The muicle (Spicigera justice) is an evergreen shrub that has been used for centuries in Mexico for its leaves, flowers, and stem. In a traditional way it is used to combat diabetes, diarrhea of different origins, anemia, as a detoxifier, digestive, antipyretic and antibiotic.
The plant is a dicotyledon that can reach a meter and a half in height. It grows well in warm and temperate, dry and semi-dry climates, from sea level to 3000 meters high. The flowers are small orange or red in color and have a tubular shape, like long "trumpets" similar to a calla..
The plant is densely branched and its leaves are veiny and longer than wide. It belongs to the Acantáceas family, which has approximately 600 species. Justice It is the largest genus of this botanical family, characterized by being an important source of plants with therapeutic properties.
The species is native to Central America (Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua) and Mexico, and currently grows even in Colombia. It has purifying properties that alleviate the withdrawal syndrome and the body wasting of the abuse of stimulant drugs, such as cocaine.
It is also known as limalin, mohuite, muitle, mucle, stone indigo, indigo grass, purple grass, mahuitle, mayotli, micle, mohuite, palo de tinte and trumpetilla, among others. It is also used as a source of natural pigments.
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The plant is sown in gardens and orchards, although it is also usually found wild, on the edge of the roads. The growth is favored in sunny places or with little shade. It does not have a high water requirement so it needs little irrigation, particularly if it is in fertile land.
It reproduces by cuttings or by separating the rooted suckers from the plant, when it is larger.
Muicle contains simple carbohydrates and other complex carbohydrates such as mucilage and pectins. Also glycosides, that is, substances composed of a carbohydrate and a non-carbohydrate compound; pigments, resins and essential oils. It has polyphenolic compounds such as tannins and flavonoids, and minerals forming salts, including potassium, calcium and sodium..
When the composition is analyzed separately according to the different parts of the plant, it is found that the phenolic content is higher in the aqueous extract of the flower than in that of the leaves and stems.
The highest antioxidant activity occurs in the methanolic extract of the leaves and the highest content of flavonoids in the methanolic extract of the stems.
The effectiveness against gonococcus Neisseria gonorrhoeae of muicle extracts has been tested in in vitro studies. It has some inhibitory action, but lower than that found using the extracts of other plants.
Other plants used against gonorrhea are annatto (Bixa orellana), guajilote (Parmentiera edullis), guachipilin leaves (Diphysa robinioides Benth.), Siam Grass (Chromolaena odorata), gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium), matico (Piper aduncum), white sapote root extracts (Casimiroa edullis) and angel hair (Clematis dioica).
Muicle has been used to treat oral infections. The plant has been proven to have inhibitory effects against the growth of bacteria Streptococcus mutans Y Porphyromonas gingivalis.
Decoctions of muicle are used to treat emotional symptoms associated with menopause, such as moodiness, sadness, and irritability..
Kaempferitrin is the main secondary metabolite of the hydroalcoholic extract of Spicigera justice. It is a naturally occurring glycoside of kaempferol. In animal tests, kaempferitrin was shown to have a clear antidepressant effect similar to that of conventional antidepressants.
The antibacterial and antifungal activity of the muicle extracts has also been analyzed using ethanol and hexane as solvents.. Ethanolic extract inhibits the growth of Shigella flexneri, Salmonella typhi, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli Y Staphylococcus aureus.
With the extract from hexane, the inhibition of these same microorganisms is achieved in addition to Candida albicans. These results corroborate the traditional use of the plant, which prevents the growth of some of the microorganisms that cause dysentery..
Giardiasis is a parasitic disease caused by Giardia lamblia or Giardia duodenalis, a flagellated pathogenic protozoan that can invade the upper part of the small intestine.
When it has been exposed Giardia duodenalis at different concentrations of ethanol extracts from J. spicigera, the observed result was a definitive damage to the trophozoites of G. lamblia. In no case was there cellular growth of the parasite after treatment with the ethanolic extract of muicle.
The hypoglycemic effect of muicle has been studied in experimental animals. When evaluating the effect of the administration of the ethanolic extract, a reduction in blood glucose levels was found in normo-glycemic rats. The reduction occurred in a period between half an hour to 4 hours after the administration of the extract of J. spicigera.
These values are comparable to those obtained with the usual medications used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. The antidiabetic effect of J. spicigera may be due to elevated glucose uptake in insulin-resistant adipocytes.
Muicle has been studied for its action on cancer cells. For this, extracts of the active principles of the plant have been made with different solvents, including hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and water..
After the solvents had evaporated, the residue was again dissolved in water and ethanol. When evaluating the action of these extracts in malignant breast cells, it was observed that the ethanolic extract of J. spicigera showed a cytotoxic activity greater than that seen by antitumor drugs such as colchicine.
Other studies have corroborated the possible anticancer activity of the ethanolic / aqueous extract of Spicigera justice showing its cytostatic activity on a line of human cells commonly used in the field of oncology, such as LNCaP cells. LNCaP cells are human prostate adenocarcinoma cells.
The muicle infusion is popularly used to combat anemia and during menstruation.
All muicle extracts show antioxidant activity. Oxidative processes have been associated with the development of coronary heart disease, cancer, and deterioration associated with aging. The consumption of antioxidants of natural origin protects the body against the proliferation of free radicals.
However, this property undergoes changes according to the type of solvent and the section of the muicle used to prepare the extract..
For the same organ of the plant, the extracts prepared with methanol have a higher free radical elimination activity than those obtained with water. For the same solvent, the extracts of leaves or flowers had a higher antioxidant activity than those obtained from the stem.
In the case of methanolic extract, the leaf has a greater capacity to eliminate free radicals than the flower, followed by the stem. In the aqueous extract, it is the flower that has the highest antioxidant activity, followed by the leaf and the stem..
The variation in antioxidant activity between organs is probably due to the presence of different mixtures of chemical compounds. This synergy not only depends on the concentration and structure of each one, but also on the interaction with other plant chemicals, present in the mixture..
Mexican basket weaving is part of the ancestral tradition. Many plant species are used for this purpose. An ink is extracted from the leaves and stems of the muicle to paint this type of craft. Its color has also been used in paintings. The dye produced is purple blue.
The muicle decoction is prepared with 4 grams of leaves and stems, in 450 mL of water. To combat warts, it is taken 3 times a day for 9 days, outside of meal times. The decoction is also used to calm menstrual cramps.
As a tonic it can be taken seasonally for up to 6 months without any risk. It is necessary to rest a month before resuming it for a similar period, if necessary.
The decoction of the branches, alone or mixed with absinthe, guava and lemon balm, taken in the morning, is used for digestive problems. The leaves are crushed and left to stand in water for a few hours and taken instead of water, for the relief of respiratory conditions such as cough, flu and bronchitis.
To combat withdrawal symptoms, a handful of the plant (leaves, flowers and stems) is boiled in a liter of water for 15 minutes. Taken in place of water throughout the day, starting with the first feeding on an empty stomach.
Baths using the leaves and stems relieve skin problems and poor blood circulation.
To extract the dye, the sheets of J. spicigera they are boiled overnight or a day, along with the material to be colored in copper pots. When boiled, the water turns blue to reddish purple.
It is not advisable during pregnancy or when its existence is suspected. Neither is its consumption recommended during breastfeeding..
No side effects associated with its consumption have been reported..
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