Primary Pharmacological and Other Important Findings on the Medicinal Plant "Aconitum Heterophyllum" (Aruna).

Aconitum Heterophyllum (A. Heterophyllum) is an indigenous medicinal plant of India and belongs to the family Ranunculaceae. A. Heterophyllum is known to possess a number of therapeutic effects. For very ancient times, this plant has been used in some formulations in the traditional healing system of India, i.e., Ayurveda. It is reported to have use in treating patients with urinary infections, diarrhea, and inflammation. It also has been used as an expectorant and for the promotion of hepatoprotective activity. The chemical studies of the plant have revealed that various parts of the plant contain alkaloids, carbohydrates, proteins and amino acids, saponins, glycosides, quinones, flavonoids, terpenoids, etc. In the present study, a comprehensive phytochemistry and pharmacognosy, as well as the medicinal properties, of A. Heterophyllum are discussed. Scientific information on the plant was collected from various sources, such as electronic sources (Google scholar, Pubmed) and some old classical text books of Ayurveda and Ethnopharmacology. The study also presents a review of the literature on A. Heterophyllum, as well as the primary pharmacological and other important findings on this medicine. This review article should provide useful information to and be a valuable tool for new researchers who are initiating studies on the plant A. Heterophyllum.

1. Introduction

India has an ancient and rich heritage of traditional medicine. Ayurveda is accepted as an ancient medicinal system that originated in Indian. Ayurveda is accepted to be an upaveda (part) of Atharavaveda (1000 B.C.). All the formulations mentioned in the Ayurvedic Formulary of India are still used in India, and recently, those formulations have begun to spread worldwide [1].

Aconitum Heterophyllum (A. Heterophyllum) is an ayurvedic medicinal plant used as the main ingredient in many formulations mentioned in the Ayurvedic formulary of India. Aconitum species are also used as major components in Chinese and Bhutanese herbal medicines. This plant is also known in Indian English as atees and atis root, in Sanskrit as ativisha, shuklakanda, aruna, and vishada, in Urdu as atees, in Hindi as atis and atvika, in Bengali as ataish, in Telugu as ati vasa, in Guajarati as ativakhani, in Marathi as ati vish, in Kannada as ati-vishsa, in Malayalam as ati-vidayam, and in Panjabi as atis [2].

A. Heterophyllum falls under the plant Kingdom, ‘Magnoliophyta’ division, and belongs to the Ranunculaceae family and the Aconitum genus [3]. About 300 species of Aconitum are found worldwide, of which 24 species are found in India. Medicinal A. Heterophyllum consists of dried, tuberous roots of A. Heterophyllum Wall. ex. Royle, a perennial herb native to the western Himalayas and found in Kashmir, Uttarakhand Sikkim, and Nepal at altitudes between 2,500 and 4,000 m. Most of the species are highly toxic in nature, being known as the Queen of all poisons, with several species having been used, and still being used, on the tips of hunting spike. Thus, this plant must be handled carefully [4, 5].

The plant A. Heterophyllum is reported to have antidiarrheal, expectorant, diuretic, hepatoprotective, antipyretic and analgesic, antioxidant, alexipharmic, anodyne, anti-atrabilious, anti-flatulent, anti-periodic, anti-phlegmatic, and carminative properties; furthermore, it can be used to treat patients with reproductive disorders [6-8].¬. Figs. 1, 2 show pictures of the plant and its root. Table 1 presents its scientific classification.

Figure 1

Plant of Aconitum Heterophyllum.

Figure 2

Root of Aconitum Heterophyllum.

Table 1

Scientific classification of Aconitum Heterophyllum [2]

Botanical name	Aconitum Heterophyllum
Family	Ranunculaceae
Kingdom	Plantae
Division	Magnoliophyta
Class	Magnoliopsida
Order	Ranunculales
Genus	Aconitum

2. Description

The roots of A. Heterophyllum appear whitish grey in color and are 2.0 – 7.5 cm long and 0.4 – 1.6 cm or more thick at their upper extremities, decreasing in thickness towards a tapered end (Fig. 2). Stems are simple and branched, 15 – 20 cm in height, and green in color. A. Heterophyllum is a small plant with a straight stem, but sometimes occurs with branches. It is a tree that has blue or yellow flowers from August to September (Fig. 1). The leaves of this herb are a heteromorphous dark green in color. The upper parts of the leaves are amplexicaul, and the lowest parts of the leaves are long petioles. The plant has have a spiral (alternate) arrangement [9]. The macroscopic and the microscopic characteristics of the plant are presented in Tables 2 and 3, respectively.

Table 2

Preliminary macroscopic characteristics of Aconitum Heterophyllum [3]

Stems	Simple and branched 15–20 cm in height Green in color Small plant with a straight stem Sometime occurs in branches
Leaves	Heteromorphous dark green in color Upper parts are amplexicaul Lowest parts are long petioles
Roots	Paired whitesh grey in color 2.0 – 7.5 cm long 0.4 – 1.6 cm or more thick at its upper extremity, decreasing in thickness towards tapering end.

Table 3

Preliminary microscopic characteristics of Aconitum Heterophyllum [9]

Roots

Transverse section of the mature root shows Single layered epidermis consisting of light-brown tabular cells rupturing on formation of cork 5 – 10 rows of tangentially elongated, thin-walled cells Cork cambium single layer consisting of tangentially elongated, thin-walled cells Much wider cortex consisting of tangentially elongated or rounded, thin-walled parenchymatous cells with intercellular spaces, cells

3. Cultivation and Collection

For the cultivation of A. Heterophyllum, the suitable altitude is about 2,400 – 3,600 m above sea level. The plant is mostly found in sub-alpine and alpine region of the Himalayas. A. Heterophyllum is cultivated in moist soil, and the rain fall required for the cultivation of natural and transplanted populations of A. Heterophyllum is 664.2 to 1485.7 mm. A. Heterophyllum plants are grown from seeds and tuberous roots; seeds collect and germinat only in the beginning of the spring, March to April. Generally, one to two daughter tubers are produced by the end of the growing season. Daughter tubers are collected during autumn after the aerial shoots have senesced and are replanted in the spring. The new plants produce leafy shoots during the first year of the growth while the cultivated plants produce flowers during the second year of growth [4].

4. Medicinal Importance of A. Heterophyllum

A. Heterophyllum has various medicinal uses. It is reported to have antidiarrheal activity when taken with fine powder of dry ginger, Beel (Bellpetra in India) fruit, or Nutmeg (jaiphal in India). The juice of the root when taken with milk acts as an expectorant. The seeds are used as a diuretic. Furthermore, the plant is used to treat patients with reproductive disorders and is known to have hepatoprotective, antipyretic and analgesic, antioxidant, alexipharmic, anodyne, anti-atrabilious, anti-flatulent, anti-periodic, anti-phlegmatic, and carminative properties.

5. HPLC Analysis

Jabeen et al developed a fingerprinting method for identifying the bioactive compounds present in A. Heterophyllum by using a simple reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography - ultraviolet-photodiode array detector (HPLC-UV-DAD) method. Peak heights were linear in the aconitine concentration with a correlation coefficient > 0.999. The assay was rapid and reproducible. A reliable and accurate HPLC method coupled with DAD was developed for simultaneous quantitative determination of six aconitum alkaloids: aconitine, mesaconitine, hypaconitine, benzoylaconine, benzoylmesaconine, and benzoylhypaconine [10]. The identified chemical constituents found in A. Heterophyllum are presented in Table 4, and the corresponding structures of those constituents are presented in Table 5.

Table 4

Chemical constituents of Aconitum Heterophyllum [6, 11]

Class	Chemical constituents
	Leaf	Root	Stem
Alkaloids	+	+	+
Carbohydrates	+	+	+
Proteins & Amino acids	+	+	+
Saponins	+	+	+
Glycosides	+	+	+
Quinones	−	+	+
Flavonoids	+	+	+
Terpenoids	−	+	+

Table 5

Phytochemical structures present in Aconitum Heterophyllum [6]

Chemical constituents
12-secohetisan-2-ol
N-succinoylanthranilate
Atesinol 6-benzoylheterastine
N-diethyl-N-formyllaconitine
Methyl aconitine
Aconitine
Anthorine

6. Conclusion

In the present review, we have made an attempt to assemble all available information on A. Heterophyllum, such as its botanical, photochemical, pharmacological, and toxicological properties. A. Heterophyllum is a medicinal herb used in the traditional Indian medicine system known as the Ayurvedic system. It has many pharmacological properties, such as its alexipharmic, anodyne, anti-atrabilious, anti-flatulent, anti-periodic, anti-phlegmatic, carminative, anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, and expectorant properties, but in nature, most species of aconitum are extremely toxic due to the presence of certain phytoconstituents. A. Heterophyllum is the intoxicating source of the phytochemical constituents that are responsible for its pharmacological activities. This plant has medicinal value, as has been proven through the history of this ancient formulation.