BANABA (Lagerstroemia speciosa (L.) Pers.)BOTANYBanaba is a
deciduous tropical fowering tree, 5 to 10 meters high,sometimes
growing to a height of 20 meters. Bark is smooth, gre to
cream!colored, and peels o" in irregular fakes. #ea$es are smooth,
large, spatulate,oblong to elliptic!o$ate, % to & centimeters
in width, 12 to 25 centimeters inlength, shedding its lea$es the
'rst months of the ear. (lowers are
)!parted,purplishlilacormau$e!pink, rarelpink,
5to*.5centimetersacross, andborne in large, terminal panicles up to
%0 centimeters in length. +etals areoblong!obo$ate or obo$ate,
shortl clawed, and , to ,.5 centimeters long-the margins are
undulate and hardl 'mbriate. (ruit is a large nutlikecapsule,
obo$oidorellipsoid, and2to,.5centimeterslong. .eedispalebrown, with
a wing 12 to 1& millimeters long.DISTRIBUTION ! /n most or all
islands and pro$inces, chief in secondar forests at low andmedium
altitudes.! (ound in the Batan /slands and northern #u0on to
+alawan, 1indanao andthe .ulu 2rchipelago.! 3ulti$ated in 1anila
for its beautiful fowers.! 1akes an e4cellent a$enue tree. ! 2lso
reported in /ndia to southern 3hina and southward through 1alaa
totropical 2ustralia.CONSTITUENTS!+htochemical screening ielded
phenolic compounds, fa$onoids, andsaponins. ! 5ich in tannin6
fruit, 1% to 1* 7- lea$es 1, 7- bark, 107.! .tudies ha$e isolated6
(1) corosolic acid (2) ellagitannin #agerstroemin (,)gallotannins.!
+enta!8!gallol!glucopranose (++9) : identi'ed as the most potent of
thegallotannins, with a higher glucose transport stimulator acti$it
than#agerstroemin. /n addition to stimulating glucose uptake in fat
cells, it alsohas anti!adipogenic properties.PROPERTIES! Before
shedding, the lea$es are bright orange or red during which time it
isthought to contain higher le$els of corosolic acid.! 8ld lea$es
and ripe fruit are considered to ield the greatest amount of
aninsulin!like principle. ;went grams of old lea$es or fruit, dried
from one totwo weeks, in the form of 100 cc of 207 decoction was
found to ha$e acti$ite
