An Ethnopharmacology of Trichopus zeylanicus Gaertn

Trichopus zeylanicus Gaertn is a perennial herb belongs to the family Trichopodaceae popularly known as "Arogyapacha" or 'Arokyapachilai" in Malayalam literally meaning "the green that gives strength". A critical survey of the Ayurveda classics, suggests that the 'Arogyappacha' may be the divine 'Varahi'described by Sushruta. Geographically the plant is available in Agasthyar hills in the Western Ghats, Kerala, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the Southwestern Ghats Mountains of South India. The herb grows on sandy soil near rivers and stream in shady places in low land and intermediate altitude forests. Various ancient Ayurveda classics, the authors have come across with some descriptions of a plant which matched strikingly with 'Arogyappacha' Sushruta, while dealing with the various divine drugs along with 'Some' also described one 'Varahi' - which he described as 'Kandha sambhava' -rhizomatous, 'Ekapatra' single leaves arising from a stem and 'Anjana samaprabha' - shining like he grey-black stone. Ethnopharmacological studies claimed that, the oral LD50 were found to be more than 3000mg/kg, with no signs of abnormalities or any mortality observed for 15 days period. Seeds of Trichopus zeylanicus showed a potent adaptogenic or antistress properties against a variety of stresses in both rats and mice. Treatment with Trichopus zeylanicus protected mice from tumour cell growth. Trichopus zeylanicus extract has been evaluated for its antihepatotoxic and cholerectic activities in rats. The effects of Trichopus zeylanicus on reactive oxygen species induced plasmid DNA (pBR322) cleavage were also investigated. Trichopus zeylanicus contains NADH, polyphenols and sulfhydryl compounds, which have the ability to scavenge reactive oxygen species.