(Apocynaceae) Urceola polymorpha (Pierre) D.J.Middleton & Livsh.

Local name(s): (sohm lohm)

Medicinal use(s): Used as an anti-diarrheal. 

Part(s) used: 

Field Characters: Vine growing to 3 m with red stems.

Locality: Vientiane, Laos.

Habitat: Disturbed forest.

Altitude: 

Collector(s): S. Bouamanivong

Collection number(s): Bouamanivong 91

Collection Date: November 20, 1997

Additional information:  

Voucher specimen is in deposit at the Field Museum (F) Herbarium, Chicago, USA under accession no. 2192492, 2331908..

Project:  GLX

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Local name(s): (Kheua som lom)

Medicinal use(s): to treat gastritis.

Part(s) used: the vine.

Field Characters: Long climber, about 8-15 meters. Leaves simple, green. Flowers red. Pod long, about 10-15 centimeters. Liana has white latex.

Locality: Savannakhet Province, Xayaboury District, Kengkabao Neua Village.

Habitat: 

Altitude:  535 m asl.

Collector(s): O. Souliya

Collection number(s): LAOS_324

Collection Date: March 8, 2002

Additional information:  

Voucher specimen is in deposit at the Field Museum (F) Herbarium, Chicago, USA under accession no. 2245868.

Project:  ICBG

Synonyms, images, taxonomic description: 

Plants of the World OnlineGBIF | Global Biodiversity Information FacilityWFO: The World Flora OnlinePham Hoang Ho: Cayco Vietnam vol. 2, p. 720, plant no. 6883


Medicinal properties:

Jandaruang J, Phosri S, Poomsuk N, et al. Bioactivities of Leaf Extracts from Urceola polymorpha (Pierre) D.J.Middleton & Livsh., Hyptis suaveolens (L.) Poit, and Passiflora foetida L. Leaf: Antioxidant, Antibacterial, Cytotoxic and Anti-tyrosinase Potential with Molecular Docking Analysis. Trends in Sciences 2025, 22(8), 10162. https://doi.org/10.48048/tis.2025.10162  

Jo H, Tran B, Eum S, et al.  & Jung, Sung. (2025). Anti-Inflammatory and Antioxidant Effects of Urceola polymorpha (Pierre ex Spire) D.J.Middleton & Livsh. Extract via Regulation of the NF-κB Pathway. Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition 2025, 54, 157-163. DOI:10.3746/jkfn.2025.54.2.157  

Nguyen-Ngoc H,  Nghiem T, Pham T, et al. Phytochemical and analytical characterization of constituents in Urceola rosea (Hook. & Arn.) D.J. Middleton leaves. Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis 149. DOI:10.1016/j.jpba.2017.10.031