THE MORPHOLOGICAL AND ANATOMICAL STUDY OF THE ROOTS OF BAPTISIA TINCTORIA (BAPTISIA TINCTORIA L.)

Wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria L.) of the legumes family (Fabaceae) is used in homeopathy for the treatment of infectious diseases such as influenza, typhoid, especially in septicemic condition. Wild indigo is common in Europe and Central Asia in the forest-steppe zones. Wild indigo root contains quinolizidine alkaloids, coumarins, isoflavones. The objective of this research is the pharmacognostic study of wild indigo root (Baptisiae tinctoriae radix) including organoleptic evaluation for identification and microscopic evaluation with histochemical reactions. Identification (Morphology). Wild indigo root is conical, slightly branched, has few adventitious roots, up to 20 cm long and 1 cm in diameter. The surface is smooth (fresh crude herbal drug) or longitudinally wrinkled (dried crude herbal drug) with brownish peeling cork. Fracture is yellowish, fibrous. Odour is mild, nonspecific. Microscopy. Wild indigo root has a secondary structure. In cross section: multilayered brownish cork, broad bark, cambium clear line and wood are seen. The root has a radiate structure: 2-, 4- or multi-row medullary rays are straight, particularly clearly visible in the wood. Bark parenchyma consists of round and oval cell from 30 to 112 μm in size, the cell walls have rounded visible pores. The bark has bast fibers that are rounded-polygonal, 8 to 20 μm in diameter with strongly thickened cell walls. On the longitudinal sections − the fibers are long, slightly twisting with very thick walls and few pores. Bast fibers are hardly lignified. Parenchyma cells of the cortex are filled with starch. Starch grains are simple, properly rounded, from 4 to 9 μm in size. Wood, divided by medullary rays, consists of wideband vessels, narrow tracheids, mechanical fibers and wood parenchyma.