Abstract

Aim: Pterospermum acerifolium Linn is usually a perennial, evergreen plant belonging to family Sterculiaceae. It is found in sub-Himalayan tract and outer Himalayan valleys and hills up to 4,000 ft., Bengal, Chittagong, Khasia Hills, Manipur, Darjeeling and Odisha and extensively planted in the Bombay State. Sometimes it is used for packing-cases, planks, turnery articles and plywood. Hill people use the white tomentum from the under surface of the bark to stop bleeding Flowers: used as a general tonic .Flowers and bark: charred and mixed with kamala applied in suppurating small-pox. The extracts of these barks and barks are used in traditional medicine because of their antibacterial and antifungal activity. The bark extracts of various solvents were subjected to pharmacognostical and phytochemical analysis. Variable fluorescence nature of the plant was also noted against day and UV light. Bark extracts contain alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, phenolic compounds, tannins, cardiac glycosides etc., which could be a reason for the plants pharmacological activity. These observations would be of great value in the authentification of this plant in its crude form.

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