IJRPC 2013, 3(2) Kamaruz Zaman et al. ISSN: 22312781 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PHARMACY AND CHEMISTRY Available online at www.ijrpc.com Review Article CURCUMA CAESIA ROXB. AND IT’S MEDICINAL USES: A REVIEW Sonjit Das, ProdyutMondal and Md. Kamaruz Zaman* Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dibrugarh University, Assam-786 004. India. ABSTRACT Curcuma caesia is commonly known as kali haldi and it belongs to the family Zingiberaceae. This herb is available throughout north-east, central India, Papi Hills of East Godavari, West Godavari, and Andhra Pradesh. In the traditional system of medicine, fresh and dried rhizomes of Curcuma caesia Roxb are used in treating leucoderma, asthma, tumours, piles, bronchitis, bruises etc. In this review article various established facts related to the plant Curcuma caesia have been compiled so that proper scientific methods can be initiated to validate its traditional uses and open the door for a source of potential drugs in near future. Keywords: Curcumacaesia, traditional uses, bioactivity. INRTODUCTION anthelmentic, aphrodisiac, inflammation, India has long history of using plants for gonorrhoeal discharges, etc3. medicinal purposes as mention inAyurveda. In Madhya Pradesh, the plant is regarded The significance of medicinal plants for asvery auspicious and is stated that a person prevention,mitigationt and cure of diseases are who possess it will never experience shortage always recognized.History revealed that plants of cereals and food .The rhizomes of the plant have been a valuable sourceof natural are aromatic in nature .The inner part of the products for maintaining human health at all rhizome is bluish-black in colour and emits a thetimes. Their importance is continuously characteristic sweet smell, due to presence of growing now days. Most of the people now essential oil4. prefer natural therapies to get ridof from Traditionally, the rhizomes of Curcuma serious side effects of some of the present caesiaRoxb.are used in treating leucoderma, daymedication. asthma, tumours, piles, bronchitis etc. The Curcuma Linn.is a large genus belonging to paste is applied on bruises, contusions and the family Zingiberaceae. It comprises about rheumatic pains in Manipur5.In Arunachal 70 species of rhizomatous herbs distributed Pradesh, Adi tribes use decoction of fresh mostly in Southeast Asia as wild and cultivated rhizome as anti-diarrhoetic. The Khamti tribe plants1.Curcuma species have a great of Lohit district applied the paste of fresh importance for its medicinal value and rhizome in case of snake and scorpion bite6,7. Curcuma caesiahas been using by various tribal communities from long before. METHODS Kali haldi(Curcuma caesia) is a perennial herb Botanical description8 with bluish-black rhizomenative to North- Morphology Eastand Central India. Black Turmeric is also The plant is normally erect with height ranging sparsely found in Papi Hills of East Godavari, from 0.5 to 1.0 m.It is divided into underground West Godavari, and Khammam Districts of large ovoid tuberous rhizome often called root- Andhra Pradesh. The rhizomes of kali haldi stock and an erect aerial shoot along with have a high economical importance because leaves (Fig-1) and reproductive part. of its putative medicinal properties. The rhizomes are used in the treatment of smooth Root muscle relaxant activity2.haemorrhoids, As the plant propagates with rhizome, leprosy, asthma, cancer, epilepsy, fever, the primary roots are not seen; however, wound, vomiting, menstrual disorder, yellow brown long fibrous and tapering 370 IJRPC 2013, 3(2) Kamaruz Zaman et al. ISSN: 22312781 adventitious roots are present all over the Phytochemicalconstituents surface of rhizome. ofCurcumacaesia. Roxb Preliminary phytochemical studieswas carried Rhizome out by Sarangthaem et al and reported the The rhizome is tuberous with camphoraceous presence of alkaloid, steroid,phenolic and sweet odour, about 2–6 cm in diameter, the tannin as major constituents in successive shape and size is often variable. It is sessile, solvent extraction of rhizome with n–hexane laterally flattened and covered with ,petroleum ether (60:80), benzene,chloroform, adventitious roots, root scars and warts. It ethyl acetate and water [5]..The volatile oil shows longitudinal circular wrinkles on the component of the rhizomes of Curcuma surface giving the look of nodal and intermodal caesiawas analysed by GC-MS by Pandey et zones to the rhizomes. The surface (cork) of al. that resulted in the identification of 30 rhizome is dark brown, bluish black, or buff in components, representing 97.48% of the oil, colour. The branching is more or less with camphor (28.3%),ar-tumerone (12.3%), sympodral. (Fig.-2). (Z)-Ocimine (8.2%), 1-ar-curcumene(6.8%), 1, 8-cineole (5.3%), element (4.8%),borneol Leaves (4.4%), bornyl acetate (3.3%) and curcumene The leaves are usually present in the groups of (2.82%) as the major constituents.(Pandeyet al 10–20; each leaf is broad oblong lanceolate 2003). Rastogi et al reported linalool as the and glabrous. A deep farraginous purple major component comprising 20.42% followed colour is present in the middle region of the by ocimine (15.66%), 1- ar-curcumene lamina The petiole is ivory in colour (14.84%), zingiberol (12.60), 1, 8-cineole andensheathing the petiole encircle each other (9.06%), and borneol (7.4%) as major forming pseudoxis. The variation is parallel in constituent9.The curcuma caesia rhizome oil nature. was also analysed by Banarjee et al. and reported almost similar composition consisting Inflorescence of (+) linalool (20.42%), ocimine (15.66%), 1- It is 15-20 cm long dense spike, which arises ar-curcumene (14.84%), zingiberol (12.60), 1, much before the opening of leaf, the bracts are 8-cineole (9.06%), andα-borneol (7) d- green, and the bracts of coma are deep red, camphore (18.88) as major constituent10. which become crimson after maturation. Traditional uses of Curcuma caesia Flower The fresh and dried rhizomes of curcuma Flowers are pale yellow colour with reddish caesia are used for treatment of various border (Fig.-3). diseases. Calyx: 10-15 mm long, obtuse and 3 toothed. The following uses have beenreported- Collora: long tubular, pale yellow lip-3 lobe 1. Dried rhizomes and leaves of curcuma semi- elliptic. caesiaRoxb.are used in piles, leprosy asthma, cancer, wounds, Distribution impotency,fertility, tooth ache, vomiting, This plant is widely distributed in north-east and allergies11-14. and central India.Curcuma caesiais sparsely 2. Fresh rhizome decoction is used as ant- found in Papi Hills of East Godavari, West diarrhoeiaric and to get relief from Godavari, and Khammam Districts of Andhra stomach ache6.The fresh rhizome paste Pradesh. of curcuma caesiais applied during the snake bite and scorpion bite .The dried Vernacular names powder used to mixed with seed powder Hind: Kali Haldi of Andrographis paniculata Wall ex Manipuri: YaingangAmuba or Yaimu .Nees and applied during insect and Marathi: Kala-haldi snake bite7. Telugu: NallaPasupu 3. The rhizome is used for the treatment of Bengali: Kala haldi cough, fever, dysentery, worm Mizo: Aihang, Ailaihan infection15. Assamese: kalahaladhi 4. The fresh rhizomes are used in leprosy, Malayalam: Kari manjal cancer, epilepsy, anti-helmenthic, Sanskrit: RajaniNishaa, Nishi, Ratri. aphrodisiac, gonorrhoreal discharge2. 5. Rhizome of Curcuma caesia is grounded in the form of paste in rheumatic arthritis9. 371 IJRPC 2013, 3(2) Kamaruz Zaman et al. ISSN: 22312781 6. The rhizome of Curcuma caesiais diseases. Effect of MECC on ROS and RNS grounded and applied in the form of were evaluated in different in-vitro methods paste in rheumatic arthritis16. like 1, 1Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazil radical, 7. Crushed rhizome paste is applied hydroxyl radicals, superoxide anions, nitric against cur or injury to control bleeding oxide, hydrogen peroxide, peroxynitrite and and quick healing 16. hypochlorous acid. Lipid peroxidation, total 8. The rhizome Curcuma caesiais phenolic content was also measured by administered during inflammation of standard assay method. The extract showed tonsils17. significant antioxidant activities in a dose 9. The roots of the Curcuma caesiaare dependent manner. The result obtained in the grounded into powder and used water to study indicated that the methanol extract of C. treat gastric disorder18. caesia rhizome is a potential source of natural antioxidant20. Biological activities i) Neuropharmacological assessment of iii)Comparative antioxidanactivity of non- Curcuma CaesiaRhizome in experimental enzymatic and enzymatic extracts of animal models Curcuma zedoaria, Curcuma angustifolia The ethanol extract of Curcuma and Curcuma caesia caesiaexhibited an important A study was conducted by Dhal et al. to neuropharmacological activity. The study was compare the efficacy for antioxidant activity of conducted by Karmakaret al.in adult male both the crude (non-enzymatic) and enzymatic Swiss albino mice to evaluate the methanol extracts of three important medicinal plants extract of C. caesia rhizome for some Curcuma zedoary, Curcuma caesia and neuropharmacological activities. Methanol Curcuma angustifolia respectively. Both the extract Curcuma caesia at 50 and 100 mg/kg enzymatic and crude extracts of the rhizome body weight was evaluated for analgesic and leaves of these plants were analyzed for activity against acetic acid-induced writhing their free radical-scavenging activity in and tail flick tests. Locomotors activity was different in vitro systems, e.g. DPPH