COLCHICUM SPECIOSUM

Sadaqat Ali

Scientific classification• Kingdom: Plantae• Angiosperms• Monocots• Order: Liliales• Family: Colchicaceae• Genus: Colchicum• Species: C. speciosum

Common name:

• Autumn Crocus• Naked Lady• Meadow Saffron• Colchicum giganteum

Habitat

• Native to Central America. • Colchicum is widely cultivated in

Ukraine, Moldova, Caucasus and Middle Asia.

Plant description• Height :- This

perennial herb grows to approximately 0.3 m long.

Flowers :-

• Has pale purple flowers

Fruit:Is green when unripe, changing principally to red, although some varieties may ripen to other colours including brown and purple.

Root:-

• Fleshy conical root .• Taste is hot spicy.

Part used

• Seeds• Leaves • corm

HOW TO GROW

• Cultivation• Grow in moist but well-drained, deep,

humus-rich, fertile soil. Intolerant of water logging

• Propagation• Propagate by seed, sowing in containers in

an open frame.

OR• Separate corms when dormant in summer

ConstituentsContains • colchicine• capsaicinoids (0.1-1.9%) and the

main among them is capsaicin, • Nordihydrocapsaicin • Homodihydrocapsaicin.• Fruits are rich in vitamins C, B1,

B2, nikotinic and folic acids, carotinoids;

• Also contains steroidal saponins, flavonoids, coumarin scopoletin;

• Salts of potassium, sodium, calcium, aluminium, iron.

Concentrations of A.Constituents in

different parts• Seed :-

• concentrations of colchicine may exceed 1% in the seeds.

Corms:- • 0.6% colchicine in corm

Dried leaves:-• dried flowers and seeds contain 15 times

as much colchicine as fresh leave

Uses• Arthritis.• Gout.• Cancer • Chronic hepatitis/cirrhosis• Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis• Familial Mediterranean fever, an inherited disease.

Colchicim speciosum as anti cancer agent

Anticancer agent Because colchicine arrests mitosis

during metaphase, it was thought to be useful as an anticancer agent.

Immunochemotherapy of multidrug resistant renal cell carcinoma using a combination of vinblastine, tamoxifen, colchicine, and 5-flourouracil demonstrated an overall response rate of 23.5% with limited toxicity

pharmacology

• Colchicine inhibits normal cell division, specifically by interfering with microtubule growth and mitosis during cell division. It also may interfere with the normal function of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) or the cellular membrane

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

• A controlled, randomized, prospective trial of 26 patients treated with colchicine or prednisone showed no improvement with either agent. 

• 20 A prospective, nonrandomized study using colchicine and/or D-penicillamine with prednisone did not halt progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. 

• 21 One retrospective study comparing colchicine, oxygen, and prednisone with no therapy demonstrated no differences in survival

Dosing

• Colchicine 1 to 2 mg is a typical oral dose for gout,

• Colchicine also has been studied for osteoarthritis of the knee, refractory constipation, at similar doses.

• Its narrow therapeutic index requires medical supervision.

Research work

According to BBC News• Researchers are poised to start clinical

trials with a new "smart bomb" treatment, derived from the flower, targeted specifically at tumours.

• The treatment, called colchicine, was able to slow the growth of and even completely "kill" a range of different cancers, in experiments with mice.

• The research was highlighted at the British Science Festival in Bradford.

According to Department of Life Science, College of Natural Science, Daejin University, Kyeonggido, Korea.

• The colchicine derivative CT20126 shows a novel microtubule-modulating activity with apoptosis

REFERENCES

• www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment• www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/92234/Colchicum-sp

eciosum-Album/Details• http://www.drugs.com/npp/autumn-

crocus.html• www.herbs2000.com