Hydnocarpus pentandrus

Hydnocarpus pentandrus (previously Hydnocarpus wightianus) or chaulmoogra is a medium-sized tree in the family Achariaceae. This dioecious tree grows up to 10m height, in moist deciduous forests of Western Ghats in India.

Hydnocarpus wightiana seed oil has been widely used in traditional Indian medicine, especially in Ayurveda, and in Chinese traditional medicine for the treatment of leprosy. It entered early Western medicine in the nineteenth century before the era of sulfonamides and other antibiotics for the treatment of several skin diseases and leprosy. The oil was prescribed for leprosy as a mixture suspended in gum or as an emulsion.