Description

Helicteres isora, the East Indian screw tree, is a deciduous large shrub or small tree of the family Malvaceae, native to the tropical dry and moist deciduous forests of peninsular India, Sri Lanka, and Southeast Asia. The plant is immediately recognisable by its uniquely twisted, screw-like seed pods — a morphological characteristic from which both its common name and its traditional use in bone-setting preparations derive in folk traditions. The pods and bark are documented in the Charaka Samhita and Bhavaprakasha Nighantu under the name Avartani or Mrigashringi for formulations traditionally addressing intestinal and gastric conditions. The roots are also referenced in tribal medicine of central and western India. Commercially harvested from forest populations across Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh.