Senna ( cassia angustifolia vahl )

Senna is low shrub, belonging to the family Leguminosa. It has an erect, smooth stem and pinnate leaves, with from 4 to 8 pairs of leaflets. These are nearly sessile, slightly mucronate, oblique at the base, somewhat downy beneath.

  The flowers are bright yellow in axillary and terminal racemes, rather longer than the leaves. The legume or pod is long, membranous tapering at the base, rounded at the top and 0, 5- 1, 5 cm size. The plant requires bright sunshine. Senna contains several glycosides (sennosides A and B) resembling those found in aloe and rhubarb. The glycosides are not known in pure form but their derivatives by hydrolysis are well known, such as emodin, rhamnetin, chrysophanic acid etc.   

  The glycosides are readily soluble in water and laxative strength of the drug is found in a well prepared infusion of senna, or in the dried, powdered extract prepared from such in infusion.

   Senna is valued in medicine for its cathartic properties and especially useful in habitual constipation as laxatives. 

 

XIII. Find the English equivalents of the following words and word combinations in the text:

семейство, полукустарник, ровный стебель, ланцетовидные листья, ярко-желтые, остроконечный, плод-боб, требует яркого солнца, особенно полезно, сена содержит, применение в медицине.

 

XIV. Translate the following word-combinations into Russian:

a low shrub, to have an erect stem, a pinnate leaf, nearly sessile, bright yellow, rather longer than, tapering at the base, to require bright sunshine, either tree or in glycosidal combinations, especially useful, her is cathartic properties.

 

XV. Say True or False.

1. Кассия остролистная, или сена остролистная- полукустарник, достигающий 1 м высоты.

2. Сена имеет прямой, ровный стебель.

3. Цветки желтые, собраны в соцветия – кисти.

4. Стебель ветвистый, нижние ветви почти стелятся по земле.

5. Семейство цезальпиниeвые – это деревья и кустарники

6. Листья с жиловидными прилистниками, очередные парноперистые, с 4-5 парами листочков.

7. Сенна цветет с июля до осени: семена созревают с сентября. 

XVI. Find these sentences with the verb “to be” in the text and translate them.

senna is a low shrub, the roots are used, the flowers are arranged, the flowers are bright yellow, the glycosides are readily soluble, senna is valued in medicine.

 

XVII. Fill in the gaps with prepositions.

(in, by, with, of, for, from)

1. Senna is gathered by hand and dried... the sun.

2. Senna was introduced into European medicine in the 9^th or 10^th century... the Arabians.

3. Alexandria Senna has an erect, smooth stem and pinnate leaves... small leaflets.

4. The leaflets... Senna are valued in medicine... their cathartic properties.

5. The name Senna is... sena, the native Arabian name of the drug.

6. Wild plants are still used as a source... the drug in Egypt.

 

XVIII. Translate the following sentences from Russian into English:

1. Кассия узколистная растет в диком виде по берегам красного моря.

2. Промышленные плантации кассии  были заложены в 1942 г.

3. Сена – арабское название лекарства, арабы ввели сену в европейскую медицину.

4. В листьях и плодах сены содержатся эмодин, реин ит.д.

5. Сену применяют при болезнях печени и желчного пузыря.

6. Настой из листьев или плодов сены прописываются в качестве слабительного средства.

7. Слабительное действие наступает спустя 6-10 часов после приема препаратов сенны.

 

XIX. Answer the questions.

1. Is Senna a herb?

2. What family does Senna belong to?

3. What kind of leaves has Senna?

4. What fruit has Senna?

5. Senna requires bright sunshine, doesn’t it?

6. What kind of drugs is prepared from Senna?

XX. Retell the text.

Lesson VIII

Nature’s medicines

Phonetics: Suffixes -ous; -ine in pharmaceutical terms.

Grammar: Articles.

Text: Natures medicines.

Assignments to do:

Remember:

In pharmaceutical terms the suffix -ine is pronounced as [i:n]: strychnine

                                  the suffix - ous is pronounced as [əs]: various