Guduchi
Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Hook.f. & ThomsonMenispermaceae // stem
Overview
Plant parts
stem
Known constituents
diterpenoids, alkaloids, polysaccharides
Research corpus coverage
Chemistry notes
- CHEMISTRY: Relevant reported constituents include diterpenoids; alkaloids; polysaccharides; constituent presence alone does not establish clinical efficacy.
Uses & Evidence
Traditional / historical use
Documented traditional use — not a claim of established efficacy.
TRADITIONAL: Guduchi has been used for fever; immune and metabolic support; this records historical/traditional use and does not establish efficacy.
MODERATE · regulatory monograph · EMA European Union herbal monographs and list entries
Modern evidence
EVIDENCE: For the major use set (fever; immune and metabolic support), the evidence assessment is insufficient: Insufficient efficacy evidence; growing case-series evidence links products to autoimmune-like liver injury.
LOW · observational/case series · EMA European Union herbal monographs and list entries
Preparation
Forms used traditionally
A listed form does not imply it suits every plant part, or that one preparation is interchangeable with another — see the plant’s own notes below.
PREPARATION: The medicinal material is stem; traditional and modern forms include traditional whole-material preparation, extract/capsule. No dose or potency is specified.
MODERATE · regulatory monograph · EMA European Union herbal monographs and list entries
Preparation-specific evidence should not be generalized across extracts, teas, oils, or whole herb.
Safety
Additional safety notes (general, unstructured)
Free-text safety notes carried from their source — not broken out by species, route, or hazard type, and not equivalent to the structured records above. Each note names the kind of source it came from.
SAFETY: Major issues include Potentially severe liver injury; possible autoimmune activation. Contraindications/cautions include Liver or autoimmune disease.
HIGH · observational/case series and expert review · LiverTox: Herbal and Dietary Supplements
Can be confused with T. crispa; product identity matters.
SAFETY: Clinically relevant interaction concerns include May antagonize immunosuppressants and add to diabetes drugs.
MODERATE · observational/case series and expert review · LiverTox: Herbal and Dietary Supplements
Some interactions are theoretical or based on case reports/pharmacokinetics rather than outcome trials.
SAFETY: Pregnancy/lactation reference: Avoid in pregnancy/lactation.
MODERATE · regulatory monograph or evidence synthesis · EMA European Union herbal monographs and list entries
Absence of evidence is not evidence of safety.
Preparation × species risk matrix
Unknown means insufficient evidence was located — not that a form is safe.
Cats
- tinctureCaution
- concentrated extractUnknown
- essential oilUnknown
- glyceriteUnknown
- infused oilUnknown
- salveUnknown
- smoke/combustionUnknown
- tea/infusionUnknown
- whole herbUnknown
Dogs
- tinctureCaution
- concentrated extractUnknown
- essential oilUnknown
- glyceriteUnknown
- infused oilUnknown
- salveUnknown
- smoke/combustionUnknown
- tea/infusionUnknown
- whole herbUnknown
Identity
- Synonym
GBIF resolves Menispermum cordifolium Willd. as a synonym of Tinospora cordifolia. The older name still appears in herbal and taxonomic literature.
HIGH · GBIF Species Match API
Botanical synonym
Menispermum cordifolium Willd.
Taxonomic identity note
- Guduchi is treated here as Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Hook.f. & Thomson in the family Menispermaceae; recorded older names include Menispermum cordifolium Willd..
Sources
Research records are source-linked but may not yet be editorially reviewed.
EMA monograph
NIH LiverTox monograph
- Plants of the World Online1 claim
botanical taxonomy database
WHO monograph
- GBIF Species Match API1 claim
authoritative taxonomic database