Ø A good aphrodisiac

ØRejuvenates each and every cell of the body

ØUseful in all rheumatic conditions like rheumatoid arthritis etc.

ØUseful in hemorrhoids

ØNourishes the brain tissues

Common Name:

Elephant Creeper,
Woolly Morning Glory

Sanskrit Name:

Vruddha Daruk

Bidhara

Dhavapatta

Samudrashosha

Lt. Name:

Argyreia speciosa – Convolvulaceae 

Bio energetics:

Rasa (Taste) – Katu (Pungent). Tikta (Bitter), Kashaya (Astringent)

Guna (Characteristics)-  Laghu (Light); Snigdha (Unctuous)

Veerya (Potency)- Ushna (Hot)

Vipaka (Post digestion effect)- Madhura (Sweet) 

Chemical composition:

The plant contains tannin and amber-colored resin, soluble in ether, benzole; partly soluble in alkalis; and fatty oil.The seeds have shown the presence of alkaloids, viz., chanoclavine, ergine, ergonovine, and isoergine by various workers.

Effect on Tridosha (Three bio humors):

Vidhara mool pacifies Kapha and Vata Doshas in the body so it can be used effectively in management of all the diseases which originate from aggravation of Kapha/ Vata or both. 

Actions according to Ayurveda:

• Rasayana : Vidhara mool rejuvenates each and every cell of the body
  
• Vrushya : Vidhara mool is a good aphrodisiac
  
• Aamvathar: Vidhara mool is useful in all rheumatic conditions like rheumatoid arthritis etc.
  
• Arshahara: Vidhara mool is useful in hemorrhoids.
  
• Shothahar: Vidhara mool alleviates swelling from the body
  
• Mehapranut: Vidhara mool is useful in all urinary problems; passage of sugar with urine for example.
  
• Ayushkar: Vidhara mool enhances livingness in the body
  
• Medhavardhaka: Vidhara mool nourishes the brain tissues
  
• Kantikar: Vidhara mool imparts a glowing and healthy look to the body
  

Medicinal value:

• Dementia is a brain disorder that seriously affects a person's ability to carry out daily activities. The most common form of dementia among older people is Alzheimer's disease (AD), which initially involves the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language, ending with severe brain damage. Nootropic agents like, piracetam, and cholinesterase inhibitors like, donepezil are commonly used for improving memory, mood and behavior but their adverse effects have made their use limited and it is worthwhile to explore the utility of traditional medicines in the treatment of various cognitive disorders.Argyreia speciosa (AS) commonly known as Vridha daraka is widely used in ayurveda for the treatment of neurological disorders. The present work was undertaken to assess the potential of AS as a nootropic and anti-cholinesterase agent in mice. Effectiveness of aqueous extract of AS on ageing, scopolamine and diazepam induced memory deficits in mice was evaluated. Elevated plus maze and passive avoidance paradigm were employed to assess short-term and long term memory. In order to delineate the possible mechanism through which AS elicits the anti-amnesic effects, the whole brain acetyl cholinesterase (AChE) activity, was also assessed. Two doses (100 and 200 mg/kg, p.o.) of aqueous extract of AS were administered orally for 6 successive days to both young and aged mice. AS decreased transfer latencies and increased step down latencies in both young and aged mice AS (100 and 200 mg/kg, p.o.) successfully reversed amnesia induced by diazepam, scopolamine and natural ageing. AS significantly decreased AChE levels in the whole brain homogenate indicating its potential in the attenuation of learning and memory deficits especially in the aged mice.
  
• Evaluation of Nootropic Effect of Argyreia speciosa in Mice Joshi Hanumanthachar, Department of Pharmacognosy, SET's College of Pharmacy Kaur Navneet and Chauhan Jyotibala Department of Biotechnology, Pooja Bhagavat Memorial Mahajana's P. G. Centre

• Argyreia speciosa, a woody climber is widely used in ayurveda for the treatment of neurological disorders. This work researched the action of the n-hexane (n-HF), chloroform (CF), ethyl acetate (EAF) and water (WF) fractions of hydroalcoholic extract of roots of Argyreia speciosa on the central nervous system. All the fractions (100, 200 and 500 mg/kg, p.o.) were evaluated for neuro-pharmacological activity using spontaneous motor activity and pentobarbital-induced sleeping time in mice. Chlorpromazine was used as a positive control. Central nervous system depressant activity was observed with all the fractions as indicated by the results in which they reduced spontaneous motor activity and potentiated pentobarbital induced hypnosis in mice. These results suggest that the active principles present in the root of Argyreia speciosa may responsible for central nervous depressant activity.
  
• Central Nervous System Activity of Argyreia Speciosa Roots in Mice; VJ Galani and BG Patel Department of Pharmacology, A R. College of Pharmacy and GH. Patel Institute of Pharmacy, Vallabh Vidyanagar- 388120. Gujarat, India.
• Argyreia speciosa is a potent medicinal plant in the Indian systems of medicine. Traditionally it is used as an antibacterial, antifungal, antipyretic, etc. In the present study the hydroalcoholic extract and its acetone, chloroform and methanol fractions of the root of A. speciosa were studied for their antipyretic activity by Brewer’s yeast-induced pyrexia in rats. It was observed that the hydroalcoholic extract produced significant antipyretic activity (p < 0.05), while acetone, chloroform and methanol fraction did not.
  
• Antipyretic activity of roots of Argyreia speciosa (burm. f.) Bojer Sandeep Ahlawat, P.K. Mishra Sanjay College of Pharmacy, Chaumuhan, Mathura- 281406, UP, India; K. Dalal, Janta College of Pharmacy, Butana, Sonepat-131302, HR, India; Arjun Patra, College of Pharmacy, IFTM, Moradabad - 244 001, UP, India
• In a study the Methanolic Extract of A. speciosa root was used in pain and inflammation models. The analgesic activity of AS at the dose of (30,100, and 300 mg/kg p.o) showed significant (P<0.01) decrease in acetic acid-induced writhing, whereas ME of A. speciosa at the dose of (100, 300 mg/kg p.o) showed significant (P<0.01) increase in latency to tail flick in tail immersion method and elevated mean basal reaction time in hot plate method. The ME of the A. speciosa at doses (30, 100, and 300mg/kg) showed significant (P < 0.01) inhibition of carrageenan induced hind paw edema in rats.
  
• Analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity of Argyreia speciosa root; R.S. Bachhav, V.S. Gulecha, C.D. Upasani; NGSPM’s College of Pharmacy, Brahma Valley Educational Campus At/p Anjaneri Tal- Trimbak, Nashik, India
• The present study has been designed to evaluate the liver protective and in-vivoantioxidant role of Ethanolic extract (EtAS) and Ethyl acetate extract (EAAS) of roots of Argyreia speciosa, an important ‘rasayana’ herb in Indian System of medicine, in CCl₄-induced hepatotoxicity and oxidative stress in rats. Animals were treated with EtAS and EAAS at doses of 200 mg and 400 mg / kg body weight p.o. along with CCl₄ (0.7 ml / kg in olive oil, 1:1 v/v i.p. on every alternate days) for seven days. Serum biochemical parameters such as SGOT, SGPT, ALP, cholesterol, total and direct bilirubin were determined. Antoixidant status in liver was determined by measuring the activities of Super oxide dismutase (SOD), Catalase and Peroxidase. Histopathological study of isolated liver specimens was also carried out to know the protection offered by the extracts. There was a significant rise in the levels of serum GOT, GPT, and ALP and other biochemical parameters, decrease in the levels of SOD, Catalase and Peroxidase after administration of CCl₄. Suspensions of EtAS and EAAS (200 and 400 mg/ kg) successfully prevented the alterations of these effects in rats (p< 0.001). Histopathological examination demonstrated that CCl₄treated group induces ballooning degeneration and centrilobular necrosis. Groups treated with EtAS and EAAS showed recovery on ballooning degeneration and centrlobular bridging necrosis was occasionally present. Data also showed that these extracts possessed strong antioxidant activity, and were comparable to Silymarin, a well known liver protecting herbal formulation.
  
• Hepatoprotective and Antioxidant Effects of Argyreia Speciosa in Rats;PV Habbu, Department of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry S.E.T's College of Pharmacy, S.R.Nagar, Dharwad, Karnataka, India RA Shastry, K M Mahadevan, Hanumanthachar Joshi, and SK Das PG department of Studies in chemical Sciences and Research, Kuvempu University Shankaraghatta, Shimoga, Karnataka, India

• Based on ethno-medical clues, the aphrodisiac property of Argeria nervosa was studied in male mice. The root, flower and, to some extent, leaf (homogenate in 2% gum acacia) of the plant showed aphrodisiac activity as evidenced by an increase in mounting behavior of mice. When different extracts of the root were tested, the activity was found in the alcohol extract (200 mg/kg; p.o, single dose). The extract, 1 hr after administration, stimulated mounting behavior of male mice in a concentration-dependent manner. The root- or flower-treated male mice also exhibited a remarkable increase in mating performance. Further, the number of males was found to be more among the pups fathered by the herbal drug-treated mice compared to those by the control mice.  Thus, the plant has promising potential to be developed into an effective medicine for stimulating male sexual activity with an influence on sex ratio favoring males.
  
• Aphrodisiac property of the elephant creeper Argyreia nervosa A. Subramoniam, V. Madhavachandran, K. Ravi and V.S. Anuja Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Pacha-Palode 695562, Thiruvananthapuram District, Kerala, India

Useful part:

• A person becomes intelligent, with good memory and with out and signs of aging if he takes Vidhara mool powder (which is already treated with the juice of Shatavari seven times) with ghruta for one month.