Botany names

Description - It is an erect herb, with densely gland-dotted branches. Leaves round, dotted with black glands on both surfaces. Flowers small, bluish purple, 10-30 in a bunch, arising in axillary racemes. Fruits black, roundish or oblong, closely pitted, seed one, smooth

Chemical Constituents- Plant contains furocoumarin angelicin. Seeds contain bakuchalcone, coumestan and sophoracoumestan A, furanocoumarin bakuchicin, stigmasterol, psoralen, bakuchiol, bavachromanol chalcone, psoralone, isopsoralone, bavachromene, bakuchiol, corylidin, corylin, corylinal, neobavaisoflavone, psoralenol, psoralidin. Flavonoids are bavanchinin, bavachalcone, bavachin, isobavachin and isobavachalone. Seeds contain essential oil, non-volatile terpenoid oil, resin, a monoterpenoid phenol bakuchiol, a brown fixed oil, coumarin psoralen. Seed kernels contain psoralen and isopsoralen.

Use - The seeds of the plant constitute the drug. Seeds laxative, diuretic, diaphoretic and aphrodisiac. The seeds contain an essential oil, which is very effective on certain bacteria causing skin diseases. The drug is, therefore, useful in leucoderma and leprosy as an external application in the form of ointment, as well as for taking internally. The seeds are also useful for promoting urination and as antihelmintic. Due to its use in leprosy, the drug has been called in our indigenous system as Kushtha nashini. Roots of the plant are reported to be useful in caries of teeth; and the leaves in diarrhoea.