(Acanthaceae) Justicia ventricosa Wall. ex Nees

Local name(s):  (Houa ha khao)

Medicinal use(s): to treat internal rashes (pain)

Part(s) used: root.

Field Characters: Shrub on waterlogged terrains at base of a slope, inflorescence terminal, standing upright, bracts olive-brown, flowers white with fine, purple striations along the inner surface of the labium.

Locality: Luang Prabang Province, Park Ou District, Medicinal Biodiversity Preserve, above Somsamouk Village.

Altitude: 430 m asl. 

Collector(s): D.D. Soejarto, K. Sydara, M. Xayvue

Collection number(s): DDS 15464

Collection Date: February 13, 2020

Additional information:  

Voucher specimen is in deposit at the Field Museum (F) Herbarium, Chicago, USA, under accession no. 2329979.

Project:  CCF-III

Synonyms, images, taxonomic description: 


Plants of the World onlineFlora of China Vol.19 Page 450, 457GBIF | Global Biodiversity Information Facility

Medicinal properties:


Gomez-Verjan JC, Reyes-Chilpa R, Aguilar MI. . Chemistry and Pharmacology of selected Asian and American species of Justicia. In book: Bioactive Phytochemicals: "Perspectives for Modern Medicine" 2012, pp.457-475. Editors V.K. Gupta, Edition 1, Chapter 14, Publisher Daya Publishing House. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261699100_Chemistry_and_Pharmacology_of_selected_Asian_and_American_species_of_Justicia 

Ibrahim SRM, Mohamed SGA,  Abdallah HM, Mohamed GA. Ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacological relevance of Justicia procumbens (Oriental Water Willow) - A promising traditional plant. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 2023,  volume 317, 116819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2023.116819