Acacia Auriculiformis

Nature utilizes surfactants for a variety of additional roles. A natural surfactant, using a strict definition, is a surfactant taken directly from a natural source (isolated by a separation procedure from either a plant or an animal origin).42 Lecithin, obtained either from soybean or from egg yolk, is probably the best example of a truly natural surfactant. Other natural originated surfactants are the various soap-like surfactants for the removal of fatty/oily substances. These compounds produce a rich lather when dispersed into water and are found in various natural systems (such as chestnuts, in leaves and seeds of Saponaria Officinalis (soapwort), in the bark of the South American soaptree Quillaja saponaria Molina and in the fruits of Acacia Auriculiformis (Figure 7.2) 43,44... 

FIGURE 7.2. Chemical structure of a saponin from Acacia Auriculiformis. 

Two triterpenoid saponins from Acacia auriculiformis, acaciaside A and B showed antifilarial effects in vitro. They killed 97% microfilaria of Setaria cervi in 100 min at 4mg/ml and 100% of adults in 35 min [221]. The drug when administered orally at 100 mg/kg on rats in which S. cervi adults were implanted i. p., increased the blood microfilaria count by 1.5 fold after the first phase of treatment for 10 days. Following the third phase of treatment and thereafter, the microfilarial density was reduced more than 80%. No toxic effect was observed in rats. 

Nurhayati (1997) Acacia Auriculiformis bark as batik processing dye. University of Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia... 

Isol. from trunkwood of Acacia auriculiformis. Red-brown needles (EtOH aq.). Mp 225-225.5°. 

Mandal P, Sinha Babu SP, Mandal NC (2005) Antimicrobial activity of saponins from Acacia auriculiformis. Fitoterapia 76 462-465... 

Drewes, S. E., and D. G. Roux A new flavan-3,4-diol from Acacia auriculiformis by paper ionophoresis. Biochem. J. 98, 493 (1966). 

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