Gen info
- Alysicarpus is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae, and includes 30 species distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Australia. Species are generally known as moneyworts.   (2)

Botany
• Herbs, perennial. Stem erect or diffuse, much branched, 25-120 cm tall, glabrous or subglabrous. Leaves 1-foliolate; petiole ca. 2 mm or leaves subsessile; blade linear to linear-lanceolate, 4-7 × 0.4-0.5 cm, abaxially sparsely pubescent on midvein, adaxially glabrous, base rounded or cuneate, apex acute. Racemes terminal, 3-18 cm, 20-40-flowered, binate at each node; internodes 8-10 mm. Pedicel ca. 1 mm or flowers subsessile. Calyx 6-8 mm, longer than first article of legume; lobes lanceolate, ca. 2 × as long as tube. Corolla pale yellow or yellowish green, ca. 5 mm. Legume brown at maturity, 0.6-1.5 cm × ca. 1.8 mm, higher than calyx, 3-6-jointed, constricted between articles, glabrous. (Flora of China)

• Stem 30-60 cm long, erect, with a line of hairs. Stipules 6-9 mm long, scarious. Leaf unifoliolate, petiole 1.5-2.5 mm long, petiolules small, stipels minute, caducous, leaflet 8 mm-6.8 cm long, 3-8 mm broad, glabrous or minutely hairy along the midrib on the under surface. Inflorescence a lax raceme, flowers in distant pairs. Bracts 6-8 mm long, scarious. Pedicel c. 2 mm long. Calyx 6-7 mm long, teeth less than half the length of calyx, acute, sparsely hairy. Corolla red. Pods 9-13 mm long, stalked, slightly moniliform, joints 4-8, glabrous, smooth. (Flora of Pakistan)

Distribution
- Native to the Philippines.
- Also native to Assam, Bangladesh, China South-Central, China Southeast, East Himalaya, India, Jawa, Lesser Sunda Is., Myanmar, Nepal, New Guinea, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, West Himalaya. (1)

Constituents
- Phytochemical screening of ethanol extract of whole plant revealed alkaloids, tannins, phytosterols, and terpenoids, with absence of cardiac glycosides, saponins, and flavonoids. An insulinomimetic, D-pinitol, salicylic acid, gallic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, and daucosterol have also been isolated from A. bupleurifolius. (see study below) (3)

Properties
- Study suggested antibacterial property.

Parts used
Whole plant, leaves, leaf juice.

Uses
Edibility
- No reports found on edibility for humans.
Folkloric
- No reported folkloric medicinal use in the Philippines.
- Whole plant used for treatment of asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, rheumatism, and fever. Leaves used for healing of wounds; Root extracts used for asthma. Used as stomachic, antifungal, and galactogenic. (3)
- In Pakistan, leaf juice taken internally for blood purification. (4)
- In Sendhwa, India, used for fever and stomachache. (5)
Others
- Fodder: Forage for livestock, including cattle and horses.

Studies
• Antibacterial: Study of EtOAc, ethanol, and aqueous extracts showed antibacterial activity against S. aureus, P. aeruginosa, and E. coli with zones of inhibition of 6.1-6.8 mm, 6.3-6.6 mm, and 6.2-6.7 mm, respectively,  with no activity against S. typhimurium, B. subtilis, C. albicans, A. fumigatus, and N. niger.  (see constituents above) (3)

Availability
Wild-crafted.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Alysicarpus bupleurifolius (L.) DC. / KEW: Plants of the World Online
(2)
Alysicarpus / Wikipedia
(3)
Ethnobotanical, Phytochemical and Pharmacological Aspects of Genus Alysicarpus / Maryam Bashir, Muhammad Uzair, Bashir Ahmad / International Journal of Pharmacy, 2018; 8(4): pp 1-15 / ISSN: 2249-1848
(4)
Descriptive study of plant resources in the context of the ethnomedicinal relevance of indigenous flora: A case study from Toli Peer National Park, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan / Muhammad Shoaib Amjad, Mirza Faisal Qaeem, Israr Ahmad, Sami Ullah Khan et al / PLoS One, 2017; 12(2): e0171896 /
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0171896
(5)
Investigation of Traditional Medicinal Flora of Sendhwa (M.P.), India / Sainkhediya Jeetendra, Rawat Suresh / IJARSCT: International Journal of Advanced Research in Science, Communication and Technology, 2022; 2(1)

DOI: It is not uncommon for links on studies/sources to change. Copying and pasting the information on the search window or using the DOI (if available) will often redirect to the new link page. (Citing and Using a (DOI) Digital Object Identifier)