Premna corymbosa
Rottler & Willd.
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(c) Ria Tan, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND)
iNaturalist· cc-by
(c) Aravinth, some rights reserved (CC BY)
iNaturalist· cc-by
(c) Aravinth, some rights reserved (CC BY)
Description
A shrub. It grows 6 m tall. It has several stems. Young growth is hairy. The leaves are opposite and oblong. They are 8 cm long by 5 cm wide. There are teeth along the edge. The flowers are small and greenish. The fruit are black berries with one stoney seed.
Edible Uses
In Vietnam, the aromatic leaves of P. serratifolia are used to cook in some braise or stir fry dishes with chicken, eels or frogs.
Medicinal Uses
The plant is extensively used in Indian traditional medicine. Studies on the root wood of P. serratifolia led to the isolation of acteoside, a glucoside derivative. The root bark of the plant which showed biological activities have also shown to contain a potent cytotoxic and antioxidant diterpene, 11,12,16-trihydroxy-2-oxo-5-methyl-10-demethyl-abieta-1,6, 8,11,13-pentene.
Distribution
It is a tropical plant. In PNG it grows in Morobe Province near Lae.
Where It Grows
Niue, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG,
Synonyms
Also Known As
Aloalo
References (1)
- Plants of Papua New Guinea LAE herbarium record
