Physic Nut

At a glance

Origin / distribution: Samoa, India(Santal), Trinidad, India(Travancore), Dominican Republic, Ghana, Venezuela, Panama(Choco)

Cultural traditions: not documented

Recorded uses: Abortifacient, Alopecia, Anasarca, Anodyne

Science studied: BETA-AMYRIN, CAMPESTEROL, CURCUSONES, FAT

Research volume: 0 indexed records · volume only · methodology ↗

Legal status: Varies by jurisdiction; not assessed in this record.

Names and identity

Family: Euphorbiaceae

Scientific name: Jatropha curcas

Common names: Physic Nut, Purging Nut, Babatihé, Barbados Nut, Barbados nut, Barbados-nut, Bed Bug Plant, Big-Purge Nut, Big-Purge Nut Seed, Black Vomit Nut, Black Vomit Nut Seed, Bonete, Brazilian Stinging Nut, Bàgànin, Cuban Physic Nut, Cumataci, Grave Physic Nut, Hell Oil

POWO: 131462-2 · WCVP June 2026 / POWO backbone

History

The source record documents this plant in Elsewhere, Samoa, India(Santal), Trinidad, India(Travancore), Dominican Republic, Ghana, Venezuela and 30 additional places.

It records these historical or traditional applications:

• Abortifacient
• Alopecia
• Anasarca
• Anodyne
• Antidote
• Antidote(Comocladia)
• Antiseptic
• Bedbug

This summary is limited to the cited source record.

Origins and distribution

• Elsewhere
• Samoa
• India(Santal)
• Trinidad
• India(Travancore)
• Dominican Republic
• Ghana
• Venezuela
• Panama(Choco)
• Central America
• Malaya
• Africa

Documented cultural uses

• Abortifacient
• Alopecia
• Anasarca
• Anodyne
• Antidote
• Antidote(Comocladia)
• Antiseptic
• Bedbug
• Burn
• Carbuncle
• Cataplasm
• Cicatrizant

Cultural record detail

These entries are transcribed from the cited ethnobotanical source; they do not represent current advice or a claim of efficacy.

• Abortifacient · Elsewhere · "
• Alopecia · Samoa · "
• Anasarca · India(Santal) · "
• Anodyne · Trinidad · "
• Antidote · India(Travancore) · "
• Antidote(Comocladia) · Dominican Republic · "
• Antiseptic · Elsewhere · "
• Bedbug · Ghana · "
• Burn · Venezuela · "
• Carbuncle · India(Santal) · "
• Cataplasm · Panama(Choco) · "
• Cicatrizant · Central America · "
• Circumscission · Malaya · "
• Convulsion · Africa · "
• Convulsion · India(Santal) · "
• Cough · Philippines · "
• Dentifrice · Africa · "
• Dentition · Ivory Coast · "
• Depurative · Trinidad · "
• Dermatitis · Elsewhere · "
• Diarrhea · Trinidad · "
• Diuretic · Africa · "
• Dropsy · India(Santal) · "
• Dysentery · Haiti · "

138 additional documented entries remain in the source record.

Contemporary uses

Contemporary practice is not documented separately in this record.

Scientific research

Indexed records indicate research activity; they do not establish efficacy or safety.

Indexed research records

• Molecular and metabolic drivers of oil quality and bioenergy potential in Jatropha curcas. · 2026 source ↗
• Evaluation of Cr(III) Adsorption Using Activated <i>Jatropha curcas</i> Shell: Kinetics and Energy Recovery. · 2026 source ↗
• Molecular Cloning, In Silico Characterization, and Promoter Analysis of a Putative <i>ETHE1</i> Gene from <i>Jatropha curcas</i>. · 2026 source ↗

Scientific compounds

Chemical presence is not evidence of clinical efficacy.

• BETA-AMYRIN
• CAMPESTEROL
• CURCUSONES
• FAT
• FIBER
• GLUCOSE
• ISOVITEXIN
• LINOLENIC-ACID
• MYRISTIC-ACID
• OLEIC-ACID
• PROTEIN
• RAFFINOSE
• BETA-SITOSTEROL
• BETA-SITOSTEROL-BETA-D-GLUCOSIDE
• STACHYOSE
• STARCH

Legality

No exact international trade listing was returned by the CITES checklist for this accepted name. Country-specific law is not assessed here.

Consult the CITES species checklist for current international and national requirements.

Reference images

Sources

Plants of the World Online (POWO) · Kew data terms; cite POWO/WCVP

World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP) · CC BY 3.0

CC0 · Dr. Duke raw CSV archive

Contributions and revisions

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