Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
GLINUS OPPOSITIFOLIUS (L) AUG. DC
Phylum: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Molluginaceae
Common name: Slender carpet weed
Distribution: Australia, Africa, India
Habitat: Damp sites
Description: It is a diffuse, slender, spreading or ascending, prostrate annual
herb. Stems (40cm long) are slender, numerous, and dichotomously branched.
Leaves (30 mm long) are opposite or alternate and are arranged in whorls of
ive, unequal, oblanceolate, or linear-lanceolate. Flowers are small white and
are present in axillary fascicles of two.
Compounds and activities: Two pectin-type polysaccharides, GOA 1 and
GOA 2 (acidic carbohydrate polymers), have been isolated from the aerial
parts of this species. While GOA 1 possesses neutral sugars, arabinose
(26.4 mol%), galactose (42.9 mol%), and arabinogalactans type I (AG I) and
type II (AG II), GOA 2 contains rich galacturonic acid (68.3 mol%) along
with rhamnose, arabinose, and galactose. Both GOA 1 and GOA 2 exhibited
potent dose-dependent complement-ixating activities and induced che-
moaxis of macrophage T cells and NK cells (Inngjerdingen et al., 2005).
This species has also been used in traditional medicines and for the treat-
ment of joint pain, inlammation, and wounds, besides possessing immuno-
modulatory, antipyretic, and antimalarial properties.
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