Volume 4, Issue 2, September October 2010; Article 020

ISSN 0976 044X

MILLINGTONIA HORTENSIS LINN AN OVERVIEW

*R.Ramasubramaniaraja
Lecturer, Department of Pharmacognosy, Seven Hills College of Pharmacy, Tirupati, AndraPradesh, India.
*Email: [email protected]

ABSTRACT
Millingtonia hortensis Linn. is cultivated in most parts of India, both in gardens and avenues. Tall and straight, with comparatively few
branches, its popularity lies in its ornamental value. It is a fine tree, fast growing, but with brittle wood, liable to be damaged by
storms. In favourable positions it can grow to 24 m tall. The ashy bark is cracked and furrowed and the numerous fissures make
removal of the cork an easy matter. It is used as an inferior substitute for true cork. From April until the rains and again in November
and December, a profusion of silvery-white, delightfully fragrant flowers crown the foliage. Upright open clusters with arching blooms
terminate every branchlet. Each flower is a tiny bell-shaped calyx, a long slender tube of palest green dividing into four waxy, white
petals and several conspicuous yellow anthered stamens. Many flowers are delicately tinted with rose. As the flowers are short-lived,
the flower sprays mostly consist largely of long whitish buds, while the ground below is spangled with innumerable little stars.
Between January and March the leaves are shed and renewed during April and May, although the tree is never quite naked. Trees do
not seed very easily in India.
Keywords: Millingtonia hortensis Linn, Calyx, Escherichia coli, Indian cork tree.

INTRODUCTION
Millingtonia hortensis Linn. (Syn Biognonia suberosa
Roxb., Biognonia azedachta Koen.) Is an important
medicinal plant in Southern Asia, ranging from India,
Burma, Thailand and Southern China. Mill-in-TOH-nee-uh
-- named for Thomas Millington, an English botanist, horTEN-sis -- meaning, of or in gardens; cultivated.
Commonly known as: Indian cork tree, tree jasmine,
Hindi: neem chameli, Kannada: akash mallige, beratu,
birate mara, Konkani: akasnimb, Malayalam: katesam,
Marathi: akash chameli, buch, or kaval nimb, Oriya:
bakeni, mach-mach, sitahara, Tamil: kat-malli, Telugu:
kavuki. Origin: Myanmar (Burma).
The leaves of Millingtonia hortensis are used as
antipyretic, sinusitis, cholagogue and tonic in folklore
medicine. According to mythology, this is a heavenly tree
brought to earth by the god Krishna. A quarrel over it
ensued between Satyabhama and Rukmini, Krishna's
wives. But Krishna planted the tree in Satyabhama's
courtyard in a way that when the tree flowered, the
flowers fell in Rukmini's courtyard. Another romantic
story woven around the tree is about Parijataka, a
princess. She fell in love with the sun but when he
deserted her she committed suicide and a tree sprung
from the ashes. Unable to stand the sight of the lover
who left her, the tree flowers only at night and sheds
them like tear-drops before the sun rises.

Cork Tree. It is a tall deciduous tree. It grows up to 25

meter. The leaves are pinnately compound.1 Long leaves
bear two or three widely spaced pinnae, each with 5-7
smooth leaflets, oval, pointed and slightly round-toothed,
1-3 inches long. Sometimes the lower pinnae are again
divided and bear one pair of three leaved pinnae, 1-2
pairs of leaflets and one leaflet at the end. Flowers in
corymbose panicles, long tubular, silvery-white and
delightfully fragrant. The fruit is a capsule. It flowers at
night and shed flowers early in the morning. It has corky
bark. It has straight trunk and has few branches. The
other
species
are
Phellodendron
amurense,
Phellodendron chinense, Phellodendron japonicum,
Phellodendrum lavallei, Phellodendron sachalinense,
Phellodendron wilsonii are the other related species of
the Cork tree.2,3 Cork tree widely grows in the Central
India. It is mostly found in the tropical forests. Cork tree
can grow in variety of soils. It requires full sunlight for its
growth. Stem and roots of the Cork tree have great
medicinal value. Its dried flower is a good lung tonic. It is
also used in the cough diseases. Its flowers are used in
the rituals. Its bark is used to produce yellow dye.
Scientific classification:
Kingdom

Plantae

Division

Magnoliophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Detailed Description of Millingtonia hortensis:

Order

Lamiales

A very tall tree, Flowers have very rich & pleasant scent. It
is a drought resistant tree. The Biological name of
Millingtonia hortensis belonging to the family of
Bignoniaceae. Propagation by Seeds, suckers. Longevity
is Perennial. The Other names of this crude drug is Akas
Nim, Nim Chameli, Betati Nim, Mini Chameli, Karkku, Kat
Malli, Kavudi are some of the other names used for the

Family

Bignoniaceae

Genus

Millingtonia

Species

M. hortensis

Scientific Name :

Millingtonia Hortensis L.f.

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Indian cork tree

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Pharmacognostical description:
Leaves opposite, 2- or 3-pinnately compound; leaflets
ovate, entire. Inflorescences cymose-paniculate, terminal.
Calyx cupular, small, apex subtruncate, with very short
teeth. Corolla bilabiate, tube long and narrow, upper lip
2-lobed, lower lip 3-lobed; lobes valvate, ovatelanceolate, densely pubescent adaxially along margin.
Stamens 4, didynamous, inserted high in corolla tube; 1
anther cell fertile and ellipsoid, another caudate and
appendagelike. Disc annular-cupular. Ovary sessile, ovoid.
Style long; stigma lingulate, compressed, 2-lobed, slightly
exserted from corolla tube. Capsule dehiscing septicidally,
long linear, compressed. Seeds in several rows, minute,
compressed,winged.
Physical Description:

This fast growing tree flowers at night and sheds flowers

early in the morning. The name Millingtonia comes from
Thomas Millington, an English botanist, while hortensis
means "grown in gardens". The tree is a favorite garden
tree. It is also called the Cork Tree, as an inferior cork is
processed from its corky bark. In the cooler months tree
blooms in the night and early in the morning; fragrant
flowers falling and carpeting the ground around. The tree
has a straight trunk and only a few branches. Leaves are
very ornamental, even when not in bloom this plant is an
eye stopper. Flowers are white, waxy, trumpet-shaped
and somewhat two lipped with five subequal lobes. The
tree flowers from October till the end of December. The
flowers are used in rituals. Because of the perfume of the
flowers they are very much sought after. The waxy
characteristic of the flowers ensure their freshness for a
long time. Extract of the leaves of Millingtonia hortensis
has good antimicrobial activity. Dried flower bronchodilator, root - lung tonic. Between January and
March the leaves are shed and renewed during April and
May, although the tree is never quite naked. The long
leaves bear two or three widely spaced pinnae, each with
five or seven smooth leaflets, oval, pointed and slightly
round-toothed. Each is from 1 to 3 inches long.
Sometimes the lower pinnae are again divided and bear
one pair of three leaved pinnae, one or two pairs of
leaflets and one leaflet at the end. The fruit is very long
and narrow, pointed at both ends and contains thin, flat
seeds. Trees do not seed very easily in India.

Trees 8-25 m tall. Leaves 40-100 cm; petiolule ca. 1 cm;

leaflets elliptic , ovate , or ovate-oblong, (2-) 5-7 X 1.5-4
cm, glabrous , base rounded , oblique , margin entire,
apex acuminate; lateral veins 4 or 5 on each side of
midrib . Inflorescences cymose-paniculate, ca. 25 cm in
diam.; peduncle and pedicels pale yellow pubescent;
bracts and bractlets deciduous. Pedicel slender, ca. 1 cm.
Calyx small, cupular, 2-4 X 2-4 mm, sinuo- late lobed;
lobes slightly reflexed. Corolla white, tube 3-7 cm, 2-3
mm in diam. at base; lobes globose in bud, ovatelanceolate at anthesis, 1-2 cm, densely pubescent along
margin adaxially. Ovary glabrous; ovules numerous , 4rowed. Capsule linear, 30-35 X 1-1.5 cm, compressed.
Seeds discoid-oblong, compressed, including wing 1.5-3.5
X 1-1.5 cm, surrounded by membranous and transparent
wings. Habitat Low altitude slopes; 500-1200 m typically
found at an altitude of 0 to 922 meters (0 to 3,025 feet).5
Millingtonia hortensis vs Pharmacological Activity:
Antifungal activity:
M Sharma et al (2007) was described the Antifungal
activities of different extracts of Millingtonia hortensis
were investigated against various fungal pathogens.
Methanol extract was found to have stronger activity
than fluconazole against yeast like fungi: 4 fold against
Candida krusei with 4 g/ml minimal inhibitory
concentration and 2 fold (MIC- 2 g/ml) against
Sacharomyces cerevisiae, though it showed the same
activity as fluconazole against Candida glabrata. Aqueous
extract also exhibited 4 fold stronger activity against
Candida krusei (MIC- 4 g/ml) and 4 fold (MIC; 2 g/ml)
against Sacharomyces cerevisiae. Chloroform and ethyl
acetate extract showed lower activities against all fungal
pathogens except for Candida krusei, compared with the
standard. Against the filamentous fungus, Trichosporon
cutaneum, all extracts showed less activity than the
6
standard.
Larvicidal Activity:
R. Kaushik et al (2008) was studied Millingtonia hortensis
L. (Family: Bignoniaceae) a plant commonly known as
Akas neem and also as the Indian cork tree was first

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Volume 4, Issue 2, September October 2010; Article 020

ISSN 0976 044X

reported which reveals the mosquito larvicidal property

of M.hortensis.7

fined the description of the herb, the different types of

pharmacologically actions like Antioxidant, larvicidal, Anti
proliferate action, Antimicrobial action, and antifungal
activities. This review article fined the things more useful
for research scholars for during the studies.

R. Kaushik el al (2009) was Screened 11 plant species of

local flora against the IV instar larvae of Aedes aegypti
(Diptera: Culicidae).
These selected plants are
Millingtoniahortensis, Annona squamosa, Bauhinia
varigata, Plumeria alba, Psidium guajava, Syzygium
cumini, Alstonia scholaris, Michelea champaca, Holoptelia
integrifolia, Quisqualis indica and Nerium indicum.11
Antimicrobial Activity:
A. Jetty; et al (2000) was described the Polar extracts of
the leaves of Millingtonia hortensis showed good
antimicrobial activity. Twenty different bacterial strains
and two yeast cultures were used. The aqueous alcohol
extract showed good activity against all microbes tested,
particularly Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium,
both Gram-negative bacteria, with MIC values of 6.25
g/ml. The activity is compared with known antibiotics
such as gentamycin and nystatin.8
Mutagenicity and antimutagenicity:9
Malyn Chulasiri et al (2006) was studied the mutagenicity
and antimutagenicity of hispidulin and hortensin, the
flavonoids from Millingtonia hortensis L. (Bignoniaceae),
were performed using the liquid preincubation method of
the Salmonella/microsome test. At the highest dose
tested, 100 g/plate, both compounds showed no
mutagenicity and no cytotoxicity toward S. typhimurium
strains TA98 and TA100 either in the presence or absence
of S9 mix. However, these substances were antimutagens
toward 2-aminoanthracene, aflatoxin Bl (in TA98), and
dimethylnitrosamine (in TA100); but neither substance
inhibited the direct mutagenic activity of 2-(2-furyl)-3-(5nitro-2-furyl) acrylamide nor that of sodium azide in
strains TA98 and TA100, respectively.
Antiproliferation activity:
Siwapong Tansuwanwong et al (2009) was described the
Millingtonia hortensis is a medicinal plant widely used in
many Asian countries. An aqueous crude extract of this
plant has been shown the apoptosis induction on RKO
colon cancer cells. However, its mechanism remains
unknown. To learn more about this plant extract, we
partially purified the crude extract using Sephadex LH-20
and three aqueous fractions were collected. Each fraction
was investigated for cytotoxicity using MTT assay.10
Antioxidant activity:
P. Leelapornpisid et al was determined the antioxidant
activity of volatile oils and absolutes from 19 Thai
aromatic plants in 12 families by scavenging effect on 1,1diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH). 12
CONCLUSION

REFERENCES
1.

Blatter, E. and Millard W.S., In; Some Beautiful Indian

Trees, Vol. 6, The Bombay Natural History Society,
Mumbai, 1954, 106
2. Gamble, J.S., In; Flora of the Presidency of Madras,
Vol. 09, Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 1957,
699.
3. Hooker and Dalton, J., In; The Flora of British India,
Vol. 04, L. Reeva and Co, England, 1954, 376.
4. Zhi-Yun
Zhang
&
Thawatchai
Santisuk
"Bignoniaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 18 Page 213.
Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri
Botanical Garden Press.
5. Millingtonia hortensis". in Flora of China Vol. 18 Page
214. Missouri Botanical Garden Press.
6. M Sharma, S Puri, PD Sharma (2007) Antifungal
activity of Millingtonia hortensis Indian Journal of
Pharmaceutical Sciences Volume 69, Issue: 4 Page:
599-601.
7. R. Kaushik & P. Saini (2008) Larvicidal activity of leaf
extract
of
Millingtonia
hortensis
(Family:
Bignoniaceae) against Anopheles stephensi, Culex
quinquefasciatusand Aedes aegypti. Vector Borne Dis
45, pp. 6669
8. A. Jetty; D. S. Iyengar (2000) Antimicrobial Activity of
Millingtonia Hortensis Leaf Extract Pharmaceutical
Biology, Volume 38, Issue 2 April 2000 , pages 157
160
9. Malyn Chulasiri, Nuntawan Bunyapraphatsara,
Primchanien Moongkarndi (2006) Mutagenicity and
antimutagenicity of hispidulin and hortensin, the
flavonoids
from
Millingtonia
hortensis
L.
Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis Volume
20 Issue 4, Pages 307 - 312
1
2
10. Siwapong Tansuwanwong ,
Hiroyuki Yamamoto ,
2
Kohzoh Imai and Usanee Vinitketkumnuen (2008)
Antiproliferation and Apoptosis on RKO Colon Cancer
by Millingtonia hortensis Plant Foods for Human
Nutrition (Formerly Qualitas Plantarum) Volume 64,
Number 1 page 11-17.
11. R. Kaushik & P. Saini (2009) Screening of some semiarid region plants for larvicidal activity against Aedes
aegypti mosquitoes J Vector Borne Dis 46, September
2009, pp. 244246.
12. P. Leelapornpisid, S. Chansakaow, C. Chaiyasut, N.
Wongwattananukul Antioxidant activity of some
volatile oils and absolutes from Thai Aromatic plants
ISHS International Workshop on Medicinal and
Aromatic Plants Acta Horticulturae 786

Millingtonia hortensis Linn favorite garden tree. It is also

called the Cork Tree. It is a perennial herb. This review
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