Gymnosporia senegalensis var. spinosa Engl. Ex Loes. (KINKINALA)

The term kinkinila is not noticed in any of the earlier texts. Its synonym vyaghrapad is used for vikankata in bhavaprakasa. But, vikankata is quoted by Caraka under ‘Phala varga’ (C.S.Su.27) and kinkinala of madanapala ighantu appear to be different. Some identify vikankata with Gymnosporia spinosa (Forsk.) Fiori (Balvanth Singh Thakur, p. 367-368), while author consider  kinkinala as Gymnosporia spinosa (Forsk.) Fiori.  G. spinosa is commonly found in Philippines and China. G. emarginata from India and Sri Lanka also needs to be considered. Maytenus rapakir is mentioned as probably belonging to Gymnosporia.

Ding Hou (Flora Malesiana 1962 & 1964) considers Gymnosporia and Maytenus to be congeneric. New research on the family suggests that larger genera need to be recircumscribed into smaller segregate ones. The genus Gymnosporia (Wight & Arn.) Hook.f. has recently been reinstated (Jordaan & Van Wyk 1999, Archer & Jordaan 2000) to include all its spiny members, previously placed under Maytenus Molina sens. Lat. A study of Gymnosporia (the southern African species) was undertaken and the subdivision of the genus into eight sections was proposed (Jordaan 1995), based mainly on fruit and seed morphology as well as leaf anatomy; a monographic study covering the genus on a worldwide basis is currently in progress.

Gymnosporia is an Old World genus of suffrutices, shrubs and trees. It comprises about 108 members, occurring in the whole of Africa, Madagascar and adjacent islands, southern Spain, the near Middle East, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, S China, Taiwan, Ryukyu Islands (Japan), Malesia, and Queensland (Australia), with G. vitiensis (A.Gray) Seem. Endemic to the Polynesian Islands. The genus has two main centres of diversity on the Afro-Arabian continent. There is a high degree of regional endemism at both specific and sectional level and there are only a few 155 widespread species in the genus.

Botanical Description – It is perennial herb with greenish yellow coloured flowers. It is found in the tem-porate regions of India.

Major Chemical Constituents–

Part Used– Bark, fruit, leaf

Uses – The bark has been used in Indian indigenous medicine as an application to destroy pediculi (Nadkarni 1976).

Note – It may also important to consider one of the Strychnos species as kinkinila since it is described after kataka, tinduka and visatinduka.  S. ignatia a Ashian plant may be screened for its identity.

Strychnos genus includes about 190 species of trees and lianas, distributed around the world’s tropics.

• The Strychnine tree, Strychnos nux-vomica, native to tropical Asia, is the source of the poison strychnine.

• Strychnos ignatia (“St. Ignatius bean”), is a closely related Asian shrub / tree.

• The species Strychnos toxifera is one of the 2 plant sources of the poison curare.

• Another notable species is Strychnos spinosa (Lam.), commonly known as the Natal orange.

• The ripe seeds of Strychnos potatorum , known as Therran or Nirmal, can be ground and used as a coagulant to purify water.

Strychnos Ignatia is a plant named for Saint Ignatia, the founder of the Jesuit missionary order. Ignatia is derived from the bean of a tree in the Loganiaceae family native to the Philippines and parts of China. The fruit of the tree Strychnos ignatii is the size and shape of a pear and has almond-like seeds, also known as Saint Ignatius’ beans.