches, bilharziasis, chronic backache, sciatica, chronic headache, constipation, expulsion of placenta, gallbladder pain, period pain, menstrual cramps, rheumatism, sleeplessness, and insomnia.¹⁸

8. ANTI-DIABETIC ACTIVITY:

Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce insulin required by the body or due to development of insulin resistance. The ethanolic extract of R. communis roots was tested for its antidiabetic properties against hypoglycaemia rats, and the results showed. Following treatment of alloxan diabetic rats for 20 days with a single dosage of 500 mg/kg body weight (effective dose), blood was drawn on day 0, day 10, and day 20 of the trial to assess the lipid profile. This study has been shown that insulin levels increased and fasting blood sugar was significantly lowered to practically normal levels, improving both body weight and the lipid profile. The diabetic rat's blood glucose levels decreased from 379±72)mg/dL to (149±11)mg/dL (control).¹⁹ Blood glucose levels dropped from (379±72)mg/dL (diabetic rat) to (149±11) mg/dL (control). Another in vivo investigation on diabetic rats given alloxan revealed that after receiving Ricinus extract therapy, blood glucose levels dropped from 390.0 to 148.5mg/dL, or around 61.97% less over the course of seven days. These findings point to R. communis potential as a treatment for diabetes management.²⁰

9. ANTI-CANCER ACTIVITY:

Some studies have been carried out using fractions with 100% ethanol, methanol and an aqueous phase which have shown activity against specific cancer cell lines such as melanoma, MCF7 (Breast cancer), HepG2 (Hepatic cancer), PC3 (Pancreatic cancer), and cervical cancer.²¹Both in vitro and in vivo studies have confirmed the anti-cancer activity of R. communis using various plant parts and ricin lectins. Anti-cancer activity of R. communis was studied and reported by several researchers. Initial studies revealed the cytotoxic effect of lectins from R. communis on three different cell lines HeLa cells, sarcoma 180 and human erythrocytes.Lin and Liu observed the increase in lifespan of the mice which is treated with ricin A.In one study, the aqueous extracts of R. communis was found to exhibit cytotoxic effects on A375 cell lines (human melanoma cancer cell lines) with IC₅₀ value of 48 μg/ml. Some other in vitro studies were carried out to test the cytotoxic effects of R. communis on various cell lines such as colon cancer, liver cancer, breast cancer, cervix cancer, ovarian cancer (OVCAR-5), skin melanoma (B16F10) and prostate cancer. At lower concentrations of about 100 μg/mL, the R. communis extract was tested against these cancer cell lines and was shown to be effective.The anti-cancer activity of R. communis, as revealed by several studies, clearly suggests that R. communis may be a good source for anti-cancer therapeutic compounds.²²

10. ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY:

In acute and chronic inflammatory models, the anti-inflammatory properties of the leaves and root extract were investigated in Wistar albino rats. According to the study, paw edema developed as a result of carrageenan administered sub plantarly, indicating the cellular processes involved in acute inflammation. The methanolic leaves extract of R. communis at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg has a protective effect in preventing cellular events during the production of edema and in all phases of acute inflammation. Because flavonoids protect rats from paw edema caused by carrageenan, the presence of flavonoids in the R. communis methanolic extract is responsible for its anti-inflammatory properties.^23,24

11. ANALGESIC ACTIVITY:

R. communis seed oil having the properties of analgesic activity. Mice and rat are used for the experiment to find the analgesic activity. Hot plate method, tail clip method and tail immersion method are the common methods. In analgesic studies, castor oil has been shown more significant analgesic activity at 1000 mg/kg (8.37±0.41**) and (4.90 ± 0.19**) then 500mg/kg tested dose level. The analgesic activity of castor oil was however, less than that of pentazocine. The results suggest that castor oil possesses significant analgesic property. The seed oil having the phytoconstituents like proteins, triacylglycerols, triterpenoid saponin, essential oils and fatty acids.²⁵

12. ANTIULCER ACTIVITY:

Significant antiulcer capabilities are present in R. communis seed oil at doses of 500 mg/kg and 1000 mg/kg body weight (below the hazardous limit). However, the oil was more effective against pylorus ligation, aspirin, and ethanol-induced ulceration in rats at the 1000 mg/kg body weight dose. As a consequence of the drug's cytoprotective action or strengthening of the stomach mucosa, the outcome enhanced the mucosal defence and caused the antiulcer activity.²⁶

13. ANTI-ASTHMATIC ACTIVITY:

The antiallergic and mast cell stabilizing properties of R. communis ethanolic root extract make it useful for treating asthma. While flavonoids like luteolin and apigenin also have the ability to relax smooth muscle and dilate blood vessels, saponins have the ability to stabilize mast cells. Flavonoids also have the ability to inhibit the release of histamine from basophils and the beta glucuronidase released by neutrophils, and they have the ability to exhibit antiallergic activity in vivo. Because the ethanolic extract of R. communis contains flavonoids or saponins, it has anti-asthmatic properties and reduces leucocytosis and eosinophilia that are generated by milk.²⁷

14. ANTI-HELMINTHIC ACTIVITY:

The anti-helminthic action of R. communis in causing paralysis and the length of time it takes for or the worm to die were investigated. The anthelmintic activity was assessed using both ethanolic and aqueous extracts. Compared to ethanolic extract, aqueous Ricinus extract revealed higher activity at 100mg/mL in shorter time; specifically, it showed 8.50±0.64 (paralysis) and 31.50±1.25 (death) at a concentration of 100mg/ml., Consequently, it was discovered that the R. communis aqueous extract exhibited greater anti-helminthic activity.²⁸

15. HEPATOPROTECTIVE ACTIVITY:

R. communis leaves has been shown hepatoprotective activity in ethanolic leaf extract on Rats shows carbon tetra chloride (Ccl₄) induced hepatotoxicity. The hepatoprotective activity was studied in liver by measuring the parameters like serum levels of Glutamic oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), Glutamic pyruvic transaminase (SGPT), Bilirubin, Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and histological changes in liver of different groups of animals were observed. The results of the present study has been shown that, the levels of SGOT, SGPT, ALP, Bilirubin were significantly increased in hepatotoxin treated group.²¹

16. LAXATIVE AND UTERINE CONTRACTION:

By activating prostaglandin receptors 2 through ricinoleic acid, castor oil causes uterine contraction and laxation. Intestinal smooth muscle contraction is induced by castor oil and ricinoleic acid. There is an impact on uterine and intestinal motility. It has been established that prostaglandin receptors 2 are viable targets for medications that cause laxation.²⁹

17. ANTIDANDRUFF ACTIVITY:

The plant Ricinus communis leaves having the antidandruff properties. Aqueous, methanolic, chloroform and petroleum ether extract Anti dandruff assay with DMSO R. communis leaf extracts has been shown antidandruff effects and due to its potential bioactive compounds. Phytochemical screening of various solvent extracts of R. communis leaves revealed the presence of flavonoids, saponins, tannins, phloba tannins and terpenoids methanolic extracts exhibited significant activity (8.20±0.3). Aqueous extracts of the leaves recorded appreciable inhibitory activity (5.74± 0.8) when compared with chloroform (1.66±1.2) and petroleum ether extracts. Petroleum ether extract gave a mean zone of inhibition of 0.90±0.3mm, showing the ineffectiveness of the extract.³⁰

18. CONCLUSION:

The medicinal properties were examined in the present review confirm that the therapeutic importance of the medicinal plant Ricinus communis is much higher. Medicinal effect of R. communis plant occupied a distinct place in the life right from the primitive period to till date and provided information on the use of plants or plant products as medicine. The various biological activities of R. communis is due to the presence of a varied degree of bio active phytochemicals. Through this review, it can be justified that both crude form of plant extract and the isolated compounds are responsible for its pharmacological and therapeutic potential. The plant's helpful qualities are paving the way for a bright future in medicine and creating chances for more research to identify novel Ricinus communis chemicals that might be useful in treating serious illnesses. For the optimum use of its medical benefits, however, more thorough research, pharmacological studies, clinical trials, greater exploration, and public awareness are required. However, because of their poisonous qualities, the seeds of this plant pose a serious risk to humans and animals. Fever, depression of the central nervous system, and other health problems in living things are possible outcomes. The sole harmful aspect of Ricinus communis is its seeds; otherwise, overall things considered, the pharmacological properties and phytochemical components that R. communis demonstrated have a great deal of potential and value for the study of medicinal plants. As a result, industrial entrepreneurs thought to propose fresh ideas and methods for making the most of this plant's potential as a medicine.

19. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

Authors are thankful to the National Education Society for providing facilities through the Principal National College of Pharmacy, Shivamogga, Karnataka, India.

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Received on 06.11.2024 Revised on 16.12.2024

Accepted on 20.01.2025 Published on 08.03.2025

Available online from March 12, 2025

Res.J. Pharmacology and Pharmacodynamics.2025;17(1):47-51.

DOI: 10.52711/2321-5836.2025.00008

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