Streblus asper Lour (Family: Moraceae) is a small tree (Fig. 1) which is indigenous to tropical countries such as India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. It is known by various names, e.g. Bar-inka, Berrikka, Rudi, Sheora, Koi, Siamese rough bush and Tooth brush tree (1). In India it is known by its several vernacular names, the most commonly used ones being Shakhotaka (Sanskrit), Siora (Hindi), Sheora (Bengali) and Piray (Tamil) (2). It is used traditionally in leprosy, piles, diarrhea, dysentery, elephantiasis (3) and cancer (4). It is a rigid shrub or gnarled tree; branchlets tomentose or pubescent. Leaves are 2–4 inch, rigid, elliptic, rhomboid, ovate or obovate, irregularly toothed; petiole 1/12 inch. Male heads globose, solitary or 2-nate, sometimes androgynous; peduncle short scabrid, flowers minute. Female flowers longer peduncled. Fruit pisiform; perianth yellow. It is found in the drier parts of India, from Rohilkund, eastward and southwards to Travancore, Penang and the Andaman Islands (5).
The pharmacognostical studies of its stem bark as well as its root bark have been carried out (6,7). It finds place in the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India (8) and has also been described in some monographs (9), but none have described the complete chemistry and pharmacology of this important ethnomedicinal plant. Therefore, we aimed to compile an up-to-date and comprehensive review of S. asper that covers its traditional and folk medicinal uses, phytochemistry and pharmacology.
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