MACRO- AND MICROMORPHOLOGY STUDIES OF THE LEAF, STEM AND STEM BARK OF FICUS PANDURATA HANCE. CULTIVATED IN EGYPT

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt

2 Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Assiut, Egypt

Abstract

Ficus pandurata (Hance) Fiddle leaf fig (Family, Moraceae) is a tree indigenous to South Africa and cultivated in Egypt for its shade in public and private gardens. Previous investigations of Ficus species showed many medicinal uses; externally they have been used for treatment of leprosy, ulcers, itching, leucoderma and warts. Internally used as anti-inflammatory, to reduce fever, cure tuberculosis and against intestinal parasites. In the present work, the detailed macro-and micromorphological characters of the leaf, stem and stem bark of Ficus pandurata Hance were studied with the aim to find out the diagnostic elements of these organs, which facilitate their identification in both entire and powdered forms.