Yadav P. et al / Int. J. Pharm. Phytopharmacol. Res.

2013; 3 (2): 93-96

ISSN (Online) 2249-6084 (Print) 2250-1029

International Journal of Pharmaceutical and

Phytopharmacological Research (eIJPPR)
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Review Article
A Review on Acacia tortilis
1 2 3
Yadav. P* , Kant. R , Kothiyal P.
1
M.Pharm (Pharmacology), Shri Guru Ram Rai Institute of Technology, Dehradun, Uttarakhand-248001, India
2
Assistant Professor (Pharmacology), Shri Guru Ram Rai Institute of Technology, Dehradun, Uttarakhand-248001, India.
3
Professor (Dr.), Shri Guru Ram Rai Institute of Technology and Science, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India.

Article info Abstract

Acacia tortilis is one of the important species of genus Acacia belonging to family Leguminaceae. Though there
Article History: is no more study performed on this plant but it plays important role in the countries where it found. These
Received 31 August 2013 countries includes North Africa, Arabian Peninsula and Asian countries including India, Pakistan The various
Accepted 20 October 2013 part of Acacia tortilis plant say leaves, pods, gum exudates and bark is found to be beneficial for the purpose of
commercially as well as medicinally . Commercially tannins derived from the bark part used as a dyestuff, pods
and gum are used as a food, and leaves are useful for land fertility and cattle’s grazing whereas medicinally it is
Keywords: useful for the treatment of various diseases like skin allergy, diabetes, diuretic and hypertension. Vast tract of
Arid, Acacia tortilis, Soil erosion, the dry land in the world lie barren due to the scanty and uneven distribution of rainfall in this part of the world.
Reforestation. Acacia and its various species including Acacia tortilis are drought resistant plant; these species are mainly
found in arid and sub-arid area of Africa, Arabian and Asia. The survival of this plant in this part of the land is
due to its ability to endure harsh condition and it is also help full to prevent soil erosion. In this review article the
main focus is on the chemical composition and therapeutic potential as well as pharmacologically explored
potential of Acacia tortilis and its importance in arid and sub-arid part of the world to fulfill the requirement of
local population and animals.

1. INTRODUCTION
1 5
To date about 1200 Acacia species have been identified , these Table 1: Morphological description of A.tortilis
species are mainly found in the warmer, drier parts of the World,
chiefly in Arabia, Australia and Africa. In India, there are about 22 Small to medium-sized evergreen tree grows up to 21
indigenous species, distributed throughout the plains. Most of these m tall. The crown is dense, umbrella-like and flat-topped
Size
species grow in arid and semi-arid regions, where the average well-developed multiple boles support a flat-topped or
2.
temperature is 40 to 45°C in summer and less than 5 °C in winter rounded, spreading crown
3
Because they are the good sources of tannin, gum and timber , so Bark grey to black or dark brown, rough, fissured or
it plays an important socio-economically role for the preparation of Bark
smooth
furniture, dyestuff and as a food additive. Acacia tortilis (A. tortilis ) Spines paired, 2 types-long, straight and white, or short,
possesses valuable medicinal property and therapeutic potential Spine brownish and hooked; they range from 1.2 to 8 cm in
so, it is also useful for treatment of various diseases like skin length
allergy, cough, inflammatory reaction and it is well used plant by the Leaves Leaves are compound and the leaflets (6-22 pairs) are
local population where it found commercially as well as medicinally. and very small (1-4 mm long x 0.6-1 mm broad), glabrous to
Their particular value in arid zones lies in their extreme resistance leaflet pubescent.
to heat, drought, salinity and alkalinity, drifting sand, grazing and Fruit A characteristic twisted browny pod
4
repeated cutting . Some of the Acacia species are of considerable
4
value for re-forestation and reclamation of waste land . 3. ECOLOGY
This species ranges from subtropical desert to dry through tropical
2. HISTORY AND MORPHOLOGY OF ACACIA TORTILIS desert to very dry forest life zones. The umbrella tree is reported to
The generic name ‘Acacia’ derived from the Greek word ‘akis’, tolerate annual precipitation of 10-100 mm, an estimated annual
meaning a point or a barb. The name ‘tortilis’ means twisted and temperature of 18-28 ºC and pH of 6.5-8.5. This species bear hot,
refers to the pod structure. It is also known as umbrella thorn due to arid climates with temperatures as high as 50 ºC .
6

it umbrella like structure and in India it is commonly known as

5
Israeli babool . 4. ACACIA TORTILIS IN INDIA
A. tortilis ssp. raddiana is a comparatively new introduction to India,
*Corresponding Author:
through the Central Arid Zone Research Institute in Jodhpur. At
Yadav Pratibha, present it is planted extensively in northern tropical thorn forest
M. Pharm. (Pharmacology) zone in the arid areas of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana,
5
Shri Guru Ram Rai Institute of Technology, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu, and southern arid districts of Punjab .
Dehradun, Uttarakhand Technical University. Four sub-species of this plant can be distinguished:
Uttarakhand-248001 A. tortilis (Forsk.) Hayne ssp. tortilis
Mobile:+91-8899510888 A. tortilis (Forsk.) Hayne ssp. spirocarpa
Email: [email protected]
A. tortilis (Forsk.) Hayne ssp. heteroacantha

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 Yadav P. et al / Int. J. Pharm. Phytopharmacol. Res. 2013; 3 (2): 93-96

A. tortilis (Forsk.) Hayne ssp. raddiana (Savi), which exists as two 7. NUTRITIVE POTENTIAL VALUE AND POTENTIAL
varieties: var. raddiana (young branch lets glabrous or sub glabrous DEGRADABILITY OF A.TORTILIS
and the pods glabrous) and var. pubescens A. Chev. (Young In A.tortilis Crude protein (CP) content ranged from 134 to 213 g/kg
branch lets and rhachides of the leaves more or less pubescent, as Dry matter (DM). It is concluded that based on the moderate to high
7
are the pods) . CP values and the degradation characteristics, these species have
potential as livestock fodder. The content of neutral detergent fibre
5. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF ACACIA TORTILIS (NDF) and acid detergent fibre (ADF) ranged from 154 to 308 and
The chemical composition of Acacia tortilis is summarized in table- from 114 to 251 g/kg DM, poor in phosphorus, moderate in calcium,
2. magnesium and sulphur and rich in most microelem ents. Iron and
Table 2: Chemical Composition of Acacia tortilis selenium ranged from 132 to 459 and 13 to >100 mg/g.
The ranking order of the acacia species on the basis of their
Chemical potential degradability has been establish in a following manner:
Name of chemicals
com ponent
8
Apigenin-6,8-bis-C-β-d- glucopyranoside (vicenin) A.nubica > A. tortilis > A. mellifera > A. brevispica> A. seyal>
Flavonoids 8 18
Rutin (quercetin 3-O-rutinoside) A. nilotica .
Total Phenolic Gallic acid concentration (mg/g dry weight) of Acacia
9
content tortilis 42.11
Molar proportions (%) of constituent sugar residues Table 4: Recently Explored Pharmacological Therapeutic Potential
Uronic acid 8, Galactose 23, Arabinose 66, Rhamnose, of Acacia tortilis:
12
Mannose 3 .
Polysaccharide
10
nitrogen 0.99%, protein content 6.18%, pH 6.46 Plant part Disease Pharmacological activity
Gum
Nitrogen
High nitrogen content of gum is 1.9% α-D-Glucosidase inhibitory activity of
Amino acid polysaccharide isolated from Acacia
10
Uronic acid 8, Galactose 23, Arabinose 66, Rhamnose, Polysaccharide tortilis gum exudates has been found .
Diabetes
Mannose 3 .
12 isolated from This study was conducted in our
mellitus
Gum exudates department of Shri Guru Ram Rai
Fatty acid from Acacia tortilis contain 19% oleic, 72% linolenic, 60%
8 Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences
seed oils linoleic acid
and Technology.
Hydrolyzable tannins Stem bark of A.tortilis has been showed
The leaves, and to a lesser extent the bark, of many strong activity against Candida albicans
species contained between 1 and 8% hydrolyzable with MIC 125µg/ml and MFC 250µg/ml.
8
Tannins tannins Fungal
_ Stem bark It also shows moderate activity against
1,3-di-O-galloyl-4,6-( )hexahydroxydiphenoyl-β disease
Aspergillus niger with MIC and MBC=
glucopyranose has been reported from the leaves of A. 19
1000µg/ml (water extract) .So it may
tortilis raddiana. use as an effective antifungal agent
In cattle Tannins form protective layers
on the skin and mucous membranes so
6. THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL OF ACACIA TORTILIS Bark tannins Diarrhoea
it proves useful in cattle suffering from
The traditional uses of Acacia tortilis are listed in table-3. diarrhoea. In A.tortilis Due to presence
of tannins it is beneficial in diarrhoea in
20
cattle .
Table 3: Traditional Uses of Acacia tortilis
In A.tortilis Stem bark is pounded and
soaked in water, the extract gurgled to
Plant Infectious
Uses Description Stem bark treat mouth infections and dental
part disease
problems, so it is also useful in
21
In Kenya, the Turkana make porridge from the pods infectious diseases .
Seed Food after extracting the seed. In Dry coughs plant is applied on
13
The Maasai eat the immature seeds . Wood Dry cough burning charcoal and smoke is inhaled
The leaves are fed green as well as dry by cattle. nasally.
Leaves A 10-year-old A. tortilis yields about 4-6 kg dry leaf and In Coughs root is applied on burning
and Fodder 10- 12 kg pods per year. charcoal and smoke is inhaled nasally.
Fruits Fruits are preferred for stall-fed animals and should be In case of Diphtheria Soaking crushed
ground to make them more nutritious. Cough and
Root roots in water and the water is taken
Diphtheria
90% of the flowers abort and drop to the ground, orally, while in Wounds Heated leaves
Flowers Forage 14
providing additional important forage . or roots are applied topically or leaves
22
A.tortilis starts producing fuel wood at the age of 8-18 or root paste is applied topically .
years, at the rate of 50 kg/tree. Its fast growth and good Acacia tortilis root bark possesses
coppicing behavior, coupled with the high calorific value antimalarial activity but would not be
Root bark malaria
for its wood (4400 kcal/kg), make it suitable for firewood considered for follow up as an
14 23
and charcoal . antimalarial candidate .
Fuel and Administration of Acacia aqueous
Wood Used for planking, boxes, poles,moisture proof
Timber extract lead to decrease in serum total
plywood, gun and rifle parts, furniture, house
construction and farm implements. It is believed that cholesterol, and LDL level while an
Noah of the Old Testament made his ark from the wood increase in serum HDL- cholesterol was
1
of A. tortilis . Hyper observed as compared to their control
cholesterol rats. Decrease in body weight has been
Aqueous extract 24
The bark is reported to be a rich source of tannin so it is and also observed .
Bark Dyestuff 1 inflammation In A.tortilis, property of Inhibition of
used as a dye
prostaglandin biosynthesis and PAF-
Gum obtained from Acacia tortilis and other species of
Food induced exocytosis has been found so it
Gum acacia has been used as a food additive and for
additive 15 is also found effective in inflammatory
medicinal purpose 25
2+ reactions and febrifuge .
Soil organic matter, total N, P and Ca which are
16 Methanol extract of Acacia tortilis had
significantly higher under tree canopies .
Leishmania moderate activity against Plasmodium
Increasing Acacia age resulted in significant Methanol extract
and parasitic falciparum, so it is effective in treatment
improvement in soil chemical, microbiological and of Acacia tortilis
biochemical properties, which have been manifested in disease of Leishmania and act as anti-
26
Whole Soil parasitic .
pH, soil Corg, Cmic, and qCO2, enzyme activities.
part fertility
Resulting positive influence of the chronological
development of the woody legume A. tortilis subsp.
raddiana in terms of soil quality, which are vital for long-
term productivity and sustainability of the arid low fertile
17
soils .

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 Yadav P. et al / Int. J. Pharm. Phytopharmacol. Res. 2013; 3 (2): 93-96

Table 5: Interaction of Acacia tortilis 8. Seigler D.S. Phytochemistry of Acacia—sensu lato.

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Object Description
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(recorded as a with loss in seed biomass.
Acacia of polysaccharide isolated from Acacia tortilis gum
serious The heavy infestation is damaging not
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21
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27
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28
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