Mallotus philippensis (Lam.) Muell . Arg.

DeFilipps, Robert A. & Krupnick, Gary A., 2018, The medicinal plants of Myanmar, PhytoKeys 102, pp. 1-341 : 71-72

Mallotus philippensis (Lam.) Muell. Arg.

Names.

Myanmar: hpadawng, hpawng-awn, mai-hpawng-tun, palannwe, po-thi-din, taw-thi-din. English: Indian kamala, kamala tree.

Range.

From southern China to New Guinea and Australia. In Myanmar, found in Bago, Chin, Mandalay, and Yangon.

Uses.

Fruit used as an anthelmintic and laxative.

Notes.

The medicinal uses of this species in India are discussed in Jain and DeFilipps (1991) as follows: The glandular hairs on the fruit used as a purgative. They are said to destroy tapeworms, and are also employed on ringworm, scabies and other skin diseases. Additionally, they have been found to reduce fertility in experimental animals. The fruit is used for dysentery and constipation; the root as tonic for pregnant women. Medicinal uses of this species in China are discussed in Duke and Ayensu (1985). Perry (1980) discusses the species uses in China, India, the Malay Peninsula, and the Philippines. She especially notes that, in the Philippines, the glands of M. philippensis are mixed with the charred bark and flowers of Pterospermum diversifolium , and employed in smallpox to cause suppuration.

Research has shown that the dye from this species is an antioxidant; rottlerin is an antifertility factor, isorottlerin less active; the fruit extract is bactericidal; and the seeds contain 18.5-20% protein, 23.7-25.8% fat ( Duke and Ayensu 1985). In the Philippines an extract of kamala (the powder), the active principle of which is rottlerin, and hexachlorethane "gave encouraging results in treating fascioliasis (liver fluke infestation) in cattle and Indian buffaloes, with the conclusion that the effect of the drug deserved further study" ( Perry 1980).

Reference.

Nordal (1963).