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Ancient Science of Life, Vol. 31, No.1 (2011) Pages 22 - 25
Pharmacognostical Studies on Balanophora fungosa - a Negative Listed Plant
R.Kannan*, U. V. Babu
AgroTech, R&D Center, The Himalaya Drug Company,Bangalore.
ABSTRACT
Balanophora fungosa Forster & Forster ssp. indica (Arn.)
B. Hansen var. indica, (Balanophoraceae) syn. B. indica, is a
root parasite found in hills of south India. This plant is
included in the list of negative list, which are restricted and
prohibited for export. Though it is not an official drug in any
of the indigenous systems of medicine in India, it is used in
tribal medicines in south India. However, it is found in crude
drug markets as substitute/adulterant for the Ayurvedic drug
Gajapippali (Scindapsus officinalis). Few phytochemical
constituents were reported on this plant. However, there is no
pharmacognostical report to authenticate the commercial
samples of B. fungosa and to differentiate them from
Scindapsus officinalis. This article describes the
pharmacognostical characteristics of Balanophora fungosa
and diagnostic features to differentiate it from Scindapsus
officinalis.
Key words:Balanophora fungosa Forster & Forster ssp.
Indica (Arn.) B. Hansen var. Indica, B. indica (Arn.) Wallich
ex Griffith, Langsdorffia indica Arn., Balanophoraceae,
root parasite, pharmacognosy, ethnobotany, indigenous
systems of medicine, Gajapippali, Scindapsus officinalis,
adulterant, substitute, Negative list, prohibited plants.
Introduction:
Balanophora fungosa Forster & Forster ssp. indica (Arn.) B.
Hansen var. indica is a cosmopolitan plant and belongs to the
family Balanophoraceae. It is called as Markata Pippali in
Sanskrit, Gajapippali in Hindi, Bengali and Kannada, Atti-
tippali or Kallan-thippali or Nila-bomb in Malayalam,
Enugatippali in Telugu, and Bhoomi Budalam or Veru-Chedi
in Tamil. In India it is common in peninsular hills, especially
in Shola forests at an altitude of 1000 MSL. It is a common
weed in coffee and tea plantations. It is dioecious,
rhizomatous, fleshy and rootless root parasite. Male plants
are distinguished by the white powdery pollens on their
flowers.
Its ethnomedical usage among Paliars1 (major tribal group in
Palani hills, Madurai dt., Tamilnadu) and primitive tribal
people of Kerala2 was reported. For skin diseases, Paliars
apply the paste of whole plant over the infected part1. Tribals
of Kerala use this plant for piles (whole plant is dried,
powdered and taken internally with honey) and also used
along with other herbs in many preparations for curing
internal hemorrhages2. It is reported as wild but edible
among tribes of Kollihills in Tamilnadu3.
This plant doesn't have any restrictions by CITES for
international trade. However, included in Appendix-XLIII-
H, Negative list of exports in Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
Export of this plant as herbal raw material or drugs
* Corresponding author
22
manufactured with this plant, needs a Legal Procurement
Certificate from the concern divisional forest officer of the
district or state.
There was no report on the use of this plant in any of the
indigenous systems of medicine4, 5. However it is reported as
an adulterant for an Ayurvedic drug Gajapippali (Scindapsus
officinalis) in south India6 and one of the six pippalis
available in south Indian market with a local name of
Markata Pippali7. B-amyrin palitate, taraxasterol and
taraxasterone were isolated from the plant8. Though this
plant is used in ethnomedicine and as substitute/adulterant
for S. officinalis in south India, there was no
pharmacognostical work on this plant to identify the market
samples and differentiate them from S. officinalis. This
article describes the pharmacognostical characteristics of B.
fungosa and diagnostic features to differentiate it from S.
Officinalis.
Materials and Methods
Authentic plants of B. fungosa were collected from
Kollihills, Salem dt., Tamilnadu, India and identified with
the local floras9 10. Rhizome, stem and inflorescence were
collected, cut into pieces and sun dried. Pharmacognostical
characteristics including organoleptical, macroscopical,
microscopical and powder characters were studied as
described in quality control methods11, 12, 13. Market samples
of B. fungosa were brought from Sundakki Tribal
Cooperative Society Stores, near Attaippadi, Palakkad dt.,
Kerala, India. Market samples of S. officinalis were brought
from a supplier from Chattisgarh and authenticated with the
earlier reports14. Pharmacognostical characters of the field-
collected authentic plants of B. fungosa were compared with
the commercial samples. Diagnostic features of B. fungosa
and characters to differentiate them were narrated.
Organoleptical and Macroscopical
Characters:
Bulk material (Fig. 1) consists of pieces of rhizome, stem and
inflorescence. Many rhizome pieces are observed attached
to its host root. The pieces are transversely or longitudinally
cut to about 10 cm in size. They are mild brown to muddy
brown or dark brown to black in color. Rhizomes, stem and
inflorescence pieces can be easily identified and separated
out. In general, they are rough and hard in texture, nearly
odorless, and easy to break with splintery ends.
Rhizome pieces are up to 6 cm in size. They are lobed or
branched or bunched or with palm-like branches. Their
surface is shrunken with pustule-like mild or light colored
raised dots. Cut ends are dark brown to black in color.
Resinous substance is oozing out from few points of
rhizomes when they break.
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ANCIENT SCIENCE OF LIFE
Stem pieces are transversely or longitudinally cut. Most of
them are circular, plate like, dark brown, up to 7 cm in
diameter and 2-5 mm in thickness. In cut ends, no specific
pattern or tissue differentiation is observed. Few
longitudinally cut pieces show nodes and internodes with
leaves. The surface is rough but not warty. Leaves are up to
5x3 cm in size, dark brown to black in color, acute in apex,
base broad, margin and surface are smooth, nearly
triangular in shape and up to 2 mm in thickness. Epidermis
is not peeling off and break with splintery ends.
Inflorescence pieces are mostly cut longitudinally. They
vary in shape from globose to oval. Seeds and pollens are
not observed. Young buds are nearly globular to oval with
bract coverings and indistinct inner regions, whereas
matured ones show fragments of persistent bracts with
exposed flower parts.
Microscopical characters:
Microscopically, rhizome (Fig. 2) is simple with outer
epidermal-like cells, and encloses the ground tissue and
vascular bundles. Epidermal-like cells are single layered
with thick deposits on the outer side. These deposits are
stained for both lignin (using phloroglucinol solution) and
cellulose (using IKI solution). Ground issue is
undifferentiated, parenchymatous with intercellular spaces
and 30-320 in size. Vascular bundles are arranged in a ring
in the ground tissue. Number of bundles differs with the
size of the rhizomes, from 7 to many. Each bundle has outer
phloem followed by xylem and central parenchymatous,
smaller sized cells. In phloem cells, tanniferous cells are
observed. Owing to the observations in dried materials,
Ancient Science of Life, Vol. 31, No.1 (2011) Pages 22-25
23
other cellular details in phloem and cambial cells are not
observed. Xylem has vessels and fibers, traversed with ray
cells, which are single layered but not restricted always.
Vessels are 7.5-55 in diameter. Surrounding to the vascular
bundles, parenchyma cells in ground tissue are smaller in
size and make a clear boundary. Apart from these regular
vascular bundles, numerous vascular traces are observed in
the ground tissue, which are scattered throughout. These
traces have few fibers, one or two vessels and
undifferentiated phloem cells. Tanniferous cells are absent
in vascular traces.
Microscopically, stem (Fig. 3), leaves (Fig. 4) and
inflorescence are identical to rhizome in outer epidermal-
like cells and ground tissue. However, in stem and
inflorescence, regular vascular bundles are completely
absent and vascular traces are scattered throughout. In
leaves, epidermal deposits are more on the abaxial surface
than the adaxial surface. Vascular traces are found in a row
in the middle of the ground issue. Vessel elements are
smaller in size (7.5-20 in diameter). Stomata are not
observed on the epidermal surfaces of leaves or stem.
Many of the parenchyma cells of ground tissue are filled
with dark brown or black colored resinous substance. Other
cell inclusions like starch, calcium oxalates and aleurone
grains are not observed.
Powder analysis:
Powder is dark brown to black in color. Parenchyma cells
are most common with few vessel elements and lignified
epidermal cells. Parenchyma cells are 120-350 and vessel
elements are 10-50 in size.
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Pharmacognostical Studies on Balanophora fungosa - a Negative
Listed Plant 24

Ancient Science of Life, Vol. 31, No.1 (2011) Pages 22-25

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ANCIENT SCIENCE OF LIFE
Discussions:
S. officinalis is used to regulate bowel movements and in
dysentery5, whereas B. fungosa is used for piles, in tribal
medicine. The knowledge of usage of authentic and
adulterant in indigenous system of medicine and in tribal
knowledge respectively, may be exchanged vice versa.
Though this plant was mentioned as a monecious plant15, our
field observations showed that it was dioecious. White
powdery pollens on the inflorescence surface are the distinct
feature to identify male plants from females. Floras9 & 10 also
mentioned it as a dioecious herb.
As reported earlier16, the true epidermal cells are not found in
any part of the plant observed. The outermost layer is
differentiated from the ground tissue in size and regular
arrangement in a single layer like epidermal cells. However,
Table I: Diagnostic features of S. officinalis and B. Fungosa
No. Character S. officinalis
1 Bulk material Spike with fruits and
seeds
2 Stone cells Present
3 Epidermis Present
4 Starch Present
5 Calcium oxalates Present
6 Resinous Absent
substance
7 Deposits on outer Absent
surface
8 Oil globules Present
9 Cut ends Vascular bundles
seen
It is found that B.fungosa, is being sold in the crude drug
market especially in many parts of Kerala, in the name of
Gajapippali. It is consider as an alternative/substitute to
Scindapsus officinalis, which is the authentic material as
per the Ayurvedic literature. This research narrates the
characteristic features of B. fungosa and lay down the
diagnostic features for easy identification of crude drugs
of B. fungosa and S. officinalis. These characteristic
features can also be used to identify or differentiate them
even in powdered condition.
Reference
1 Ignacimuthu, S., Ayyanar, M. and Sivaraman, K.S., 1996,
Ethnobotanical investigations amoung tribes in Madurai
Disirct of Tamilnadu (India). Journal of Ethnobiology and
Ethnomedicine, 2 (1996), 25.
2 Pushpangadan, P. and Atal., C.K., Ethno-medico-botanical
investigations in Kerala. Some primitive tribals of Western
Ghats and their herbal medicine, Journal of
Ethnopharmacology, 11 (1984), 59-77.
3 Ranjithakani, P., S. Geetha, G. Lakshmi and S. Murugan
(1992) - Preliminary survey of wild edibles of Kolli Hills of
Salem, Ancient Science of Life, 11 (1992), 133-36.
4 Chopra, R.N., Nayar, S.L. and Chopra, I.C., Glossary of
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5 Kiritikar, K.R. and Basu, B.D., 1980, Indian medicinal
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6 Vasudevan Nair, K., Indira Balachandran, S.N.
Yoganarasimhan K. Gopakumar, Studies on some South
Ancient Science of Life, Vol. 31, No.1 (2011) Pages 22-25
25
as described earlier armature cells are not observed, instead
all the cells are stellate wart cells with deposits on the outer
surface. Chemical nature of these deposits could not be
confirmed as they stained for both lignin and cellulose.
Further histochemical studies are planned to find the nature
of these deposits.
The difference between rhizome and stem or the
inflorescence axis, is the presence of regular vascular
bundles in a ring in rhizome, which is absent in stem.
Stomata and guard cells are completely absent as observed
16
earlier .
From the present study it came to light that, B. fungosa lacks
stone cells, starch grains, calcium oxalates and oil globules.
These characteristic features are the key diagnostic features
to differentiate B. fungosa with S. officinalis. Table I
describes more key characters to differentiate them.
B. fungosa
Whole plant consists of rhizome, stem and
inflorescence. Seeds are absent.
Absent
Absent
Absent
Absent
Present
Present (stained for both phloroglucinol and IKI)
Absent
No specific pattern or vascular bundles observed
Indian market samples of Ayurvedic drugs - V, Ancient
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R.Holla, B.V., Evaluation of south Indian market samples of
Pippali, Bulletin of Medico-Ethnobotanical Research, 18
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9 Gamble, J.S. Flora of Presidency of Madras, Vol II, (Bishen
Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehra Dun), (1997), 1263-64.
10 Mathew, K.M., The flora of Tamilnadu Carnatic, Vol. II, (The
Rapinat Herbarium, Tiruchirappalli), (1983), 1383-84.
11 Anonymous, Quality control methods for medicinal plant
materials, (WHO, Geneva) (1998) 10-21.
12 Wallis, T.C., Textbook of Pharmacognosy, (CBS Publishers
& Distributors, Delhi), (1985) 571-78.
13 Evans, W.C., Trease and Evans Pharmacognosy, (Bailliere
Tindall, London), (1989), 17-32.
14 Anonymous, The Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India, Part I,
Vol III, (Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, New Delhi),
(1999), 40-41.
15 Victor, A., The morphology and identity of two species of
Balanophora in Bukidnon, Philippines, Philippine Journal
of Science, 128 (1999), 319-30.
16 Kuijt, J. and Dong, W.X., 2005, The systematic significance
of surface features of the Balanophora tuber
(Balanophoraceae), Plant Systematics and Evolution, 171
(2005), 129-34.
17 Kuijt, J. and Dong, W.X., Surface features of the leaves of
Balanophoraceae-A family without stomata? Plant
Systematics and Evolution, 170 (1989), 29-35.