Anachuvadi ആനച്ചുവടി

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES
Elephantopus scaber L. is a species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae family. It is found in Tropical Africa, Eastern Asia, Indian Subcontinent,Southeast Asia, and Australia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. Erect herb, up to 38 cm high; rootstock short, giving off many stout fibrous roots. Leaves 12.5-20 cm long, mostly radical forming a spreading rosette on the ground, obovate-oblong, coarsely serrate-dentate, hairy. Heads numerous, sessile, closely packed, forming a large flat-topped terminal inflorescence, nearly 2.5 cm across, and surrounded at the base by three large, broadly ovate, leafy bract. Flowers small, violet.
E. scaber is known as a traditional medicine. E. scaber contains elephantopin which is a germacranolide sesquiterpene lactone containing two lactone rings and an epoxide functional group, and it has shown to have an antitumour activity. The whole plant grained and made in to a paste then applied the toxic wounds to destroy toxic elements.