DIGITAL GARDEN

DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY
MEDICINAL PLANTS

Hemidesmus indicus (L.)R.Br.

Common Name: Indian sarsaparilla

Family: Apocynaceae
Genus: Hemidesmus
Species: indicus
Malayalam Name: Naruneendi
Tamil Name: Nannari
Plant Description: It is a slender, twining climber with woody, aromatic roots.
Stem: Slender, wiry, and laticiferous
Leaves: Opposite, short-petioled, and variable in shape, from elliptic-oblong to linear-lanceolate
Flowers: Greenish outside and purplish inside, crowded in sub-sessile axillary cymes
Fruit: Two straight follicles
Root: Woody and aromatic
Uses:
The root of the plant is used to treat a wide range of illnesses, including snakebites, scorpion stings, diabetes, urinary diseases, fever, rheumatism, leprosy, skin diseases, and more
The plant is used as an anti-inflammatory agent
Wound healing: The methanolic extract of the plant has been shown to have significant wound healing activity
Other uses: The plant is also used as an anti-spasmodic, memory enhancer, and immunepotentiator
The plant’s root is demulcent, astringent, diuretic, tonic, and anti-pyretic. It also has antioxidant, antimicrobial, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, renoprotective, and neuroprotective properties.