Botanical Name - Balanites aegyptica/Balanites roxburghii
Category - Medicinal


Form - Dry


Part Used - Leaves, Seed, Bark, Fruit


General Information - Balanites aegyptiaca Del., also known as Desert date in English, a member of the family Zygophyllaceae, is one of the most common but neglected wild plant species of the dry land areas of Africa and South Asia. This tree is native to much of Africa and parts of the Middle East. In India, it is particularly found in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Deccan. This is one of the most common trees in Senegal. It can be found in many kinds of habitat, tolerating a wide variety of soil types, from sand to heavy clay, and climatic moisture levels


Phytochemicals - "Leaves
It contains saponin, furanocoumarin, and flavonoid namely quercetin 3-glucoside, quercetin-3-rutinoside; 3-glucoside, 3-rutinoside, 3-7-diglucoside and 3-rhamnogalactoside of isorhamnetin.[40,41]

Fruit
Mesocarp of fruit contains 1.2 to 1.5% protein and 35 to 37% sugars, 15% organic acids, other constituents like 3-rutinoside and 3-rhamnogalactoside,[42] diosgenin;[43]

Root
It is reported to contain steroidal saponin about 1% glycosides and major sapogenin is yamogenin"