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Admission cell 2025-2026

Mandukaparni Bheda

Botanical Name: Centella umbellata Willd./Hydrocotyle umbellata

Identification No: SDACH/HG/184

Family Name: Apiaceae (Umbelliferae)

Vernacular Names:

  • Hindi: Brahmi
  • Marathi: Khulakhula
  • Tamil: Vallarai
  • Kannada: Ondelaga
  • Malayalam: Muthil
  • Telugu: Saraswathi aku

Habitat & Distribution:

Centella umbellata is distributed widely across India in moist, shady places, often near water bodies. It grows as a creeping herb in marshy and tropical regions.

Morphology

  • Root: Creeping, slender, with fibrous roots.
  • Stem: Slender, prostrate or ascending, rooting at nodes.
  • Leaves: Simple, reniform to orbicular, with rounded apex and cordate base, long petiolate.
  • Flowers: Small, pinkish or white, arranged in umbels.
  • Fruits: Cremocarp, small, laterally compressed, with mericarps.
  • Seeds: Small and flattened.

Varieties:

  • Centella asiatica (main Mandookaparni)
  • Centella umbellata (Mandookaparni bheda, less common)
  • Hydrocotyle spp. (closely related but not identical)

Substitute/Adulterant:

  • Hydrocotyle sibthorpioides (common adulterant)
  • Centella asiatica (interchangeably used but with phytochemical differences)

Phytochemicals:

  • Asiaticoside
  • Madecassoside
  • Brahmoside
  • Centelloside
  • Triterpenoids
  • Flavonoids
  • Saponins
  • Alkaloids

Amayika Prayoga / Therapeutic Uses:

External:

  • Paste applied in skin diseases
  • Promotes wound healing
  • Used in burns and eczema

Internal:

  • Enhances memory and intelligence
  • Useful in anxiety, stress, insomnia
  • Treats epilepsy and hysteria

Part Used:

Whole plant

Dose:

  • Churna: 2–5 g
  • Svarasa (Juice): 10–20 ml
  • Kwatha: 50–100 ml

Yoga/Formulations:

  • Saraswatarishta
  • Brahmi Ghrita
  • Smritisagara Rasa
  • Medhya Rasayana Yoga

IUCN Status: Not Evaluated (NE)

Research Updates

  1. Kumar et al., 2022 – Neuroprotective efficacy of Centella umbellata in Alzheimer’s model in rats showed significant memory enhancement via antioxidant pathways.
  2. Singh et al., 2021 – HPLC profiling of active triterpenoids in Centella umbellata confirms presence of high asiaticoside content, supporting its traditional cognitive benefits.
  3. Rao et al., 2020 – Topical application of Centella umbellata extract demonstrated accelerated wound healing and collagen synthesis in animal models.
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