Tinospora glabra (Burm.F.) Merr.

Woody climber, entirely glabrous. Stems striate when young, becoming warty (with raised lenticels) and later developing a smooth thin papery bark which often becomes detached on drying. Leaves: petioles 4-8(-12) cm; lamina oblong-ovate or narrowly to broadly ovate, base cordate to truncate, with basal lobes rounded or obtusely pointed, apex acuminate, 7—12(—15) by 5—9(—13) cm reticulation raised on both surfaces, papyraceous, domatia with distinct apertures usually present beneath in basal nerve-axils, the floor of the domatia carpeted with glands, occasionally domatia absent but glandular patches present (e.g. in New Guinea). Male inflorescences axillary or arising from older, leafless stems, pseudo-racemose, slender, lax, 10-20 cm, not or sparsely flowered in the lower ⅓ to ½, flowers solitary or in fascicles of 2-5 in the axil of a subulate bract 1 mm long. Male flowers on very slender pedicles 8-12 mm; sepals yellow, greenish (or white), outer 3 narrowly ovate 1 mm long, inner 3 broadly elliptic, concave 4-5 mm long; petals 6, broadly cuneate-obovate with lateral edges incurved, externally papillose at base, 2-3 mm long; stamens 6, clavate, 3-5 mm long. Female inflorescences similar to male but up to 35 cm. Female flowers: sepals and petals as in male but inner sepals 3 mm long; staminodes 6, subulate, 0.5-1 mm; carpels 3, ellipsoidal, 1.5 mm, including reflexed lobed stigma, borne on a subglobose gynophore 1-1.5 mm long. Drupes red, radiating from unbranched short to columnar carpophore 2-4 mm long on peduncle 4-10 mm arising from main axis of infructescence; pericarp drying thin and close to endocarp; endocarp thinly bony, 6-8 by 4-5 mm, subrotund or subelliptic in outline, pointed at base, keeled at apex, dorsally convex with a median ridge and irregularly tuberculate, ventrally flattish with a small elliptic aperture to condyle.

In a great number of situations in littoral rain-forest and Casuarina equisetifolia forest, mangrove and on sandy beaches, often inland in disturbed forest and shrubberies, secondary growths, very frequently on limestone (Java, Sumba, Timor) and on black soils under seasonal conditions; up to 500 m.

Uses. In the Philippines this species is used for a variety of medicinal purposes, e.g. burnt leaves used to treat pinworms; ground bark is applied to sore breasts of nursing mothers. Together with T. crispa this species is known in the Philippines as makabuhay, but apparently T. crispa is medicinally more effective. The account of makabuhay in QUISUMBING ( QUISUMBING Medic. Pl. Philip. 1951 300 ) is given under the name T. rumphii BOERL., a synonym of T. crispa, but the description in part refers to T. glabra. QUISUMBING mentions a number of medicinal uses as well as reports of alkaloids: some of these may refer to T. glabra. The species is also used in the Philippines for baiting wild pigs by mixing sliced roots with Ipomoeabatatas.The alkaloid berberine has been reported in T. crispa ( THORNBER Phytochem. 9 1970 167 ). The material tested, however, may well have been T. glabra since the correctness of its identification is uncertain.

Can be grown by seedlings.