Jatropha gossypiifolia- Jarak Merah dalam Bahasa Indonesia klik di sini
Jatropha gossypiifolia- Jarak Merah

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Taxonomy
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiosperms
Class: Dicotyledoneae
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Genus: Jatropha
Species: Jatropha gossypiifolia
(Linnaeus, 1753)

     
Fruit                                                                               Branch
Source: Private document, 2022
Morphology
Jatropha gossypiifolia or known as Jarak Merah is a wild plans that commonly grows in open areas such as bushes and fields. This plant has common characteristics, such as; the stem is 1 up to 2 m tall, has single leaves with long stalks. The young leaves are purplish while the old leaves are purple-brown. This plant is generally flowering with a funnel shape, purplish in color, and small. The fruit is in the shape of a round egg smaller than the Jarak Pagar. When it is young its color is green; on the otherhand it turns into black when it is ripe (Ulung et al: 2014). The shoot is red, so this plant is called Jarak Merah (Prihandana & Hendroko, 2006).

Distribution & Habitat
Jarak Merah is a plant originally from South America which spreads throughout the world including Indonesia. Generally, this plant grows in the tropic area and should get enough sunlight (Amalia, 2015).

Potential
Jarak Merah is a wild plant that contains organic compound that is good for health. The leaves contain active compounds, such as alkaloid, carotenoid, steroid, flavonoid, glycoside, phenol saponin, and tannin that act as antioxidant, antiinflamatory, anticancer, and antibacterial (Neldawati, 2013; Amalia, 2015).

Usability
This plant used to treat Schistosomiasis (Bilharzia) that causes enlarged lymph nodes by Asian and East Asian (China and Japan). In addition, Jarak Merah leaves can be used to treat stomach pain, swollen breasts, boils, eczema, treat wounds, and as a decrease in fever (Torokano: 2018). The sap can be used as a wound medicine. The Jarak Merah seeds are used as basic ingredients of medicines such as constipations medicines, swelling, and lepra (Prihandana & Hendroko, 2014).

References
Amalia K, Nur Rezeki. (2015). Uji Penyembuhan Gel Ekstrak Daun Jarak Merah (Jatropha Gossypifolia Liin.) terhadap Luka Sayat pada Kelinci (Oryctolagus Cuniculus).UIN Alauddin Makassar.


Ulung G., & Pusat Studi Biofarmaka LLPM IPB. (2014). Sehat Alami dengan Herbal 250 Tanaman herbal Berkhasiat Obat. Jakarta: Gramedia Pustaka Utama.

Prihandana Rama dan Hendroko Roy, 2006. Petunjuk Budidaya Jarak Pagar. Jakarta: AgroMedia.

Neldawati, Ratnawulan dan Gusnedi. 2013. Analisis Nilai Absorbansi dalam Penentuan Kadar Flavonoid untuk Berbagai Jenis Daun Tanaman Obat. Jurnal Pillar of Physics.

Torokano S., Khumaidi A., Nugrahani A.W. (2018). Aktivitas Antibakteri Ekstrak Etanol Daun Jarak Merah (Jatropha gossypifolia) terhadap Bakteri Escherichia coli dan Staphylococcus aureus. Natural Science: Journal of Science and Technology 7, no. 11: h .117-126.