Karanja (Sd.)
KARANJA
Karaµja consists of seeds of Pongamia pinnata (Linn.) Merr, Syn. Pongamia glabra vent.(Fam. Leguminosae),a medium sized glabrous tree with a short bole and spreading crown and found upto an altitude of 1200 m.
SYNONYMS
Sanskrit : Karanjaka, Naktamila, Naktihva, Ghritakaranja
Assamese : Korach
Bengali : Nata Karanja, Dahara Karanja
English : Smooth leaved pongamia
Gujrati : Kanajo, Karanji
Hindi : Dithouri, Karuaini
Kannada : Honge, Hulagilu
Kashmiri : Kath
Malayalam : Avittal, Ungu, Unu, Pungu
Marathi : Karanja
Oriya : Karnja
Punjabi : Karanj
Tamil : Pungan, Pongana
Telugu : Lamiga, Kanuga
Urdu : Karanj
DESCRIPTION
a) Macroscopic
Seed usually one and rarely two, elliptic or reniform in shape, 1.7-2.0 cm long and 1.2-1.8 cm broad, wrinkled with reddish leathery testa, micropylar end of cotyledons slightly depressed while other side semi-circular in shape.
b) Microscopic
Transverse section of seed shows, testa composed of a layer of palisade like outer epidermis, filled with brown pigment, covered externally with a thick cuticle, a layer of large, thin walled, somewhat rectangular cells, 2-4 layers of thick-walled parenchyma cells, a few rows of cells with small inter-cellular spaces, 2-3 layers of thick-walled elongated cells, a few layers of spongy parenchyma having large inter-cellular spaces, a number of parenchyma cells containing brown pigment, cotyledons composed of outer layer of epidermis with cylindrical cells, externally covered with thin cuticle, epidermis followed by rectangular to polygonal cells of mesophyll, filled with globules, also present scattered in this region.
CONSTITUENTS – Fixed oil, flavones and traces of essential oil.
PROPERTIES AND ACTION
Rasa : Katu, Tikta
Guna : Tikshna
Virya : Ushna
Vipaka : Katu
Karma : Krimijit, Kushhaghna, Kaphavitaghna, Vranasodhana
IMPORTANT FORMULATIONS – Aragvadhidi Kvith Churna, Pathyidilepa
THERAPEUTIC USES – Vrana, Krimi, Kushtha.
DOSE – 0.25 g of the drug in powder form.
5-10 g of the drug for decoction.
