Description
Eurycoma longifolia (Simaroubaceae) is a small tree to 15 m
high. Plants dioecious (flowers on a plant are either male or
female). Leaves compound, long, and crowded at the tips of the
branches. When the leaves fall they leave large scars on the
stems.
Leaflets are ovate-lanceolate, sessile or nearly so,
and opposite. Flowers are borne in axillaries panicles, mostly
large and lax,
and puberulous with short hairs. Flowers are
unisexual; male flower has sterile pistil, female flower has
sterile stamens. Fruits ellipsoid or ovoid, 10-20 x 5-12 mm,
green to blackish-red when ripe.
Ecology
E. longifolia prefers acid and sandy soils at low altitude up
to 700 m above sea level. Plants usually grow in beach
forests, primary and secondary forests, mixed dipterocarp
forests and also in heath forests. In Riau Province, Sumatra,
1991, the author found that plants were growing in areas with
an average temperature of 25C and 86% humidity. The soils in
this area were found to be poor in nutrients, but mycorrhizal
fungi were found growing near the plants and may indicate an
association. Seedlings require shade,
during which time they
develop an extensive root system. Following juvenile stages,
plants need stronger light to develop vegetative and
reproductive parts. E. longifolia flowers and fruits
throughout the year, with peak flowering from June-July and
peak fruiting in September.
Distribution
E. longifolia originates from South East Asia, including
Indonesia, Malay Peninsula, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and
Vietnam. In Indonesia, this species only occurs naturally in
Sumatra and Kalimantan.
Uses
Though E. longifolia is currently mostly known as an
aphrodisiac, in South East Asia, all parts of E. longifolia
plants have long been used medicinally. The plant is commonly
used throughout the region as a tonic after childbirth. The
bark of the roots is used in the Malay Peninsula to cure
fever, ulcers in the mouth, and intestinal worms. The Malays
also use the paste of the plant to relieve headache,
stomachache, pain caused by syphilis, and many other general
pains. In parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan, the root is used as
an anit-pyretic. In Lampung and Belitung it is used as a
medicine for dysentery. The people of Sabah and Kalimantan
make a decoction of the bark that is drunk to relieve pain in
the bones or applied for washing itches. In Vietnam, people
use the flowers and fruits as a medicine for treating
dysentery. In Riau, where the author carried out research,
people living in the surrounding forests boil the root or stem
to cure malaria. One of the most unique uses for E. longifolia
is that of the Sakai ethnic group in Sumatra who use the plant
as an amulet to protect people from the smallpox virus.
Phytochemistry
The active constituents in E. longifolia, and many other
species in the Family Simaroubaceae, include quassin, neo-quassin,
glaukarubin, sedrin, eurycomanol that are mostly derivatives
from compounds with 20 carbon atoms.
Some Clinical Studies
Arch Pharm
Res 1998 Dec;21(6):779-81
Eurycoma
longifolia increases sexual motivation in sexually naive male
rats.
Ang HH,
Sim MK.
School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Science, Malaysia,
Minden, Singapore.
The aim of
this study is to provide evidence on the aphrodisiac property
of Eurycoma longifolia Jack. An electric grid was used as an
obstruction in the electrical copulation cage in order to
determine how much an aversive stimulus the sexually naive
male rat for both the treated with E. longifolia Jack and
control groups were willing to overcome to reach the estrous
receptive female in the goal cage. The intensity of the grid
current was maintained at 0.12 mA and this was the intensity
in which the male rats in the control group failed to
crossover to reach the goal cage. Results showed that E. longifolia Jack continued to enhance and also maintain a high
level of both the total number of successful crossovers,
mountings, intromissions and ejaculations during the 9-12th
week observation period. In conclusion, these results further
enhanced and strengthened the aphrodisiac property of E. longifolia Jack.
PMID:
9868556 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Arch Pharm
Res 2001 Oct;24(5):437-40
Effects
of Eurycoma longifolia jack on laevator ani muscle in both
uncastrated and testosterone-stimulated castrated intact male
rats.
Ang HH,
Cheang HS.
School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, University Science Malaysia, Minden,
11800, Penang, Malaysia. hhang@usm.my
It has been
reported that Eurycoma longifolia Jack commonly known as
Tongkat Ali has gained notoreity as a symbol of man's ego and
strength by the Malaysian men because it increases male
virility and sexual prowess during sexual activities. As such, the effects of 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg of butanol, methanol,
water and chloroform fractions of E. longifolia Jack were
studied on the laevator ani muscle in both uncastrated and
testosterone-stimulated castrated intact male rats after
dosing them for 12 consecutive weeks. Results showed that 800
mg/kg of butanol, methanol, water and chloroform fractions of
E. longifolia Jack significantly increased (p<0.05) the leavator ani muscle to 58.56+/-1.22, 58.23+/-0.31, 60.21
+/-0.86 and 62.35 +/-0.98 mg/100 g body weight, respectively,
when compared with the control (untreated) in the uncastrated
intact male rats and 49.23+/-0.82, 52.23+/-0.36, 50.21+/-0.66
and 52.35+/-0.58 mg/100 g body weight, respectively, when
compared to control (untreated) in the testosterone-stimulated
castrated intact male rats. Hence, the pro-androgenic effect
as shown by this study further supported the traditional use
of this plant as an aphrodisiac.
PMID:
11693547 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Biol Pharm
Bull 1998 Feb;21(2):153-5
Eurycoma
longifolia JACK and orientation activities in sexually
experienced male rats.
Ang HH,
Sim MK.
School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Science Malaysia, Penang.
The effects
of Eurycoma longifolia JACK were studied on the orientation
activities of sexually experienced male rats towards receptive
females (mounting, licking, anogenital sniffing), environment
(exploration, raring, climbing), themselves (genital grooming, non-genital grooming) and mobility (unrestricted, restricted)
after dosing them with 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg body weight
twice daily for 10 d prior to the test. The results showed
that E. longifolia JACK modified the orientation activities of
the treated male rats in that they significantly displayed
more frequent and vigorous mounting, licking and anogenital
sniffing towards the receptive females, and it further
intensified self orientation as indicated by the increased
grooming of the genitals compared to the controls (p<0.05). In
addition, rats treated with 800 mg/kg of methanol, water and butanol extracts of E. longifolia JACK continued to show confinement to a particular area of the cage (around the
female), thus showing restriction in movement as compared to
the controls (p<0.05). However, the treated males possessed a
lack of interest in the external environment as indicated by a
reduction in exploration, raring and climbing on the cage
wall. Hence, the present study further supports the folk use
of E. longifolia JACK as an aphrodisiac.
PMID:
9514610 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Exp Anim
1997 Oct;46(4):287-90
Eurycoma
longifolia Jack enhances libido in sexually experienced male
rats.
Ang HH,
Sim MK.
School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Science Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia.
The effects
of Eurycoma longifolia Jack were studied on the libido of
sexually experienced male rats after dosing them with 200, 400
and 800 mg/kg body weight twice daily of different fractions
of E. longifolia Jack for 10 days. Results showed that E.
longifolia Jack produced a dose-dependent increase in mounting
frequency of the treated animals with 400 mg/kg of chloroform,
methanol, water and butanol fractions resulting in mounting
frequencies of 5.3 +/- 1.2, 4.9 +/- 0.7, 4.8 +/- 0.7 and 5.2
+/- 0.1, and 800 mg/kg further increased them to 5.4 +/- 0.8,
5.4 +/- 0.8, 5.2 +/- 0.6 and 5.3 +/- 0.2 respectively but
there were no erections, intromissions, ejaculations or
seminal emissions during the 20-min observation period which
allowed for the measurement of sexual arousal reflected by
mounting frequency uninfluenced by other behavioural
components. This study provides evidence that E. longifolia Jack is a potent stimulator of sexual arousal in sexually
vigorous male rats in the absence of feedback from genital
sensation.
PMID:
9353636 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Exp Anim
2000 Jan;49(1):35-8
Effects
of Eurycoma longifolia Jack (Tongkat Ali) on the initiation of
sexual performance of inexperienced castrated male rats.
Ang HH,
Cheang HS, Yusof AP.
School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, University Science Malaysia, Penang,
Malaysia.
We studied
the effects of Eurycoma longifolia Jack, commonly known as
Tongkat Ali in Malaysia, on the initiation of sexual performance and the weights of sexual accessories in
inexperienced castrated male rats. The doses of 200, 400 and
800 mg/kg body weight, which were extracted from E. longifolia
Jack, were orally administered to the rats twice daily for 10
days prior to the tests and continued throughout the test
period. Testosterone was used as a positive control after
injecting 15 mg/kg daily subcutaneously for 32 days. Results
showed that E. longifolia Jack produced a dose-dependent
increase in sexual performance of the treated animals, but the
E. longifolia Jack groups showed lower sexual performance in
mounting, intromission and ejaculation than the testosterone
group. Further results also showed that E. longifolia Jack
promoted the growth of both ventral prostate and seminal
vesicles as compared with the control, but the growth of
sexual accessories at 800 mg/kg of butanol, methanol, water
and chloroform fractions of E. longifolia Jack was less than
that of testosterone treated group. The present study
therefore gives further evidence of the folkuse of E.
longifolia as an aphrodisiac.
PMID:
10803359 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Fundam Clin
Pharmacol 2001 Aug;15(4):265-8
Aphrodisiac evaluation in non-copulator male rats after
chronic administration of Eurycoma longifolia Jack.
Ang HH,
Ngai TH.
School of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Science Malaysia,
Minden, 11800, Penang, Malaysia.
The
aphrodisiac effect of Eurycoma longifolia Jack (0.5 g/kg) was
evaluated in noncopulator male rats using an electrical cage. Fractions of E. longifolia Jack decreased the hesitation time
of noncopulator male rats, throughout the investigation
period. Furthermore, it possessed a transient increase in the
percentage of the male rats responding to the right choice,
more than 50% of the male rats scored "right choice" after 3
weeks post-treatment and the effect became more prominent
after 8 weeks post-treatment (only 40-50% of the control male
rats responded to the right choice) using the electrical
copulation cage. Hence, this study lends further support to
the use of the plant by indigenous populations as a
traditional medicine for its aphrodisiac property.
PMID:
11564133 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Int J
Androl 2000;23 Suppl 2:82-4 Related Articles, Books, LinkOut
Phytochemicals and the breakthrough of traditional herbs in
the management of sexual dysfunctions.
Adimoelja A.
School of
medicine 'Hang Tuah' University, Teaching and Naval
Hospital,Surabaya, Indonesia.
Traditional
herbs have been a revolutionary breakthrough in the management
of erectile dysfunction and have become known world-wide as an
'instant' treatment. The modern view of the management of
erectile dysfunction subscribes to a single etiology, i.e. the mechanism of erection. A large number of pharmacological
agents are orally consumed and vasoactive agents inserted intraurethrally or injected intrapenially to regain good
erection. Modern phytochemicals have developed from
traditional herbs.
Phytochemicals focus their mechanism of
healing action to the root cause, i.e. the inability to
control the proper function of the whole body system. Hence phytochemicals manage erectile dysfunction in the frame of
sexual dysfunction as a whole entity.
Protodioscin is a
phytochemical agent derived from Tribulus terrestris L plant,
which has been clinically proven to improve sexual desire and
enhance erection via the conversion of protodioscine to DHEA
(De-Hydro-Epi-Androsterone). Preliminary observations suggest
that Tribulus terrestris L grown on different soils does not
consistently produce the active component Protodioscin.
Further photochemical studies of many other herbal plants are
needed to explain the inconsistent results found with other
herbal plants, such as in diversities of Ginseng, Eurycoma
longifolia, Pimpinella pruacen, Muara puama, Ginkgo biloba,
Yohimbe etc.
PMID:
10849504 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
J Ethnopharmacol 2002 Sep 1;82(1):55 Related Articles, Books,
LinkOut
In vitro
anti-tumor promoting and anti-parasitic activities of the quassinoids from Eurycoma longifolia, a medicinal plant in
Southeast Asia.
Jiwajinda S, Santisopasri V, Murakami A, Kawanaka M, Kawanaka
H, Gasquet M, Eilas R, Balansard G, Ohigashi H.
Central
Laboratory and Greenhouse Complex, Kasetsart University,
Kamphaeng Saen Campus, 73140, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
Some quassinoids (1-6) isolated previously as plant growth
inhibitors from the leaves of Eurycoma longifolia Jack. (Simaroubaceae) were subjected to in vitro tests on anti-tumor promoting, antischistosomal and plasmodicidal activities. The most active
compound for inhibition of tumor promoter-induced Epstein-Barr
virus activation (anti-tumor promotion) was
14,15beta-dihydroxyklaineanone (5, IC(50)=5 &mgr;M).
Longilactone (1) gave significant antischistosomal effect at a
concentration of 200 &mgr;g/ml. 11-Dehydroklaineanone (3) and
15beta-O-acetyl-14-hydroxyklaineanone (6) showed potent plasmodicidal activity (IC(50)=2 &mgr;g/ml).
Thus it was
suggested that E. longifolia possesses high medicinal values
due to the occurrence of a variety of quassinoids.
PMID:
12169407 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
J Nat Prod 1991 Sep-Oct;54(5):1360-7Related
Articles, Books, LinkOut Cytotoxic and
antimalarial constituents of the roots of Eurycoma longifolia.
Department
of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy,
University of Illinois, Chicago 60612.
By
bioactivity-directed fractionation, five cytotoxic
constituents have been characterized from the roots of
Eurycoma longifolia collected in Kalimantan, Indonesia. Four
canthin-6-one alkaloids, namely, 9-methoxycanthin-6-one,
9-methoxycanthin-6-one-N-oxide, 9-hydroxycanthin-6-one, and
9-hydroxycanthin-6-one-N-oxide, and one quassinoid,
eurycomanone, were found to be cytotoxic principles. Each of
these compounds was evaluated against a panel of cell lines
comprising a number of human cancer cell types [breast, colon, fibrosarcoma, lung, melanoma, KB, and KB-V1 (a multi-drug
resistant cell line derived from KB)] and murine lymphocytic
leukemia (P-388). The canthin-6-ones 1-4 were found to be
active with all cell lines tested except for the KB-V1 cell
line. Eurycomanone was inactive against murine lymphocytic
leukemia (P-388) but was significantly active against the human cell lines tested. Two additional isolates, the beta-carboline
alkaloids beta-carboline-1-propionic acid and
7-methoxy-beta-carboline-1-propionic acid, were not
significantly active with these cultured cells. However,
compounds 5 and 7 were found to demonstrate significant antimalarial activity as judged by studies conducted with
cultured Plasmodium falciparum strains. The structures of the
novel compounds 2-4 and 7 were established by spectral and
chemical methods.
