{{Short description|Species of plant}} {{Speciesbox |image = Guggul at natural habitat.jpeg |image_caption = Guggul tree in its natural habitat |status = CR |status_system = IUCN3.1 |status_ref =<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Ved, D. |author2=Saha, D. |author3=Ravikumar, K. |author4=Haridasan, K. |date=2015 |title=''Commiphora wightii'' |volume=2015 |article-number=e.T31231A50131117 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T31231A50131117.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref> |genus = Commiphora |species = wightii |authority = (Arn.) Bhandari |synonyms = *''Commiphora mukul'' <small>(Stocks) Hook.</small> * ''Commiphora roxburghii'' <small>(Stocks) Engl.</small> |synonyms_ref =<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tropicos.info/Name/50313440?tab=synonyms |title=Tropicos.org |access-date=6 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220428/http://tropicos.info/Name/50313440?tab=synonyms |archive-date=3 March 2016 }}</ref> }}'''''Commiphora wightii''''', with common names '''Indian bdellium-tree''',<ref name=GRIN>{{GRIN | accessdate=13 September 2014}}</ref> '''gugal''',<ref name=FOP/> '''guggal''', '''guggul''',<ref name=GRIN/> '''gugul''',<ref name=GRIN/> or '''mukul myrrh tree''', is a flowering plant in the family Burseraceae, which produces a fragrant resin called gugal, guggul or gugul, that is used in incense and vedic medicine (or ayurveda). The species is native to western India, from where it was introduced westward to southern Pakistan and the middle-east. It prefers arid and semi-arid climates and is tolerant of poor soil.<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" />
==Description==
''Commiphora wightii'' grows as a shrub or small tree, reaching a maximum height of {{convert|4|m|abbr=on}}, with thin papery bark.<ref name=FOP>{{cite book|chapter-url=http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=5&taxon_id=250063169 |author=Sultanul Abedin |author2=S.I. Ali |name-list-style=amp |title=Flora of Pakistan |chapter=Commiphora wightii |volume=26}}</ref> The branches are thorny. The leaves are simple or trifoliate, the leaflets ovate, {{convert|1-5|cm|abbr=on}} long, {{convert|0.5-2.5|cm|abbr=on}} broad, and irregularly toothed. It is gynodioecious, with some plants bearing bisexual and male flowers, and others with female flowers. The individual flowers are red to pink, with four small petals. The small round fruit are red when ripe.<gallery> File:Commiphora wightii AK3.jpg|trunks File:Commiphora wightii AK13.jpg|twigs and leaves File:Commiphora wightii AK15.jpg|a flower File:Commiphora wightii AK12.jpg|drupes and a black seed with a yellow pseodo-aril </gallery>
==Cultivation and uses== ''Commiphora wightii'' is sought for its gummy resin, which is harvested from the plant's bark through the process of tapping. In India and Pakistan, guggul is cultivated commercially. The resin of ''C. wightii'', known as ''gum guggulu'', has a fragrance nearly identical to myrrh, (which is a close relative the bdellium tree), and also closely resembles fragrance of the Opopanax resin (from the Commiphora Erythrea or Commiphora Guidottii trees, also closely related to Indian Bdellium). It is the same product that was known in Hebrew, ancient Greek and Latin sources as bdellium, commonly used in incense and perfumes for centuries.
Guggul is also used in Ayurveda remedies and it is mentioned in Ayurvedic texts dating back to 600 BC.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-591/guggul|title=Guggul: Uses, Side Effects, Interactions, Dosage, and Warning |publisher=Web MD}}</ref> It is often sold as a herbal supplement. thumb|guggul resin The gum can be purchased in a loosely packed form called ''dhoop'', an incense from India, which is burned over hot coals. This produces a fragrant, dense smoke.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mangalorespice.com/products/guggul-indian-bedellium|title=Guggul (Indian Bedellium)}}</ref> It is also sold in the form of incense sticks and dhoop cones which can be burned directly.
==Chemical composition== Over a hundred metabolites of various chemical compositions were reported from the leaves, stem, latex, root and fruit samples. High concentrations of quinic acid and myo-inositol were found in fruits and leaves.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Bhatia|first1=Anil|last2=Bharti|first2=Santosh K.|last3=Tripathi|first3=Tusha|last4=Mishra|first4=Anuradha|last5=Sidhu|first5=Om P.|last6=Roy|first6=Raja|last7=Nautiyal|first7=Chandra Shekhar|title=Metabolic profiling of Commiphora wightii (guggul) reveals a potential source for pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals|journal=Phytochemistry|date=1 February 2015|volume=110|pages=29–36|doi=10.1016/j.phytochem.2014.12.016|pmid=25561401}}</ref>
==Traditional medicinal use== ''Commiphora wightii'' has been a key component in ancient Indian Ayurvedic system of medicine.
[[File:Guggulsterone E.png|thumb|right|Chemical structure of guggulsterone, a constituent of gum guggul]] The extract of gum guggul, called gugulipid, guggulipid, or guglipid, has been used in Unani and Ayurvedic medicine, for nearly 3,000 years in India.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/1963645.stm Indian herb can reduce cholesterol], BBC NEWS, 2 May 2002</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mohan |first1=Mohind C. |last2=Abhimannue |first2=Anu P. |last3=Kumar |first3=B.Prakash |title=Modulation of proinflammatory cytokines and enzymes by polyherbal formulation Guggulutiktaka ghritam |journal=Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine |date=January 2019 |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=13–19 |doi=10.1016/j.jaim.2018.05.007|pmc=8039337|pmid=30638916 |doi-access=free }}</ref> One chemical ingredient in the extract is the steroid guggulsterone,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Murray |editor=Joseph E. Pizzorno Jr.|editor2=Michael T. |title=Textbook of natural medicine |date=2012 |publisher=Churchill Livingstone |location=Edinburgh |isbn=978-1-4377-2333-5 |page=691 |edition=4th}}</ref> which acts as an antagonist of the farnesoid X receptor, once believed to result in decreased cholesterol synthesis in the liver. However, several studies have been published that indicate no overall reduction in total cholesterol occurs using various dosages of guggulsterone and levels of low-density lipoprotein ("bad cholesterol") increased in many people.<ref>{{cite journal | title = Guggulipid Ineffective for Lowering Cholesterol | journal = JAMA | year = 2003 | volume = 290 | pages = 765–772 | pmid = 12915429 | last1 = Szapary | first1 = PO | last2 = Wolfe | first2 = ML | last3 = Bloedon | first3 = LT | last4 = Cucchiara | first4 = AJ | last5 = Dermarderosian | first5 = AH | last6 = Cirigliano | first6 = MD | last7 = Rader | first7 = DJ | issue = 6 | doi = 10.1001/jama.290.6.765| doi-access = }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title = Guggulipid Use in Hyperlipidemia | journal = Am J Health-Syst Pharm | year = 2005 | volume = 62 | issue = 16 | pages = 1690–1692 | pmid = 16085931 | last1 = Sahni | first1 = S | last2 = Hepfinger | first2 = CA | last3 = Sauer | first3 = KA | doi = 10.2146/ajhp040580}}</ref>
== Endangerment and rescue == thumb|'Save Guggul Movement' in Rajasthan, India
Because of its use in traditional medicine, ''C. wightii'' has been overharvested, and has become so scarce in its two habitats in India—Gujarat and Rajasthan—that the World Conservation Union (IUCN) has enlisted it in its IUCN Red List of threatened species.<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" /> Several efforts are in place to address this situation. India's National Medicinal Plants Board launched a project in Kutch District to cultivate {{convert|500|to|800|ha|acres}} of guggal,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Kutch-to-house-Centres-Rs-8cr-Guggal-conservation-project/259012/ |title=Kutch to house Centre's Rs 8-cr Guggal conservation project |work=The Indian Express |date=8 January 2008 |first=D V |last=Maheshwari |access-date=9 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081009121656/http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Kutch-to-house-Centres-Rs-8cr-Guggal-conservation-project/259012/ |archive-date=9 October 2008 }}</ref> while a grass-roots conservation movement, led by IUCN associate Vineet Soni, has been started to educate guggal growers and harvesters in safe, sustainable harvesting methods.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.downtoearth.org.in/node/1538 |title=Guggal faces sticky end |work=Down to Earth: Science and Environment Online |first=Ankur |last=Paliwal |date=31 July 2010 |access-date=12 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120110142843/http://www.downtoearth.org.in/node/1538 |archive-date=10 January 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iucn.org/news_homepage/news_by_date/2010_news/july_2010/?5797/cec-save-guggul-movement |title=Education and Awareness in the 'Save Guggul Movement' |work=IUCN News |date=31 July 2010 |access-date=12 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111221125019/http://www.iucn.org/news_homepage/news_by_date/2010_news/july_2010/?5797%2Fcec-save-guggul-movement |archive-date=21 December 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Commiphora wightii}} *Bjerklie, David (August 25, 2003). [https://web.archive.org/web/20080408131305/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1005507,00.html "What's Gugul Good For?"]. ''Time''. * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070929154622/http://envis.frlht.org.in/botanical_search.php?txtbtname=comm&gesp=625%7CCommiphora+wightii+%28A.%29+BHANDARI Medicinal Plants of Conservation Concern: ''Commiphora wightii''] *{{cite book |last=Caldecott |first=Todd |year=2006 |url=http://www.toddcaldecott.com/index.php/herbs/learning-herbs/363-guggulu |title=Ayurveda: The Divine Science of Life |publisher=Elsevier/Mosby |isbn=978-0-7234-3410-8 |access-date=2011-01-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524054515/http://www.toddcaldecott.com/index.php/herbs/learning-herbs/363-guggulu |archive-date=2011-05-24 }} Contains a detailed monograph on ''Commiphora mukul'' (Guggulu) as well as a discussion of purported health benefits and usage in clinical practice. *{{Cite book | surname=Dalby | given=Andrew | title=Food in the ancient world from A to Z | publisher=Routledge | place=London, New York | year=2003 | isbn=978-0-415-23259-3 }}, pp. 226–227
{{Taxonbar|from=Q901803}} {{Authority control}}
wightii Category:Flora of India (region) Category:Flora of Pakistan Category:Incense material Category:Taxa named by George Arnott Walker Arnott