Strychnos nux-vomica (Seed)

Kuchila (Seed)
Kuchila consists of dried seed of Strychnos nux-vomica Linn. (Fam. Fabaceae), a tree, upto a height of 9 to 15 m found throughout tropical parts of the country upto 360 m altitude in the moist deciduous forest. Seed is poisonous and can produce ill effects.

SYNONYMS
Sanskrit : Karaskara, Visatindu, Kakatinduka
Assamese : Ajraki, Habbul gurab, Kuchila
Bengali : Kuchila
English : Poison-nut tree, Nux vomica
Gujrati : Konchala, Jher Kochla, Kuchla, Zer Kochalu
Hindi : Kuchala, Kuchila, Bish tendu
Kannada : Kanjihemushti, Manjira, Hemmushti, Ittongi, Kasarkayi
Kashmiri : —
Malayalam : Kajjl, Kanniram
Marathi : Kajra, Kuchla
Oriya : —
Punjabi : Kuchla
Tamil : Yettimaram, Kakotee, Ettikottai, Ettikkai
Telugu : Mushti, Mushini
Urdu : Azaraqi, Kuchla

DESCRIPTION

a) Macroscopic
Seeds greenish-grey to grey, extremely hard, silky to touch with a satiny sheen; disc-shaped, almost flat, umbonate but a few seeds somewhat irregularly bent, 10 to 30 mm in diameter, 4 to 6 mm thick, margin rounded or depressed; when cut open, endosperm found to be horny, having a central cavity in which the embryo is situated with two small, thin, cordate, leafy cotyledons with 5 to 7 veins and a terete radicle; odourless.

b) Microscopic
Seed shows single layered epidermis, each epidermal cell elongated externally to form closely appresed trichomes, lignified, comprising of pitted bulbous base and a thick-walled narrowly elongated, projection; trichome slightly bent beyond the base, with about ten strongly lignified ribs of thickenings; inner testa composed of collapsed parenchymatous cells with yellowish-brown contents; outermost layer of endosperm consists of palisade-like cells while the inner layers have thick-walled, cellulosic polyhedral cells, showing plasmodesmata; endosperm cells also contain oil, and aleurone grams.
Powder – Greenish-grey; shows narrowly elongated and slightly bent thick-walled, lignified trichomes with bulbous base without ramification, thin-walled, parenchymatous cells filled with yellowish-brown content, oil globules and aleurone grains.

CONSTITUENTS – Alkaloids, Indole Alkaloids, Strychnine & Brucine, Monoterpenoid Glycoside (Loganin), s, s -Colubrine, Vomicine.

PROPERTIES AND ACTION
Rasa : Katu, Tikta
Guna : Laghu, Ruksha, Tikshna
Virya : Ushna
Vipaka : Katu
Karma : Grahi, Madakaraka, Vatalam, Kaphanasaka, Pittanasaka, Raktadosha Nasaka, Vranasodhana, Parama Vedanahara, Agnireta, Rujahara, Jantunasana

IMPORTANT FORMULATIONS – Krimimudgara Rasa, Vishatinduka Taila, Mahavishagarbha
Taila, Agnitundi Vati, Ekangavira Rasa, Vishatinduka Vati, Navajivana Rasa

THERAPEUTIC USES – Agnimandya, Arsa, Ardita, Kandu, Klaibya, Vishucika, Vrana, Pakshaghata, Nadi Daurbalya, Kushha, Gridhrasi

DOSE – 60-125 mg powder of the shodhita drug.