Strophanthus hispidus

Strophanthus hispidus, the hispid strophanthus, (family: Apocynaceae)[4] is a liana or shrub that can grow up to 5 metres (16 ft) tall. Its flowers feature a yellow corolla and yellow corona lobes spotted with red, purple or brown.[5]The seeds, like those of several other Strophanthus species, contain potent cardiac glycosides (notably strophanthin) absorbable through wounds - hence its use in African arrow poisons and later in modern medicine as a digitalis-like heart stimulant.[6] Strophanthus hispidus is native from west tropical Africa east to Tanzania and south to Angola. It is naturalized in China.[3]

Strophanthus hispidus
Strophanthus hispidus [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Apocynaceae
Genus: Strophanthus
Species:
S. hispidus
Binomial name
Strophanthus hispidus
Synonyms[3]
  • Strophanthus hirtus Poir.
  • Strophanthus bariba Boye & Bereni
  • Strophanthus tchabe Boye & Bereni
  • Strophanthus thierryanus K.Schum. & Gilg

History of discovery

The plant was observed for the first time in Senegambia by a certain monsieur Houdelot, then in Sierra Leone between 1771 and 1775 by Henry Smeathman, likewise in Nigeria (in use among the Nupe) by William Balfour Baikie, in Gabon by Marie-Théophile Griffon du Bellay and in West Tropical Africa by Gustav Mann. [7]

References
  1. Illustration from Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen by the publisher Franz Eugen Köhler, Gera 1887.
  2. Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) & IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group (2019). "Strophanthus hispidus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T144291076A149026064. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  3. "Strophanthus hispidus". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  4. "Strophanthus hispidus". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  5. "Strophanthus hispidus". eFloras. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  6. "Definition of inee". Webster's International Dictionary. 1913. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  7. Séance du 27 janvier 1877 – Communication de M. Hardy - Bulletin de la Société philomatique de Paris – Seventh series, volume I – 1876-1877, page 34.


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