Murraya koenigii (sweet neem)- An Antidiabetic Herb: A Review

By DR.RAJESH MD (Medicine), PGDTC,  Medical Officer, SUMC Himmatganj Allahabad (UP)

Murraya koenigii is a small tree; the tree is an aromatic deciduous one, about five meters in height, 15-40 cm in diameter. It is cultivated mainly in homesteads but to a certain extent on a plantation scale. The leaves are pinnate, with 11-21 leaflets, each leaflet 2–4 cm long and 1–2 cm broad. They are highly aromatic. The flowers are small, white, and fragrant. The small black shiny berries are edible, but their seeds are poisonous.
Curry leaf is found almost throughout India up to an altitude of 1500 mtrs. It is much cultivated for its aromatic leaves.

Scientific classification:

Kingdom:           Plantae

Division:            Angiosperms

Class:                  Eudicots

Order:                 Sapindales

Family:               rutaceae

Genus:                Murraya

Species:              M. Koinigii

Vernacular names

Hindi:                 Kathnim, Mitha neem, Curry patta, Gandhela

Assamese:           Narsinghs, Bisharhari

Bangali:              Baesanga, Kariphulli

Gujarati:             Goranimb, Kadhilimbdo

Kannada:            Karibevu

Malayalam:        Karriveppilei

Marathi:             Karhinimb,Poospala, Gandla, Jhirang

Oriya:                Barsan, Basango

Punjabi:             Curry patta

Sanskrit:            Krishna nimbi

Tamil:               Karivempu

Telugu:             Karepaku

French:             Feuilles de cari

German:           Curryblatter

English:           Curry leaves

Chinese:          Ga lei yihp

Duych:             Kerriebladeren

Spanish:           Hoia

Uses:

The leaves of Murraya koenigii are used as a herb in Unani Medicine and Ayurvedic medicine. Curry leaf has many medicinal properties  as an anti-diabetic, antioxidant,  antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, anti-hypercholesterolemic etc.

It stimulates digestive enzymes and helps break down food more easily. Have a glass of buttermilk mixed with a little hing (asafoetida) with a few curry leaves thrown after meal for good digestion.

The leaves are highly valued as seasoning in southern and west-coast Indian cooking, and Sri Lankan cooking, especially in curries, usually fried along with the chopped onion in the first stage of the preparation. They are also used to make thoran, vada, rasam and kadhi.

Chemical constituents

Recently Syam et al. 2011 reported that girinimbine, a carbazole alkaloid isolated from this plant, inhibited the growth and induced apoptosis in human hepatocellular carcinoma, HepG2 cells in vitro. It is good source of vitamin A and calcium. They also contain vitamins B, amino acids, alkaloids, iron and other rich minereals.

RENAL STONE (HASAT KULYA) AND KULTHI

The medical terminology for kidney stone is nephrolithiasis or renal calculus. In unani medicine it is known as Hasat Kulya and Asmari in Ayurveda.

Kidney stone is a worldwide problem. Its prevalence and incidence was reported to be increasing across the world. It is a crystalline mass or a concretions or a solid accumulations of material that formed by precipitation of various urinary solutes in the tubal system of the kidney. It can vary in size from as small as grains of sand to large as golf ball. Renal stone cause problems when they block the flow of urine through or out of kidney. It is typically leave the body by passage in the urine stream, and many stones are formed and passed without causing symptoms.

According to Unani system of medicine causes of stone formation in kidney is ghaleez madda and stagnation of madda. Ghaleez madda (morbid matter) is produced by Ghaleez Aghzia e.g. concentrated milk, paneer, big birds (dhanek etc) and meat of (old camel, old bull, old goat), ghaleez meat, roasted meat and fish meat who has the properties of ghaleez and sangeen, roti (feteeri, leshdar, maida), kheer, shewayyan, and those food and fruits which are not easily digested as like raw apple, raw shaftalo, seed of utaraj, seed of guava and also polluted water. All these substances produce thick and viscous matter in the body, when the quwate hazima is weak so its leads to formation of ghaleez khilt and reeh. This reeh gets accumulation in the urinary tract. This madda (matter) remain in the kidney for long time; mainly because of weakness of kidney or weakness of its power of expultion which frequently develop consequent upon sue mizaj kulya or warme har kulya or qurahe kulya. Under the influence of hararat this ghaleez madda converted into gravel and gets expelled or stays back in the kidney and gets changes into stones.

Kulthi

Kulthi is one of the best herbal medicine for the kidney stone. Its general description is:

An erect, glabrous or minutely pubescent, branched annual up to 30-90 cm tall, leaves rather distant 2-3 pinnately divided, segments linear, ultimate segments 1-2.5 cm long. The Flowers in terminal of seemingly lateral pedunculate, compound umbels, white, small, fruits ovoid, muricate, aromatic cremocarps, 2-3 mm. This herb originated in the Mediterranean region and is how cultivated in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Africa, China.

Botanical name: Dolichus biflorus linn.

Family: Fabaceae

Vernacular names

English:    Horse gram

Unani:      Habbul Qilt  

Hindi:       Kulthi

Sanskrit:  Kulatha

Bangali:   Kurli kalai

Kanara:   Hurali

Afa’al (Pharmacological actions): Mufattite Hisat (lithotriptic), Mudirre haiz (Emmenagogue), Mudirre boul (Diuretic), Jali (Detergent), Mufatteh (deobstruent).

Istemalat (Therapeutic uses):  Astringent, Diuretic, Tonic, Antidiaphoretic, hepatomegaly, Splenomegaly.

Dosage:   3-4 gm

Part used:  Seeds  

Mizaj (Temperament): Hot 3^o and Dry 2^o 

Muzirat (Adverse effects): For lungs

Musleh (Corrective): Shahad (Honey), Tukh Shalgham, Aab Barg Turb (leaf juice Raphanus sativus sativus Linn.) 

Chemical constituents: Organic: Glycosides, proteins/ amino acids, resins, reducing sugars, steroids/ triterpenes, tannins.

Inorganic: Sodium, potassium, iron, phosphate, chloride.

Best nuskha for renal stone

Nuskha: Take 100gm kulthi and soak in 1litter of worm water in evening. Boil in 2litters

of water in morning and take its filter water in the whole day. Repeat its process for 30 days.