(Apocynaceae) Tabernaemontana bufalina Lour.

Local name(s): ​ໝາກ​ ເພັດ​ ປ່າ  (mak pet pa)

Medicinal use(s): tonic for women giving birth, tonic for men

Part(s) used: root

Field Characters: Treelet, latex profuse, milky white, sticky, fruit a follicetum with two out-curving follicles, their tips touching each other.

Locality: Bolikhamxay Province, Paksan District, Somsavath Village, Medicinal Plant Preserve, at 20 km from Paksan City center.

Habitat: Secondary forest. Remnants of broadleaved evergreen, lowland tropical rain forest, in regeneration from past conversion process.

Altitude: 190 m asl 

Collector(s): D.D. Soejarto & O. Souliya 

Collection number(s): DDS 15045

Collection Date: May 30, 2014

Additional information:  

Voucher specimen is in deposit at the Field Museum (F) Herbarium, Chicago, USA under accession no. 2313922.

Synonyms, images, taxonomic description: 

Plants of the World onlineFlora of China Vol. 16 Page 152GBIF | Global Biodiversity Information Facility

Useful references:


Naidoo CM, Naidoo Y, Dewir YH, et al.  (2021). Major Bioactive Alkaloids and Biological Activities of Tabernaemontana Species (Apocynaceae). Plants 2021, 10(2). DOI: 10.3390/plants10020313



Shi B-B, Chen J, Bao M-F, et al. Alkaloids isolated from Tabernaemontana bufalina display xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity. Phytochemistry 2019, 

volume 166, 112060. ISSN 0031-9422.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2019.112060.


Silveira D, Felipe de Melo AMM, Magalhães PO, et al. Chapter 7 - Tabernaemontana Species: Promising Sources of New Useful Drugs. In: Editor(s):  Atta-ur-Rahman, Studies in Natural Products Chemistry. Elsevier, volume 54, pages 227-289, 2017. ISSN 1572-5995. ISBN 9780444639295. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-63929-5.00007-3 


Xu J, Qu W, Cao W-Y, et al. Chemical Constituents from Tabernaemontana bufalina Lour. Chemistry & Biodiversity 2019, vol. 16, issue 1, e1800491.   https://doi.org/10.1002/cbdv.201800491. PMID: 30411487. 


Zhou S-Y , Zhou  T-L, Qiu G, et al. Three New Cytotoxic Monoterpenoid Bisindole Alkaloids from Tabernaemontana bufalina. Planta Med 2018, 84(15):1127-1133. DOI: 10.1055/a-0608-4988