Achyranthes bidentata Blume

Family:

Amaranthaceae.

Habitat:

The temperate and subtropical Himalayas from Kishtwar to Sikkim at 1,200–3,200 m, Khasi hills.

Ayurvedic:

Shveta Apaamaarga. (Rakta Apaamaarga is equated with Achyranthes rubra-fusca Hook. f. and A. verschaffeltii Lam., synonym Iresine herbstii Hook. f.)

Siddha/Tamil:

Naayurivi.

Action:

Astringent, diuretic, spasmolytic. Plant is given in whooping cough, roots in hemicrania.

A water-soluble oligosaccharide, composed of six glucose units and three mannose units, has been isolated from the roots. It enhanced immune response and prolonged survival time of mice bearing Ehrlich carcinoma.

The roots contain free oleanolic acid (0.096%) and its saponins (1.93%). An alcoholic extract of the root showed presence of amino acids, steroids, triterpenoids, alkaloids and coumarins. The seeds afforded achyranthin.

Extract of the plant—antimicrobial.