Hemidesmus indicus herb, root and plant information and side effects, research studies

Indian Sarsaparilla herb is a species of plant that is found in South Asia. The dried roots contain Hemidesmus or ananthamul.

Hemidesmus indicus is an indigenous Ayurvedic herb used in soft drinks in India

Antioxidant effect of Hemidesmus indicus on ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity in rats.
J Med Food. 2007; Saravanan N, Nalini N. Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar, Tamilnadu, India.
The antioxidant effect of the ethanolic root extract of Hemidesmus indicus was studied in rats with ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity. Administering 20% ethanol (5 g/kg of body weight/day) for 60 days to male Wistar rats resulted in significantly decreased body weight and increased liver/body weight ratio. The liver marker enzymes, aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), alkaline phosphatae (ALP), gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), were elevated. Our data indicate that treatment with Hemidesmus indicus extract offers protection against free radical-mediated oxidative stress in plasma, erythrocytes, and liver of animals with ethanol-induced liver injury.

Pregnane glycoside from Hemidesmus indicus as a potential anti-oxidant and anti-dyslipidemic agent.
Nat Prod Res. 2010: Sethi A, Bhatia A, Srivastava S, Bhatia G, Khan MM, Khanna AK, Saxena JK. Department of Chemistry, University of Lucknow, Lucknow, India.
A new pregnane glycoside hindicusine was isolated from the CHCl(3)-EtOH (3 : 2) extract of Hemidesmus indicus, whose structure was established on the basis of spectroscopic studies. The glycoside and its acetylated derivative were evaluated for their anti-oxidant and anti-dyslipidemic activities.