INTRODUCTION:

Abutilon indicum belonging to family Malvaceae, commonly called as Country mallow (English), Kanghi (Hindi), Atibala (Sanskrit). Abutilon indicum is a perennial shrub, softly tomentose and upto 3 m in height. The leaves are evergreen, Base-cordate, stipulate, fili form, ovate, acuminate, toothed, rarely subtrilobate and 1.9-2.5 cm long. Petiole 1.5-1.70cm long, cylindrical, yellowish in colour, stellate and hairy. The flowers are yellow in color, peduncle jointed above the middle. The petioles are 3.8-7.5 cm long; stipules 9mm long; pedicels often 2.5-5mm long, axillary solitary, jointedvery near to top and the seeds are 3-5mm, kidney shaped, reniform, tubercled or minutely stellate-hairy, black or dark brown.^1-3

Abutilon indicum has been used as anthelmentic, antiemetic, anti-inflammatory, in urinary or uterine discharge, piles, antidote. It is used in treatment of fever, dry cough, bronchitis, gonorrhea and leprosy.

Regional names:⁴

The plant is known by various names in different languages as follows:

Hindi name : Kangahi, Kanghi, Kanghani

Sanskrit name : Kotibala, Kankatika

English name : Country-mallow

Tamil name : Tutti, Thuththi, Peruntutti

Telgu name : Tutiri-chettu, Thuteribenda

Scientific classification:⁵

Kingdom Plantae

(Unranked) Angiosperms

(Unranked) Eudicots

(Unranked) Rosids

Order Malvales

Family Malvaceae

Genus Abutilon

Species indicum

Botanical name Abutilon indica

Habit And Habitat:⁵

The species occurs in number of tropical and subtropical areas and subtropical zones. The plant is found in India, Sri Lanka, topical regions of America and Malaysia. It is found as a weed in sub-Himalayan tracta, hills upto 1200m and in hotter parts of India. An example occurrence is within parts of the ‘Great barrier Reef’ islands of the ‘Coral sea’.

Macroscopy (Fig-1):-⁶

The macroscopical studies of leaf revealed certain characters:-

Shape: Ovate to orbicular- cordate

Margin: Acuminate and toothed

Apex: Pointed

Base: Symmetrical

Venations: Reticulate

Taste: Sweet to characteristic

Odour: Odourless

Surface: Smooth on both the surfaces.

Microscopy:-

The transverse section shows the following characteristic features:- the lamina region consist of upper and lower epidermis with covering and glandular trichomes. Covering trichomes were multicellular and uniseriate in nature while the glandular trichomes were multicellular with single stalk and multi head fused together. Stomata were of anomocytic type. Below the epidermis layer the next region was mesophyll which consists of long elongated palisade cells and calcium oxalate crystals.

The midrib resembles dorsi ventral leaf. It consist of closely packed collenchyma cells with two- three layered in upper part and three-four layered in lower part. Just below and above the collenchyma the parenchyma cells are arranged in a loosely packed with much of intracellular space. The vascular bundles are composed of xylem and phloem cells. (Fig. 2)

Powder Microscopy:-

The powder was characterized on its morphological features as colour: emerald green, odour: odourless and taste: sweet to characteristic in nature.

The dried fine powder was stained with chloral hydrate to detect the presence of calcium oxalate crystals. They were prismatic in nature. When stained with phloroglucinol and Conc. HCL, vascular bundles, lignified fibers were observed.

With glycerin mounting trichomes were observed both of covering and glandular types. Stomata were anamocytric in nature. All the results were figured in fig. 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d respectively.

Extractive values: ⁶

The extracts were prepared according to the polarity and they were concentrated and their values were calculated with reference to air dried drug. The results were tabulated in table 1.

Chemical Constituents:-

Abutilon indicum has been explored phytochemically by various researchers and found to posses number of chemical constituents.

The whole plant contains mucilaginous substances and asparagines.

Saponins, flavonoids, alkaloids, hexoses, n-alkane mixtures (C22-34), alkanol as main classes of compounds. Some important constituents reported in the plant are Beta-sitosterorls, vanillic acid, Para-coumaric acid, caffeic acid, fumaric acid, Abutilon-A,(R)-N-(1’-methoxycarbonyl-2’phenylethyl)-4-hydroxybenzamide, Para-hydroxybenzoic, galatonic, Para—Beta-D-glycosyloxybenzoic and amino acids.

The plant A. indicum contains of essential oils which mainly consist of Alpha-pinene, caryophyllene oxide, endesmol, farnesol, borenol, geraniol, geranyl acetate, elemene and Alpha-ciniole along with number of other minor constituents.^7-9,11,21

The seed oil of the plant affords cis 12, 13-epoxyoleic(vernolic) acid, 9,10-methylene octadec-9-enoic (sterculic) acid, as well as 8,9-methylene-heptadec-8-enoic (malvalic) acid. The seed oil affords palmitic, steric, oleic, linolenic acids, along with cineole, elemene, eudesmol, farnesol, borneole.^12-14

Aerial parts of the plant contain Beta-sitosterol, gossypetin-8- and -7- glucosides, cyaniding-3-rutinosides, tocopherols oil and some flavonoids.

The leaves of the plant contain steroids, sapogenins, carbohydrates and flavonoids. The roots of the plant contain Gallic acid.^15-17

The essential oil of flowering tops contains Alpha-pinene, Alpha-cineole, caryophylline, borenol, geraniol, geraniol acetate, caryophylline oxide, elements and farnesol.^12,15,18-20

Traditional Uses:

Almost all the parts of Atibala are of medicinal importance and traditionally used for the treatment of various ailments.

The roots of the plant are considered as demulsant, diuretic, in chest infection and urethritis.

The infusion of the root is prescribed in fevers as a cooling medicine and is considered useful in strngury, haematuria and in leprosy.

The leaves are found to be good for ulcer and as a fomentation to painful parts of body.

The decoction of the leaves is used in toothache, tender gums and internally for inflammation of bladder.

The bark is used as febrifuge, anthelmentic, alexeteric, astringent and diuretic.

The seeds are used in piles, laxatives, expectorants, in chronic cysticis, gleet and gonorrhea.^1,
22-24

Ethanobotanical Uses:

There are over 400 different tribal and other ethinic groups in India. Each tribal group is having their own tradition, folk languages, beliefs and knowledge about use of natural resourses as medicines. Almost all the parts of this plant are documented to be useful in ethanobotanical surveys conducted by ethanobotanists.

It has been documented that natives of India, Malaya, Philippine Islands and Indochina use its parts for the medicinal purposes such as febrifuge, anthelmentic, antiemetic, anti-inflammatory, in urinary or uterine discharge, piles and lumbago.

The leaves and seeds are crushed with water to form paste which is applied to penis to cure syphilis.^25-27

The leaves are used in eye wash, mouth wash, in cataract and diarrhoea.

A leaf paste is taken orally to cure piles and to relieve leg pains.²⁸

The bread prepared from the mixture of leaf powder and wheat flour is taken daily during night for about one month for cure of uterus displacement.²⁹

The leaf juice when mixed with jiggery is used for the treatment of snakebite as antidote.³⁰

The fruit is used to treat piles, gonorrhea, and cough. ^{31, 32}

Fruit decoction mixed with ammonium chloride is given orally with water to treat hemorrhagic septicemia. ³³

Seed powder is used orally with water as aphrodisiac and laxative.

The root of the plant is used to treat gonorrohea and leprosy.

Root infusion is given to cure fever, dry cough and bronchitis.³⁴

Pharmacological Studies:-

Hepatoprotective:

The aqueous extract of Abutilon indicum was tested for hepatoprotective activity against carbon tetrachloride and paracetamol induced hepatotoxicities in rats. The plant exhibited significant hepatoprotective activity by reducing carbon-tetrachloride and paracetamol induced change in biological parameters that was evident by enzymatic examination. The plant extract may interefere with free radical formation, which may conclude in hepatoprotective action. A. indicum showed sigmificant hepatoprotective activity against carbon tetrachloride and paracetamol, comparable with the standara silymarin.^{35, 36}

Hypoglycemic activity:

Alcohol and water extract of Abutilon indicum leaves (400mg/kg, p.o.) shows significant hypoglycemic effect in normal rats 4 hours after administration (23.10 % and 26.95 % respectively). Aqueous extract was also found very potent to reduce blood glucose level.³⁷

Immunomodulatory activity:

The whole fine powder of the plant at a dose of 500mg/kg body weight, when compared to the control group showed statistically highly significant rise in modulatory behavior in all models.^38,39

Analgesic activity:

Pet ether extract and benzene extract were found to posses very good analgesic activity.⁴⁰ Fixed oil of the plant when given in doses of 400 and 600mg/kg exhibits good analgesic potential.⁴¹ Eugenol (4-allyl-2methoxyphenol) isolated from Abutilon indicum found to posses significant analgesic activity.⁴²

Antimicrobial activity:

Abutilon indicum extracts (fruits, root and leaf) does not show any significant inhibition against microorganisms Bacillus cereus var mycoids, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus subtillis, Bordetella bronchiseptica, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermis, Escherrchia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, pseudomonas aeruginosa, Steptococcus faecalis, Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, Saccharomyces cerevisiae.⁴³ The absence of activity against above strains shows that plant is lacking antimicrobial activity. The screening of the seeds of Abutilon indicum (L.) shows Mycelial inhibition (%) against Absidia ramos and Aspergillus niger by 6.97 and 37.25 respectively.⁴⁴

Antimalarial activity:

Beta-sitosterol isolated from the petrollium ether extract of leaf of Abutilon indicum showed mosquito larvicidal activity.⁴⁵

Anti-diarrhoeal activity:

The study revealed that, the methanolic extract and the aqueous extract possessed significant anti-diarrheal activity in Castor oil induced diarrhea and prostaglandin E2- induced diarrhea, compared to the control group.⁴⁶

Antifertillity activity:

Abutilon indicum caused significant suppression of enzyme activity as well as uterotropic response indused by estradiol, a marginal stimulation of these parameters was observed.⁴⁷

Wound healing activity:

The ethanolic extract of Abutilon indicum at a dose of 400mg/kg shows exhibited significant wound healing activity. The contraction of excision wound promotes from 4^th day of treatment till 16^th day. The epithellization of wound with ethanolic extract shown as much earlier as compared with control and standard (Silver Sulphadiazine) group.⁴⁸

Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity:

The roots extract of Abutilon indicum was found to inhibit ACE in water, ethanol (96%), acetone by 18%, 1%, and 9% respectively.⁴⁹

Acetyl cholinesterase inhibitory activity:

A methanolic extract of Abutilon indicum L. inhibited the activity of acetyl cholinesterase by 30.66 +/- 1.06 % in dose of 0.1 mg/ml.⁵⁰

Figure 1: Macroscopy of Abutilon indicum.

Figure 2: Microscopy of Abutilon indicum.

Table 1: Extractive Values of Leaf extracts of Abutilon indicum with different solvents.

Sr. No.	Extracts	% Extractability (Mean ± SEM)
1	Petroleum Ether Extract	4.62 ± 0.89
2	Ethyl Acetate Extract	6.45 ± 1.23
3	Chloroform Extract	9.65 ± 2.20
4	Methanolic Extract	20.34 ± 1.09
5	Aqueous Extract	12.32 ± 2.89

CONCLUSION:

Abutilon indicum have several pharmacological properties like, hepatoprotective, wound healing, immunomodulatory, analgesic, antimalarial, antimicrobial, hypoglycemic activity. The main chemical constituents are carbohydrates, steroids, glycosides, flavonoids, tannins and Phenolic compounds. Hence in this review article, effort has been taken to collect and compile the details regarding Abutilon indicum which will be useful to the society to venture into a field of alternative systems of medicine.

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Received on 27.09.2012 Accepted on 27.10.2012

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