604 
INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS. 
petals beneath rigid, almost prickly. Flowers large, monoecious, 
all solitary ; peduncles obtusely angled. Male peduncle 4in., 
or more. Female peduncle l|in-, strongly 5-8 ridged, woody and 
with intervening deep grooves, usually enlarging next the fruit. 
Corolla yellow, 3-4io. Fruit fleshy, large, round, mostly yellow 
to orange, smooth, the flesh not hardening ; hollow interior of 
the fruit traversed by coarse and separate soft or pulpy threads. 
Seeds oblong or ovoid with a tip, margin slightly winged, raised. 
Uses : — The seeds are supposed to possess anthelmintic 
properties. The Indian Pharmacopoeia advocates trials of these 
seeds being made. 
The leaves of this plant are used as external applications 
for burns (Atkinson). 
“ The seeds are largely used for flavoring certain prepara- 
tions of Indian hemp, and the root for a nefarious purpose, viz. 
to make the preparation more potent.” (Watt). 
The husks contain a Xylem, as Xylose crystals have been isolated from 
the syrup obtained after the husks had been hydrolysed' with sulphuric acid. 
A galactan is also present, as the mother liquors from the Xylose crystals 
yield .mucic acid when oxidised. — J. Ch. S. Abs. 1907, p. 806. 
The oil has been examined by Poda (1898), Graham (1901) and others, and 
the constants do not differ widely from those found in the oil expressed in 
India. 
Specific gravity at 16°, O' 923 to 0 928 ; solidifying point, — 16°; saponifica- 
tion value, 188'7 to 195'7 ; iodine value, 121 0 to 130‘7 ; Reichert-Meissl value, 
0'43 to 0'52 ; refractive index at 25°, 70'2 to 72'6 ; insoluble fatty acids and un- 
saponifiable, 94'7 to 96 2 per cent., melting at 28'4° to 32°. Power and Salway 
(1910) determined the composition as glycerides to be ; linolic acid 46 per 
cent., oleic acid 25 per cent., palmitic and stearic acids 80 per cent., and a 
phytosterol. 
The cold drawn oil and the seeds are used for edible purposes ; the lower 
qualities of ptimpkin seed oil serve as a burning oil. (Agricultural Ledger 
1911-12). 
549. Bryonia laeiniosa, Linn, h.f.b.i., ii. 622 ; 
Roxb. 703. 
Vern. : — Gargoo-naroo (H.) ; Mala (B.) ; Kardaleche-dole, 
Sivalinga, popti, kandon (Bomb.) ; Nehcemaka (Mai.) ; Linga- 
donda (Tel.). 
Habitat : — From the Himalaya throughout India. 
