Gen info
- Boehmeria virgata is a species of flowering plant in the family Urticaceae, native to a wide area, from tropical Africa, the Western Indian Ocean, tropical and subtropical Asia, to Australia and the Pacific.
- The species was first described by Georg Forster in 1786 as Urtica virgata. (3)
- B. virgata is an exceedingly complex, variable and difficult species to circumscribe. . . (7)
- POWO (Plants of the World Online) lists 15 accepted infraspecifics.

Botany
• Boehmeria virgata is a scandent or erect shrub, or a slender tree with a trunk up to 30cm diameter; it can grow from 1 - 8 metres tall. The plant often has drooping branches. (7)

• Large-Spike Ramie (Boehmeria vrigata var. macrostachya) is a perennial herb or subshrub, growing up to 2 m tall. Leaves are papery, widely varying in shape, proportions and number of teeth, ovate to rhombic-ovate or elliptic, medium or large, 10–20 by 7–16 cm, usually relatively broad, length 1.5–2 × width; marginal teeth 25–50 either side. Inflorescence-bearing axes are 10–50 cm long, pendulous, unbranched or with a few long branches close to base or sometimes male with lateral branches throughout length and erect with pendent tip. (Flowers of India)

Distribution
- Native to the Philippines. (1) (2)
- In Bohol;Aurora, Laguna (Luzon); Agusan del Sur, Bukidnon, Cotobato, Davao, Davao del Sur (Mindanao); Mindoro.
- In thickets along streams, up to 1200 m. (2)
- Also native to Angola, Assam, Bangladesh, Borneo, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Caroline Is., Central African Republic, China South-Central, China Southeast, Comoros, Congo, DR Congo, East Himalaya, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Gulf of Guinea Is., India, Ivory Coast, Jawa, Kenya, Laos, Lesser Sunda Is., Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaya, Maluku, Marianas, Marquesas, Mauritius, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, New Guinea, New South Wales, Nigeria, Philippines, Queensland, Rwanda, Réunion, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Society Is., Solomon Is., Sri Lanka, Sudan-South Sudan, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Tanzania, Thailand, Tibet, Tonga, Tubuai Is., Uganda, Vanuatu, Vietnam, West Himalaya, Zambia, Zimbabwe. (1)

Constituents
- Phytochemical screening yielded flavonoids, alkaloids, and coumarin; steroid/triterpenoid in stems, leaves, and flower; saponin in roots and flower; and quinone and tannin only in roots. (see study below) (6)
- Study of leaves of B. virgata isolated two novel seco-phenanthroquinolizidine alkaloids, along with 11 known compounds. (see study below) (9)

Properties
- Studies have suggested anticancer, antiproliferative, antioxidant, antihyperuricemic, xanthine oxidase inhibitory properties.

Parts used
Leaves, flowers, stems, roots.

Uses
Edibility
- None known.
Folkloric
- No reported folkloric medicinal use in the Philippines,
- In Indonesia, herb used for treatment of inflammation and cancer.
Others
- Fiber: An excellent quality fiber is obtained from the bark. Fiber is shiny, white, and strong. Used for making sacks, bags, rough clothes, nets, ropes, etc. (7)
- Wood: Moderately hard, but too small for much use. Makes for good fuel.

Studies
• Anticancer / Leaves: Study of evaluated the selective cytotoxicity of B. virgata against various cancer cell lines. An ethanolic extract of B. virgata leaves showed cytotoxicity against HeLa, Widr, T47D, and Vero cell lines with IC50s of 18.991, 18.925, 12.732, and 16.022 µg/ml with selective index of 0.8444m 0.847, 1.258, and 1.000, respectively. (4)
• Antiproliferative Against Human Cancer Cervix HeLa cells / Bioadhesive Vaginal Gel: MTT study evaluated the anti-proliferation activity of BVI03, an isolated compound from B. virgata, formulated in Nanoencapsulated Bioadhesive Vaginal Gel (NBVG) against HeLa cells compared with unformulated NBVG. A previous study showed the isolated active compound BVI03 from B. virgata leaves showed antiproliferative activity against HeLa cell line. Results showed the NBVG has less anti-proliferation eff3ect against cervical cancer HeLa cells. (5)
• Antioxidant / Xanthine Oxidase inhibitory: Study of evaluated the antioxidant capacity and xanthine oxidase inhibitory activities of parang romang, and their relationship with TPC and TFC. Leaves showed highest xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity (9.74 µg/ml), followed by flower, stem, and root. A correlation was shown between phenolic and flavonoid content and actions of antioxidants and XO inhibitors. (see constituents above) (6)
• Antihyperuricemia / Xanthine Oxidase Inhibition: Study evaluated Boehmeria virgata for potential to inhibit xanthine oxidase (XO), a key enzyme in uric acid production. Extracts from Bv demonstrated potent XO inhibition in vitro. Bioassay-guided fractionation identified flavonoids as primary inhibitory compounds. Molecular docking simulations revealed the flavonoids, particularly 3-hydroxyflavon and luteolin, bind to XO with high affinity, superior to allopurinol, a commonly used XO inhibitor. Results suggest a promising natural source of novel treatments for hyperuricemia. (8)
• Seco-Phenanthroquinolizidine Alkaloids / Cytotoxicity against Cancer Cell Lines / Leaves: Study of leaves of B. virgata isolated two novel seco-phenanthroquinolizidine alkaloids, along with 11 known compounds. Compounds 1-3 were evaluated for cytotoxic activity against 5 tumor cell lines. Compound 3 showed potent cytotoxic activity against A549, MDA-MB-231, MCF-7, KB and MDR (KB-VIN) cell lines. (9)
• Toxicity Study / Leaves: Study evaluated the acute and sub-acute toxicity of standardized Bv leaf extract (BVLE) in Wistar rats. In acute toxicity study, doses of 2000 and 5000 mg/kg were used; for sub-acute toxicity study, 250, 500, and 1000 mg/kg BVLE for 28 days. Results showed no significant differences in body or organ weight, food or water intake after acute BVLE treatment. Histopathological study suggested general hydropic degeneration of the liver with 5000 mg/kg, with no such changes in the kidney and glomerulus of BVLE treated rats. No significant toxicity was noted in hematological, biochemical, and histopathological data in sub-acute BVLE group. Results suggest BVLE is not toxic up to doses of 1000 mg/kg. (10)

Availability
- Wild-crafted.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Boehmeria virgata / KEW: Plants of the World Online
(2)
Urticaceae: Boehmeria virgata / Co's Digital Flora of the Philippines
(3)
Boehmeria viragata / Wikipedia
(4)
Selective Cytotoxicity evaluation in Anticancer drug screening of Boehmeria virgata (Forst) Guill leaves to several human cell lines: HeLa, WiDr, T47D and Vero / Wardihan, Muhammad Rusdi, Gemini Alam, Marianti Manggau et al / DHaka University Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2014; 12(2) /
DOI: 10.3329/dujps/v12i2.17615
(5)
ANTI-PROLIFERATION ACTIVITY OF NANOENCAPSULATED BIOADHESIVE VAGINAL GEL OF ISOLATED ACTIVE COMPOUND (BVI03) FROM Boehmeria virgata (FORST) GUILL LEAVES AGAINST HUMAN CANCER CERVIX HELA CELLS / Lukman Muslimin, Muhammad Rusdi, Mochammad Hatta, Marianti Manggau et al / International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2015; 6(5): pp 836-839
(6)
Parang Romang (Boehmeria virgata (Frost.) Guill.): Correlation of Phytochemistry with Antioxidant and Xanthine Oxidase Inhibitory Activities / Muhammad Ikhlas Arsul,  Irda Fidrianny, Muhamad Insanu / HAYATI Journal of Biosciences, 2024; 31(3): pp 457-464 / DOI: 10.4308/hjb.31.3.457-464 /
eISSN: 2086-4094
(7)
Boehmeria virgata / Ken Fern: Tropical Plants Database / Useful Tropical Plants
(8)
Antihyperuricemia and chemical composition of Boehmeria virgata, in vitro and in silico approach with ADME prediction  / Muhammad Ikhlas Arsul, Arif Setiawansyah, Muhamad Insanu, Irda Fidrianny / Natural Products Research,  2025; pp 1-6 / DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2025.2471848
(9)
Novel seco-phenanthroquinolizidine alkaloids from Indonesian Boehmeria virgata / Abdul Rahim, Yohei Saito, Katsinori Miyake, Masuo Goto,  Kyoko Nakagawa-Goto / Phytochemistry Letters, 2021; Vol 45: pp 132-136 / DOI: 10.1016/j.phytol.2021.08.003
(10)
STUDY OF ACUTE AND SUB-ACUTE TOXICITY OF Boehmeria virgata (FORST) GUILL LEAF EXTRACT IN WISTAR RATS / Marianti Manggau, Endang Kusuma Intan, Maghfirah, Wira Bahari Nurdin, Husni Cangara, Kim Don-Seok / JEBAS: Journal of Experimental Biolog and Agricultural Sciences,  2021; 9(S2) / eISSN: 2320-8694 / DOI: 10.18006/2021.9(Spl-2-ICOPMES_2020).S248.S258
(11)
Effect of an Isolated Active Compound (BVI03) of Boehmeria virgata (Forst) Guill leaves on Anti-Proliferation in Human Cancer Cervix HeLa Cells through Activation of Caspase 3 and p53 Protein / Marianti Manggau, Lukman, Muhammad Rusdi, Mochammad Hatta, Wardhan A Sinrang, Subehan / Tropical Medicine & Surgery, 2013; 1(3) / ISSN: 2329-9088

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