INTRODUCTION:

The oldest known health care products utilized by humans worldwide are medicinal plants, which are also important ingredients in many of the formulations used in indigenous systems of medicine. In addition to being popular as herbal tea, nutraceuticals, cosmetics, and health supplements, there has been a worldwide upsurge in interest in medicinal plants, especially in India.¹ The evergreen tree Elaeocarpus serratus L., also known as "rudraksha" in India, is well renowned for its numerous therapeutic and commercial uses. In folk medicine uses it to cure conditions including stress, anxiety, depression, palpitations, nerve pain, migraines, epilepsy, lack of focus, asthma, hypertension, arthritis, and liver illnesses. Ayurveda places a great deal of weight on the beads, leaves, and bark of E. serratus, which have been said to treat conditions including mental disorders, headaches, fever, skin problems, palpitations, sleeplessness, infertility, etc.²

The Indian subcontinent, which includes India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Nepal, is where it is most commonly found.

However, it can also be found in Indo-China regions like Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Myanmar.³In Karnataka they found in Chikmagalur, Coorg, Hassan, Mysore, Shivamogga. A plant with both nutritional and therapeutic benefits is Elaeocarpus serratus.⁴

Common name:⁵

English	:	Ceylon-olive
Kannada:	:	Athakunge, Beegada mara, Beejada mara, rudrakshi
Tamil:	:	Veralikkai
Malayalam	:	Kaarakka, kaara
Bangladesh	:	Belfoi Sylheti
Bengali	:	Jalpai
Manipur	:	Chorphon

TAXONOMY⁶

Botanical name	:	Elaeocarpus serratus
Synonym	:	Elaecarpus adenophyllus wall
Kingdom	:	Plantae
Class	:	Magnoliopsida
Order	:	Oxalidales
Family	:	Elaeocarpaceae
Genus	:	Elaeocarpus
Species		E. Serratus

MORPHOLOGY:

The tropical fruit tree Elaeocarpus serratus is a member of the Elaeocarpaceae family. It can grow up to 18 metres tall, it is a sizable, peenial tree with broad leaves that can withstand dryness and a wide spreading crown, is found in evergreen woods, and is occasionally cultivated for its edible fruit and medicinal uses.⁷Its trunk has branches and branch lets, and its simple, alternate leaves. It has an up to 8 cm long, velvet-hairy, white racemose inflorescence design. From the beginning of September through October, it begins to bloom. It produces drupes, which are edible fruits, and its seeds have hard seed coats. It needs fertile, moist, well-drained soil, adequate sunlight to moderate shade.⁸

Figure 1: Leaves of Elaeocarpus serratus

Figure 2: fruits of E. serratus

Figure 3: flowers of E serratus

PHYTOCHEMISTRY:

Elaeocarpus serratus leaves contain substantial number of polyphenols and flavonoids, such as myricitrin, a pharmacologically active compound used to treat rheumatism and as a poison antidote. Some flavonoids, such as myricitrin, mearnsitrin and mearnsetin are abundant in Elaeocarpus serratus L. leaves with myricitrin playing an important role in human health.⁹

Myricitrin has been shown to have antioxidant properties and to be more effective at scavenging free radicals than other flavanol rhamnosides or quercetin. Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-mutagenic and anti-nociceptive properties are all possible advantages of myricitrin.¹⁰

TRADITIONAL MEDICINAL USES:

Antidandruff, fungal infection, joint swelling, dental issues such as toothaches, diarrhoea, and dysentery, gastritis, ulcer, indigestion, mild laxative, piles, pyorrhoea, stomach illness, vomiting, green diarrhoea ("Saruwa"), jaundice, and liver disorder, ulcer.¹¹

ELAEOCRAPUS SPECIES:

Elaeocarpus angustifolius, Elaeocarpus serratus, Elaeocarpus munroi, Elaeocarpus sylvestris, Elaeocarpus grandiflorus, Elaeocarpus hainanensis, Elaeocarpus rugosus, Elaeocarpus ganitrus, Elaeocarpus sphaericus, Elaeocarpus floribundus, Elaeocarpus gaussenii.

PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES:

Antimelanogenesis:

The ethanolic leaf extract of E. serratus showed antityrosinase and antimelanogenesis activities result from invivo assay in zebrafish. The ethyl acetate soluble fraction has the highest antityrosinase and antimelanogenesis activity among the leaf extract. Mearnsetin had a better impact on antimelanogenesis in zebrafish than the positive control drug arbutin.⁹

Antidiabetic activity:

The anti-diabetic activity of Elaeocarpus serratus fruit in streptozotocin-induced (STZ) diabetic rats. The effects of a 30-day oral therapy with ethanol fruit extracts of E. serratus (200 and 400 mg/kg) on body weight, blood sugar level, total protein, albumin, liver marker enzymes, and carbohydrate intake were dose-dependent. Metabolizing enzymes were evaluated in STZ-induced diabetic rats. In diabetic rats, oral treatment of an ethanolic extract from the fruit of E. serratus resulted in a significant restoration of body weight and a reduction in blood glucose levels, liver marker enzymes (ALT, AST, ALP), and carbohydrate metabolising enzymes. These findings indicate that E. serratus fruit extract, which is comparable to the standard medication glibenclamide in its anti-diabetic efficacy in STZ-induced diabetic rats, they reported it may be useful in the management of type 2 diabetes.¹²

Antimicrobial activity:

In vitro antibacterial property of acetone, methanol and water extracts of leaf, stem bark and fruit of Elaeocarpus serratus L. were tested against four bacterial species (Shigella sonnei, Salmonella typhi, Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumoniae) as well as a fungus (Candida albicans) by employing the agar well diffusion technique. The E. serratus leaf and stem bark extracts using acetone and methanol showed the strongest antibacterial activity against all of the bacterial species. The acetone extract was discovered to be the more effective antifungal of the plant extracts, which also shown excellent antifungal activity against Candida albicans. In general, the extracts with lower quantities were more vulnerable to the fungus.¹³

Anti -arthritic activity:

Using the Freund's adjuvant arthritis model in Wistar rats, the anti-arthritic efficacy of oral administration of ethanolic extracts of Elaeocarpus serratus leaf and seed was assessed. indomethacin was used as standard drug. As compared to the indomethacin, the ethanolic leaf and seed extracts of E. serratus at two distinct concentrations (200 and 400 mg/kg/day p.o) demonstrated noteworthy efficacy. The in-vivo investigation validates the plant's traditional uses and shows that it has anti-arthritic properties.¹⁴

Analgesic activity:

In mice model, the bark of E. serratus shows potential for both peripheral and central analgesic action. The methanolic bark crude extract of E. serratus significantly reduced the number of writhing 69.77% (200 mg/kg) and 73.26% (400 mg/kg) in the peripheral analgesic assay (p 0.05), which was highly comparable to the number of writhing reduced by the standard NSAID drug diclofenac sodium (75.58%) (p 0.05). Likewise, it demonstrated a considerable tail flicking response for the central analgesic action assay at 30, 60, and 90 minutes.¹⁵

Antidiarrheal activity:

In mice model, the bark of E. serratus shows an effective antidiarrheal activity. The E. serratus significantly decreased the amount of diarrheal stools in the antidiarrheal activity assay by 64.26% (200 mg/kg, p0.05) and 78.57% (400 mg/kg, p0.05), which was similarly equivalent to the positive control loperamide.¹⁵

Antioxidant activity:

The antioxidant activity of crude methanolic extract of E. serratus leaves has shown dose dependent antioxidant property. The normal ascorbic acid had an EC50 value of 25.53 g/ml according to the DPPH antioxidant study however the methanolic extract of E. serratus showed EC50 value of 75.47 g/ml.²

CONCLUSION:

It is crucial to have accurate documentation of medicinal plants and to be aware of their potential to improve health and hygiene using ecofriendly methods. Therefore, the potential of ethnomedicinal studies should be valued because they can offer a successful method for identifying the identities of substances with medicinal activity. Pharmacological research on various plant extracts supports the conventional uses of plants. According to the literature review, E. serratus has a substantial impact on the symptoms of diabetes, arthritis, analgesia, and diarrhea. Additionally, the plant's antioxidant properties provide useful information for future research on this species. The bioactive compounds found in various extracts confirms the significance of the plant. Further study in this area may reveal a potential mode of action and lead to the development of more encouraging medications.

REFERENCE:

1. Tandon N, Yadav SS. Contributions of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in the area of medicinal plants/traditional medicine. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 2017; 197:39-45.

2. Das P, Kar P, Hasnu S, Nath S, Tanti B. Phytochemical screening and antioxidant activity of Elaeocarpus serratus L. of Assam. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry. 2017; 6(4):866-9.

3. Pinkey AA, Khan ZI, Taher MA, Soma MA. Elaeocarpus serratus L. Exhibits potential analgesic and antidiarrheal activities in mice model. International Journal of Medicine and Medical Research. 2020; 6(2):44-51.

4. Yoganarasimha SN. Textbook of medicinal plant of India. Interline publishing Pvt. Ltd.Bangalore. Vol 1 p. 185

5. Department of Agriculture, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, Task Force on Fruits & Fruit Development Board Tropical Fruits of Sri Lanka. Ministry of Agriculture and Lands, Sri Lanka. 1997. p. 29.

6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elaeocarpus_serratus.

7. Baruah PS, Deka K, Lahkar L, Sarma B, Borthakur SK, Tanti B. Habitat distribution modelling and reinforcement of Elaeocarpus serratus L.-a threatened tree species of Assam, India for improvement of its conservation status. Acta Ecologica Sinica. 2019; 39(1):42-9.

8. Soman S, Surya BS. A Brief Review on Phytochemical Analysis, Pharmacognostial Status and Propagation of Elaeocarpus serratus L. 2018; Vol. No. 11 No. 3.

9. Huang CY, Liu IH, Huang XZ, Chen HJ, Chang ST, Chang ML, Ho YT, Chang HT. Antimelanogenesis effects of leaf extract and phytochemicals from ceylon olive (Elaeocarpus serratus) in zebrafish model. Pharmaceutics. 2021 10; 13(7):1059

10. Sadasivam K, Kumaresan R. Antioxidant behavior of mearnsetin and myricetin flavonoid compounds—a DFT study. Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy. 2011; 79(1):282-93.

11. Bhattarai, K. R. Ethnobotanical survey on plants used in Mai Municipality of Ilam district, eastern Nepal. Banko Janakari. 2020;30 (2): 11‒35.

12. DH Geetha, Indhiramuthu Jayashree, M Rajeswari. Anti-diabetic activity of ethanolic extract of Elaeocarpus serratus L. In streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research 2016; 8(1): 37-42.

13. Jayashree I, Geetha DH, Rajeswari M. Evaluation of antimicrobial potential of Elaeocarpus serratus L. International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research. 2014; 5(8):3467.

14. DH. Geetha, Indhiramuthu Jayashree, M. Rajeswari. In vivo anti-arthritic activity of ethanolic extracts of Elaeocarpus serratus L. International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research. 2018; 48(2) 92-97.

15. Pinkey AA, Khan ZI, Taher MA, Soma MA. Elaeocarpus serratus L. Exhibits potential analgesic and antidiarrheal activities in mice model. International Journal of Medicine and Medical Research. 2020; 6(2):44-51.

Received on 30.01.2023 Modified on 24.02.2023

Res. J. Pharmacology and Pharmacodynamics.2023;15(2):66-68.

DOI: 10.52711/2321-5836.2023.00013