Habitat :— Sea coast, from Malabar to Ceylon, and from the Sunderbuns to Malacca.
A common evergreen, conspicuous, shrub, gregarious of the tidal forests of India, Burma, Ceylon, the Andamans, often forming the under- wood or adventitous roots of the Rhizophora (Mangrove). Stems l-5ft., in clumps little divided, terete, glabrous. Leaves large, 6 by 2½in., oblong elliptic, toothed or pinnatifid, glossy, rigidly coriaceous. Spinous, rigid ; petiole ¼in , at times absent. Flowers in spikes, 4-16in., terminal, commonly solitary, supported by 2 pair of bracteoles, ¼-⅓in. long, terminal, sometimes axillary. Calyx ⅔in.; sepals, 2 outer elliptic, rounded, 2 inner, broadly lanceolate, subacute. Corolla pubescent within 1¼in. long, bright blue. Capsule bright-brown, apiculate, 1¼ by ⅔in., shining, blunt. Seeds ¼-⅓in., testa white, very lax.
Uses : —In Goa, the leaves which abound in mucilage are used as an emollient fomentation in rheumatism and neuralgia, Ainslie says that Rheede mentions the use of the tender shoots and leaves ground small and soaked in water as an application to snake-bites. Bontius commends its expectorant qualities. It is a plant in great request among the Siamese and Cochin Chinese, and is called by the latter Cay-o-ro, who consider it to be cordial and attenuant, and useful in paralysis and asthma. In the Concan, a decoction of the plant with sugarcandy and cumin is given in dyspepsia with acid eructations (Dymock).
Chemical composition, — The powdered leaves yielded to ether a quantity of fatty matter coloured strongly with chlorophyll and some soft resins. Alcohol removed more resin, an organic acid, and a bitter alkaloid. The alkaloid gave a reddish-brown colour with sulphuric acid, and was precipitated from its solutions by the usual reagents, including the volatile and fixed alkalies. Some soluble saline matter was present in the extracts of the leaves, and contributed largely to the 16.4 per cent, of total ash obtained from the air-dried leaves. (Pharmacogr. Ind., III. 43).
921. Barleria prionitis, Linn, h.f.b.i., IV. 482 ; Roxb. 470.
Sans. : — Karuntaka, vajradanti.
Vern. : — Katsareyá (H.) Kántájâti(B.); Dasakarantod (Uriya) ; Kalsunda, korhánti, vajradanti (Bom.) ; Kántá-shelio (Guz.) ;
