Withania SOMNIFERA (L.) Dunal.
| Synonym : | Physalis somnifera L. Withania kansuensis Kuang & A. M. Lu Withania microphysalis Suess. |
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| Bangla Name : | Aswagandha, Chota Dhuppa. |
| English Name : | Winter Cherry. |
| Family : | Solanaceae |
| Disease : | Rheumatism,, nervous tension, loss of memory,psoriasis, bronchitis, asthma, hiccup, scabies, marasmus of children,headaches, convulsions, sleeplessness ,seminal weakness and mouth sores. |
| Description : | An erect herbaceous undershrub, 0.5-1.5 m high, branches terete, hoary tomentose. Leaves 5-10 cm long, ovate, subacute, entire, stellately pubescent. Flowers greenish or lurid yellow, usually about 5 together in a sessile or subsessile umbellate cymes, corolla 8 mm long. Berry red, smooth, 6 mm diam., enclosed in the inflated calyx, which reaches more than 2.5 cm diam. |
| Distribution : | North Bengal. |
| Chemical Constituents : | The plant is very rich in tropane alkaloids and steroidal lactone, withanolides. Roots contain tropine, pseudotropine, tigloyloxytropine, choline, anaferine, pellectierine, isopelletierine, anahygrine and cuscohygrine. Root also contain nicotine, somniger |
| Uses : | Roots are tonic, alterative, diuretic and aphrodisiac, it has extensive use in all cases of general debility, consumption, senile debility, rheumatism, nervous tension, loss of memory and muscular energy, useful in psoriasis, bronchitis, asthma, hiccup, s |
| Habit : | Under shrub |