Botanical Name

Cullen corylifolium (L.) Medik

Family

Fabaceae /Leguminosae.

Synonyms

Psoralea corylifolia L., Psoralea patersoniae Schonl., Trifolium unifolium Forssk., Lotodes corylifolia (L.) Kuntze.

Regional Name

English : Psoralea fruit, Scurfy pea, Hindi : Babchi, Bavachi, Bakuchi, Sanskrit : Avalguja, Somaraji, Urdu : Babchi, Punjabi : Babchi, Bavchi, Gujrati : Bavachi, Assamese : Habucha, Bengali : Bakuchi, Somraji, Hakucha veeja, Kannada : Bauchige, Bhavantibeeja, Bhavanchigid, Baukuchi, Kashmiri : Babchi, Malayalam : Karkokil, Marathi : Bawchi, Oriya : Bakuchi, Tamil : Karpokarisi, Karpogalarisi, Karbogalarisi, Telugu : Bavanchalu.

Part Used

Seed.

Description

It is distributed in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (earlier Burma), China, Arabia and India. Within India, it is seen along roadsides and waste places of the tropical regions. It is cultivated in several tropical regions of India commonly in Uttar Pradesh, Bengal and Maharashtra. Bakuchi is an erect, 0.3-1.8 m high annual herb. Fruits, dark chocolate to almost black with pericarp adhering to the seed-coat, 3-4.5 mm long, 2-3 mm broad, ovoid-oblong or bean shaped, some what compressed, glabrous rounded or mucronate, closely pitted, seeds campylotropous, nonendospermous, oily and free from starch, odourless, but when chewed smell of a pungent essential oil felt, taste, bitter, unpleasant and acrid.

Phytoconstituents

It contains Essential oil, fixed oil, and flavonoids (neobavaisoflavone, isobavachalcone, bavachalcone, bavachinin, bavachin, corylin, corylifol, corylifolin and 6-prenylnaringenin), coumarins (psoralidin, psoralen, isopsoralen and angelicin) and meroterpenes (bakuchiol and 3-hydroxybakuchiol).

Ayurvedic Properties

Rasa : Katu, Tikta, Guna : Ruksa, Vipaka : Katu, Virya : Sita, Karma : Grahi, Slesmasrapittanut, Vranapaha, Hrdya.

Ayurvedic Applications

Jvara, Krmiroga, Kustha, Meha, Svitra.

Medicinal Uses

Bakuchi is used for treat of Fever, Anaemia, Acne, skin diseases, minor skin diseases, Leprosy, Vitiligo, Leukoderma, poisoning, for conception, caries, deafness, filaria, wound and as rejuvinative.