68 articles
Alstonia scholaris
Alstonia scholaris (devil tree, blackboard tree, dita bark, saptaparni) is an Apocynaceae tree native from South Asia to northern Australia, rich in indole alkaloids, used in Ayurveda and Chinese medicine, with a Chinese leaf-alkaloid bronchitis drug in trials.
Apocynaceae
Apocynaceae (dogbane family), formerly including Asclepiadaceae and Periplocaceae, is a large Gentianales flowering-plant family of about 392 genera and 5,747 species, mostly tropical, with milky latex, gynostegia, pollinia, and medicinal plants like Catharanthus roseus.
Apocynum androsaemifolium
Apocynum androsaemifolium (spreading dogbane, bitter-root) is a rhizomatous, poisonous perennial herb of the dogbane family, native from Subarctic America to NE Mexico, type species of Apocynum, hybridizing with A. cannabinum.
Asclepias
Asclepias, commonly known as milkweeds, is a genus of about 130 plants in the dogbane family. These herbaceous perennials are a major host plant for monarch butterflies.
Asclepias curassavica
Asclepias curassica, or tropical weed, is a flowering plant native to Mexico. It is grown as an ornamental and serves as a host for the monarch butterfly.
Asclepias syriaca
Asclepias syriaca, common milkweed (silkweed, Virginia silkweed), a rhizomatous perennial Apocynaceae herb native to central-eastern North America, monarch larval host, cardenolide-defended, a cropland weed and invasive in Europe.
Asclepias tuberosa
Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed, pleurisy root) is a tuberous-rooted North American milkweed with clear sap and orange flowers, a monarch larval host, and a former official medicinal root.
Aspidosperma
Aspidosperma is a genus of trees in the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, native from Mexico to Argentina, with 42 of its 80 accepted species occurring in Brazil.
Atropa belladonna
Atropa belladonna (deadly nightshade), Solanaceae perennial herb native to Europe to N. Iran and NW. Africa; purple bell flowers, black glossy berries with 0.65% tropane alkaloids; source of atropine, first isolated 1831.
Brugmansia
Brugmansia (angel's trumpets, floripondios, tree daturas) is a Solanaceae genus of six to eight woody Andean South American species with pendulous fragrant trumpet flowers, tropane alkaloid toxicity, and close relation to Datura.
Calotropis
Calotropis (akund, milkweed, Aak) is an Apocynaceae genus of latex-bearing shrubs native to the Old World tropics, with three accepted species including C. procera and C. gigantea, used medicinally and as fiber plants.
Calotropis procera
Calotropis procera (apple of sodom, calotrope, rubber bush, ushar) is a latex-bearing Apocynaceae shrub native from Africa to Indo-China, used in traditional medicine yet cardiotoxic, and an invasive weed infesting 1.8-3.7 million hectares of northern Australia.
Catharanthus roseus
Catharanthus roseus (Madagascar periwinkle, formerly Vinca rosea), Apocynaceae ornamental native to Madagascar and sole natural source of anticancer alkaloids vinblastine and vincristine, made via strictosidine from tryptamine and secologanin.
Centaurium erythraea
Centaurium erythraea, common centaury, is a Gentianaceae biennial herb native from the Azores and Morocco to SW Siberia and Iran, used in traditional medicine for dyspepsia and loss of appetite, with an EU traditional-use herbal monograph and bitter secoiridoid constituents.
Cerbera manghas
Cerbera manghas, the sea mango or pink-eyed cerbera (海杧果), is a poisonous Apocynaceae coastal tree from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific; its seeds contain the cardiac glycoside cerberin, lethal at half a seed.
Ceropegia
Ceropegia (Ceropegia L., Apocynaceae) is an Old World genus of about 380 perennial herbs with tuberous roots and flask-shaped trap flowers that temporarily imprison fly pollinators via brood-site deception; Brachystelma and stapeliads are now included.
Cestrum nocturnum
Cestrum nocturnum, lady-of-the-night or night-blooming jasmine (रातकि रानी), a Solanaceae shrub native from Mexico to Venezuela with strongly night-scented flowers; all parts are poisonous to humans and livestock, and it is invasive in parts of Australia and India.
Convolvulaceae
Convolvulaceae, the morning-glory or bindweed family, is a family of about 1,700 to 2,000 twining flowering plants, sister to the nightshade family and including the sweet potato.
Convolvulus
Convolvulus (bindweeds) is a genus of about 228 accepted species of twining or erect herbs in Convolvulaceae, published by Linnaeus in 1753, native to temperate and subtropical regions, with Calystegia nested within it and field bindweed (C. arvensis) its best-known weed.
Convolvulus arvensis
Convolvulus arvensis, field bindweed or wild morning glory, is a perennial Convolvulaceae vine weed with roots to 30 feet, 1-inch root fragments that regrow, seeds viable for decades, and documented 2,4-D resistance.
Cuscuta
Cuscuta (dodder), genus of about 200-210 parasitic herbs in Convolvulaceae; obligate stem holoparasites lacking chlorophyll and roots, attaching via haustoria to host xylem and phloem; major agricultural weeds with broad, habitat-dependent host ranges.
Cynanchum
Cynanchum (swallowwort) is a genus of about 250-300 Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoideae twiners published by Linnaeus in 1753, native from the tropics to temperate Asia, with Madagascar and southern China as diversity centers and many species used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Datura metel
Datura metel, also known as devil's trumpet or thorn's apple, is a nightshade herb with large trumpet-shaped flowers, native to Mexico and cultivated worldwide as a narcotic and medicine.
Datura stramonium
Datura stramonium (jimson weed, thorn apple), Solanaceae annual herb native to Mexico, now a pantropical weed; all parts contain tropane alkaloids atropine, hyoscyamine, scopolamine; seeds contaminate grain and cause anticholinergic poisoning.
Gentiana
Gentiana (gentians) is the largest genus of Gentianaceae, 347-400+ species of blue-flowered herbs of temperate and alpine regions; source of gentian root bitters and iridoid, xanthone, and flavonoid phytochemicals.
Gentiana lutea
Gentiana lutea, yellow gentian or bitterwort, a perennial European mountain herb whose bitter root (Gentianae radix) is used for appetite and digestive complaints, in bitters, and protected under EU Habitats Directive Annex V.
Gymnema sylvestre
Gymnema sylvestre (gurmar), an Apocynaceae liana native to the Old World tropics; its gymnemic acids block the human sweet receptor T1R2+T1R3 for 30-60 minutes and it is studied, so far in low-quality trials, for blood glucose lowering.
Hyoscyamus niger
Hyoscyamus niger (black henbane, stinking nightshade, tian xian zi) is a poisonous Solanaceae herb native from the Mediterranean to Iran, containing the tropane alkaloids hyoscyamine and scopolamine, used since antiquity as a sedative and analgesic.
Ipomoea
Ipomoea (morning glories) is the largest genus of Convolvulaceae, about 800 pantropical species published by Linnaeus in 1753, including sweet potato (I. batatas), water spinach, and ornamental morning glories.
Ipomoea alba
Ipomoea alba, the moonflower (also moonvine, tropical white morning glory), is a night-blooming Convolvulaceae vine native to tropical and subtropical America, with fragrant white flowers 11–16 cm wide that open at dusk; IUCN Least Concern.