Hibiscus / জবা ফুল।
General features: It is a flowering plant belonging to the Malvaceae family. The genus is very large containing several hundred species including both annual and perennial categories. The plant is grown in tropical or subtropical climate displaying flowers of spectacular colors. Due to the vibrant flower color, they are mainly cultivated for the ornamental / decorative reasons forgetting the scientific or medicinal role behind. The generic name was introduced from the Greek ‘Hibiscos’ as inscribed in the legendary book De Materia Medica (large five-volume encyclopedia relating to the herbal medicine and its medicinal role) by the famous Greek physician, scientist and pharmacologist, Pedanius Dioscorides in ~ 40 AD while working for the Greek Army. The book is still widely mentioned even long after his demise over 1500 years ago. Hibiscus / Jaba (জবা in Bengali) is a deciduous shrub producing dark green leaves that can reach ~ 30 feet height and 15 – 20 feet wide in a frost-free climate. They can be grown short and single stemmed by virtue of pruning. The peripheral diameter of a flower is ~ 6 inches. They are versatile in color ranging from white, beige, yellow, peach, purple and red or even mix. They are trumpet shaped (except Hibiscus sabdariffa) and very prominent, holding five or more petals. The dark green leaves are alternate, ovate or lanceolate showing toothed or lobed margin which are approximately 6 – 9 inches in length and 1- 1.5 inches wide which also depends on the nature and variety of species. The fruit is five lobed capsule holding numerous seeds within each lobe which gets released when the capsule splits open at maturity.
Cultural and religious features: The flower is the emblem of women’s emancipation. In Europe and America the flower symbolizes a perfect woman or wife. In Victorian England offering a Hibiscus bunch is the acknowledgement of woman’s delicate beauty. In China it implies fame and glory. Concerning the religious feature, red hibiscus has a special place in the Hinduism of India. In rich and colorful cultural heritage and mythology, hibiscus has a significant role. As per the Hindu mythology, every God / Goddess has the respective beloved flower which signifies individual’s nature and fondness. In that regard, hibiscus is convoyed with the Goddess Kali. She is a furious expression of primordial spirit and energy leading to death and destruction as well as the birth and creation. The legend indicates that being superbly empowered by the Gods at heaven, the Goddess went on a rampage to destroy the demonic empire terrorizing the world, which later turned unstoppable. Following deep consultation, the Gods at heaven sent the husband, Lord Shiva who lay down on her way. Inadvertently stepping on Him, she lost the fury out of deep embarrassment that eventually stopped her the destructive battling move. Being greatly embarrassed, the Goddess stuck out her tongue which is a common norm unconsciously practiced by the Indian women at their embarrassing moment. To the Hindus, the red hibiscus represents Goddess’s bright red tongue. But the very act universally represents the momentary act of sudden embarrassment for all women. To the contrary, the red hibiscus symbolizes Kali’s bloodlust fury which insentiently possessed over her at the battling moment. Anyway, according to the Hinduism, the flower is a mystic sign of female empowerment which raises a pulse in the force of human life.
Household use and health benefits: Hibiscus of all varieties are frequently employed for numerous food supplements claiming to provide several health benefits. The dried flowers are used as spices in Latino cooking. One of the prominent varieties that is largely used is Hibiscus sabdariffa / Roselle in making jam or jelly. In India, it is used for making Chutney (Indian sweet and tart dish). Additionally, those having the dark or light red colors are used either in the cooking or making popular drinks in many tropical regions. Among the drinks the most popular one is Hibiscus tea. Red colored flower, botanically named as Hibiscus Rosa – sinensis (লাল জবা) is commonly found and abundant in nature. It is used as spices in the Mexican cooking for coloring food or drink. Hindus in India use it for worshipping the Goddess, Kali. Besides flowers, the dried leaves and dark red calyces are also packaged for making tea which is slightly sour or tart by the taste. In ancient Egypt, hibiscus tea is consumed to lower the body temperature, chronic heart and nervous disorders. It is a potent diuretic and enhances the urine production. In recent days, the plant draws attention for several of its beneficial role on health like lowering of high blood pressure and cholesterol levels. It also has high potential for having anti-cancer regimen also aiding the weight loss and accumulation of undesirable body fat due to its role on metabolism. Further it reduces the fat build up within liver which seems to be due to large presence of anthocyanins. Approximately 10 gm of dried calyces provide ~250 mg of anthocyanin. Generally considered to be safe but occasionally it interferes with the acetaminophen (Tylenol / Paracetamol, anti-inflammatory drug), chloroquine (antimalarial drug) or diclofenac (anti-inflammatory drug) although the effect is seen minimal. Concerning additional effects, it lowers the bioavailability of several other drugs. Interestingly, the plant / flower extract successfully controls the head lice.
Hibiscus sabdariffa / Roselle: It is perhaps the most usable variety among entire family because of its fruity appearance and taste. In India, it bears numerous names in different regional languages eg, in Maharashtra it is called Ambadi whereas in Bengal it is named as Amlamadhu (অম্লমধু), meaning sweet and sour taste. It is incredibly popular in the Myanmar, thus often used in many Burmese cuisine which is cooked with green chilies, vegetables and dry fish. In Maharashtra, Gujrat and other parts of India, Ambadi is normally cooked with the vegetables and eaten with hand-made breads. In Andhra, it is cooked with the lentil and eaten with rice. In Philippine, a large section of foods are cooked with various Hibiscus flowers including Roselle. In Bengal, it is normally selected for making the Chutneys therefore consumed as a dessert. In other parts of the globe, like in several tropical islands in South Pacific and Caribbean, it is crushed and extracted for making syrup to use for the cold drinks while mixing with the other fruit juices. Hibiscus sabdariffa / Roselle is universally considered to be healthy due to the large reserve of Vitamin C and anthocyanins, strong antioxidants. Uniquely, the plant can exert strong anti-fertility effect. It stimulates the contraction of uterus as seen in the animal experiments although unfounded within human. But it acts as emmenagogue and stimulate menstruation helping abort the fetus in women. Concerning the pharmacological studies, it should not be consumed by the pregnant women.
Folk medicinal use: From veryancient times majority of the species belonging to this genus are used for various folk remedies. According to the Ayurveda, its tiny fruits are regarded to be tonic, aphrodisiac and astringent. In Unani medicine, the dried fruits are used for treating several urinary disorders. In many rural areas, the leaves are used for making poultice to cure boils, sores or sprains. The decoction made from flowers are employed to cure chronic bronchitis or other bronchial problems including the toothache. The bark mucilage is seen to act like an emmenagogue. The seeds of Hibiscus abelmoschus provide diuretic, demulcent and stomachic effects. It has also antiseptic, coolant, carminative, tonic and aphrodisiac property. The extracts of bark, flowers and fruits of all varieties are used to treat skin diseases like, eczema, scabies, psoriasis and ringworms. In Ayurveda, the Bhavapraksh (famous ancient medicinal science written in 14th century by the great Hindu scholar, Bhavamisra who modernized the scientific aspects of herbal medicines considering its various drug actions) it has been mentioned that consuming hibiscus rosa-sinensis (লাল জবা) during menses would prevent pregnancy. The fact has been proven by numerous experiments on lab animals and human. The flower extract changes the estrous cycle imposing antifertility.
Medicinal actions of Hibiscus: The presence of large number of bioactive phyto-chemicals within all varieties of hibiscus identifies their natures are, flavonoids, anthocyanins, terpenoids, steroids, polysaccharides, alkaloids, amino acids, lipids, sesquiterpenes, quinones and compounds of naphthalene groups. Those are known to exert anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-hypertensive, anti-fertility, hypoglycemic, anticancer, antifungal and antioxidative effects. Due to the extremely high level of phenolics and flavonoids, all members of this family draw interest both as a food supplement also having the subsequent medicinal role.
Anti-inflammatory – In laboratory experiment of both in vitro and in vivo using flower extract shows strong anti-inflammatory activity. The identified compound is Gossypin, a glycosyl- hydroxy flavone, which exerts potent anti-inflammatory property by inhibiting the NF-κβ activation pathway at ~ 10 µM doses preventing inflammation. The compound is synthesized at very high level in Hibiscus vitifolius but exists to a lesser extent within others.
Antimicrobial action – The powerful anti-microbial effect of fatty acid fraction from the stem bark is partly due to Canthin-6-one, a β-carboline alkaloid, synthesized within most members of the Hibiscus family but seen at a very high level particularly in Hibiscus syriacus. The compound is extremely cytotoxic exhibiting potent antifungal, anti-parasite and antimicrobial effect destroying both gram positive and gram-negative bacteria. Further, the aqueous or alcoholic extract of calyx from Hibiscus sabdariffa shows powerful antimicrobial property preventing number of pathogenic bacteria particularly methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and several others. The presence of high level of protocatechuic acid and several of its glycosylated derivatives are noticed to be liable for the effect. The compound enables to induce apoptosis in human leukemia cell lines indicating anticancer effect. The other components like compound (3) Hibiscanal and (4) Hibiscanone can also prevent various pathogen.
Effect on fertility- Amongthe varieties, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis / লাল জবা has the most potent infertility effect particularly offered by the ingredients extracted by using either benzene or ethanol as a solvent. The infertility effect is mediated via the inhibition of implantation. Interestingly, the level of contents within the flower follows seasonal variation. Those collected during winter months show the highest potency afterward its effectivity goes downward following spring, rainy season and summer months. Several antifertility compounds are identified and characterized from various extracts. Among them two are seen to be the most potent / effective to prevent the pregnancy for both human and animals also nontoxic. In males, the extracts affect spermatogenesis as well as other functions of the testis and accessory the sex organs including pituitary.
Contrarily, the aqueous extract of Hibiscus macaranthus causes anabolic and virilizing effect which is indicated by the increment of serum testosterone level also enhancing spermatozoa count within the lumen of seminiferous tubules. Testis also show increased production of testosterone as well as the higher level of prostatic acid and phosphatase within prostate and testis. In case of Hibiscus sabdariffa the effect is quite opposite although for a long time it is considered to be an aphrodisiac. Its extract significantly lowers the epididymal sperm counts causing also the disruption of normal epithelial organization as well as hyperplasia of testis thickening the basement membrane. At higher doses, it disintegrates the sperm cells.
Two most potent anti-fertility compounds isolated out of ten active components from Hibiscus rosa-sinensis
Antitumor effect- Theaqueous extracthibiscus sabdariffa flower and buds possess substantial antitumor property. In addition to the protocatechuic acid, the two other powerful cytotoxic compounds, Myriceric and Uncarinic acids have been identified. They show anti-proliferative effect by inducing apoptosis which is associated with the reduction of phosphorylation in retinoblastoma (RB) and subsequent Bcl-2 expression. The antitumor effect is observed also in human lung carcinoma, breast carcinomas, and leukemia and colon cancer cells. The studies reveal that apoptosis occurs via ROS mediated mitochondrial pathway.
Anti-hypertensive effect – Overa long time, the Hibiscus family members is widely famed for its powerful hypotensive or blood pressure lowering effect. In that regard, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Hibiscus sabdariffa are noticed to be very potent. Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, the red colored flower (লাল জবা) has several components that exert significant hypotensive effect. Experiments had proven that aqueous-alcoholic extract inhibits Angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) which is the major underlying cause behind the hypotensive action. Several compounds (1& 8 – 13) presented in the list are identified to be also the major cause behind that inhibitory role. Those flavones can inhibit the actions of several serine proteases like elastase, trypsin and α – chymotrypsin which are often acting behind the hypertensive effects. The aqueous extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa produces strong vaso-relaxation when tested in vitro on the isolated rat aorta. The vaso-relaxation effect is mediated due to the inhibition of Ca+2 influx from the surrounding medium inside the cell also simultaneous blocking the Ca+2 release from the intracellular store of endoplasmic reticulum. Further, the extract acts as a potent diuretic by inhibiting Na+ and water reabsorption. It acts better than the loop diuretic, Furosemide since it does not cause over-reactivation of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system maintaining K+ concentration in the body. In human studies, it has been noticed that Hibiscus sabdariffa extract can lower both systolic and diastolic pressure within the patients ranging from 30 to 80 years of age. The effect is somewhat better than the Captopril.
Hypo-cholesterolemic – The experiments on human and animals have convincingly proven that aqueous or alcoholic extract or even dried calyx of Hibiscus sabdariffa can lower the level of triglyceride, cholesterol and LDL and lipoprotein cholesterol or VLDL in a very dose-dependent manner by ~ 25 to 33%. Histopathologic examination also reveals the prevention of foam cell formation, inhibition of smooth cell migration and calcification of blood vessels. The reducing effect is supposedly mediated due to the racemization pathway of (+) hydroxy-citric acid / (+) HCA to (-) HCA with the help of enzymes from gut flora. The significant reduction is achieved when 10 % extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa was consumed. Biochemical studies already have proven that hypo-triglyceridemic effect is achieved by (-) HCA isomer via competitive inhibition of cytoplasmic enzyme, citrate lyase.
Hypoglycemic action – The compound 32 in below list isolated from the flower showed considerable hypoglycemic effect which is more than Glibenclamide or tolbutamide (sulfonyl urea drug) in both human and animals. The extraction from Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Hibiscus sabdariffa indicates the most effect. They follow the mechanism of sulfonyl urea but not the biguanides (Metformin).
Antioxidant – The extract of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and Hibiscus sabdariffa shows compelling antioxidant property compared to the others in its family. The extracts or else dried powders are known to exert strong anti-inflammatory actions which could be due to this antioxidant effect. It is noticed that the protocatechuic acid has strong impact in that regard since it prevents Nitric oxide synthase enabling to prevent inflammation or liver damage by the endotoxins. In addition, the large reserve of anthocyanins / flavonoids efficiently scavenges any endogenously generated free radicals within the body thereby protecting from inflammation, infiltration and necrosis. The aqueous extract or even dried powdered calyx of Hibiscus sabdariffa or Hibiscus rosa-sinensis are seen to prevent Cu+2 induced oxidation of LDL in vitro signifying the powerful anti-oxidant role. The major antioxidant property is seen in Syriacusins A, B & C (18 – 20) although there are also others exhibiting potent similar role (compounds 21-31).
| Name of the plants | Bioactive components / Fractions | Functions / Activities |
| Hibiscus ablemoschus | Aqueous extract | Larvicidal effect |
| Hibiscus cannabinus | Tri-norcandalene phytolexins, Volatile oil of leaves. | Anti-fungal |
| Hibiscus elatus | Flavonoids | Anti-oxidant |
| Hibiscus macaranthus | Ethanol extract-aerial parts & roots Aqueous extract of leaves | Antifungal & antimicrobial Antifertility, Virilizing & Anabolizing effect |
| Hibiscus rosa-sinensis | Benzene & EtOH extract – flowers Aqueous extract – leaves Benzene, CHCl3 & EtOH extract of Flowers Glycoside of leaves EtOH extract of flowers | Antifertility Antifertility Antispermatogenic Hypotensive, Antispasmodic Hypoglycemic Anti-convulsant. |
| Hibiscus sabdariffa | Oil fraction Protocatechuic acid and aqueous Fraction of flowers Polysaccharides, phenolic acids (of flower buds) & Anthocyanins Aqueous extract of flower EtOH fraction of flowers – Phenolics | Antifungal & Antibacterial Antibacterial Antitumor Antitumor Anti-hypertensive Antioxidant, smooth muscle Relaxant, anti-spasmodic. |
| Hibiscus syriacus | Seed oil Fatty acid fraction from bark Napthalenes from root bark Pentacyclic tri-terpenes Lignans from root bark | Antimicrobial Antifungal Antitumor, antioxidant Antioxidant Antioxidant |
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