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Dysphania (plant)

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Dysphania
Dysphania anthelmintica, American Wormseed
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Amaranthaceae
Subfamily: Chenopodioideae
Tribe: Dysphanieae
Genus: Dysphania
R.Br.
Species

About 43 species, see text

Synonyms
List
  • Ambrina Spach
  • Amorea Moq. ex Delile
  • Botrydium Spach
  • Cyclolepis Moq.
  • Cycloloma Moq.
  • Meiomeria Standl.
  • Neobotrydium Moldenke
  • Orthospermum Opiz
  • Orthosporum (R.Br.) T.Nees
  • Petermannia Rchb.
  • Roubieva Moq.

Dysphania is a genus of plants in the family Amaranthaceae. Species of the genus are found worldwide from the tropics and subtropics to warm-temperate regions.

Description

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Inflorescence of Epazote (Dysphania ambrosioides)

The species of genus Dysphania are annual plants or short-lived perennials. They are covered with stalked or sessile glandular hairs and therefore with aromatic scent (or malodorous to some people). Some species have uniseriate multicellular trichomes, rarely becoming glabrous. The stems are erect, ascending, decumbent, or prostrate and mostly branched.

The alternate leaves are mostly petiolate, (the upper ones sometimes sessile). The leaf blade is linear, lanceolate, oblanceolate, ovate, or elliptic, often pinnately lobed, with cuneate or truncate base, entire, dentate, or serrate margins.

The inflorescences are terminal, loose, simple or compound cymes or dense axillary glomerules. Bracts are absent or reduced. Flowers are bisexual (rarely unisexual), with up to five tepals connate only basally or fused to form sac, one to five stamens, and a superior ovary with one to three filiform stigmata.

Fruits and seeds of Dysphania botrys

The fruit is often enclosed in perianth. The membranous pericarp is adherent or nonadherent to the horizontal or vertical, subglobose, or lenticular seed. The seed coat is smooth or rugose. The annular or incompletely annular embryo is surrounding the copious farinose perisperm.

Chromosome numbers

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Chromosome numbers reported are 2n=16, 18, 32, 36, and 48.[1]

Photosynthesis pathway

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All species of genus Dysphania are C3 plants with normal leaf anatomy.[2]

Distribution

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The genus Dysphania is distributed worldwide from the tropics and subtropics to warm-temperate regions. In Europe, the species are native, archaeophytes, or naturalized, in the northern regions absent or rarely adventive.[3]

Systematics

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The genus Dysphania belongs to the tribe Dysphanieae in the subfamily Chenopodioideae within the plant family Amaranthaceae. According to phylogenetic research, it is related to genus Suckleya.[2]

Dysphania was first published in 1810 by Robert Brown in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae, p. 411-412.[4] Type species is Dysphania littoralis R.Br..

The genus Dysphania comprised primarily 7-10 Australian species. Some authorities group them as their own separate family, Dysphaniaceae, or alternatively treat them as members of the families Illecebraceae and Caryophyllaceae.

Illustration of Dysphania botrys
Dysphania carinata

The genus Dysphania consists of 46 species classified in at least four sections:[5][6]

Usage

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Epazote or Mexican tea (Dysphania ambrosioides) and American wormseed (Dysphania anthelmintica) are medicinal herbs. Epazote is used as a tisane and as an insecticide.[8] Some species of Dysphania are used as dye.[8][9]

References

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  • Steven E. Clemants & Sergei L. Mosyakin (2003): Dysphania - online. In: Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.): Flora of North America North of Mexico. Volume 4: Magnoliophyta: Caryophyllidae, part 1. Oxford University Press, New York, ISBN 0-19-517389-9, p. 267. (chapters description, distribution, systematics)
  • Sergei L. Mosyakin, Steven E. Clemants (2008): Further Transfers of glandular-pubescent species from Chenopodium subg. Ambrosia to Dysphania (Chenopodiaceae). In: Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas Vol.2, Nr. 1, p. 425–431. (chapter systematics)
  • Gelin Zhu, Sergei L. Mosyakin & Steven E. Clemants (2003): Chenopodiaceae: Dysphania – online. In: Wu Zhengyi, Peter H. Raven, Deyuan Hong (Hrsg.): Flora of China. Volume 5: Ulmaceae through Basellaceae. Science Press u.a., Beijing u.a., ISBN 1-930723-27-X, p. 376. (chapter description, vernacular name)
  • species and distribution at GRIN, retrieved 30 November 2011
  1. ^ Erich Oberdorfer, Theo Müller (1983): Pflanzensoziologische Exkursionsflora. 5. ed., Ulmer, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-8001-3429-2, p.342
  2. ^ a b Gudrun Kadereit, Evgeny V. Mavrodiev, Elizabeth H. Zacharias, Alexander P. Sukhorukov (2010): Molecular phylogeny of Atripliceae (Chenopodioideae, Chenopodiaceae): Implications for systematics, biogeography, flower and fruit evolution, and the origin of C4 Photosynthesis. In: American Journal of Botany, 97(10), p. 1664–1687.
  3. ^ Pertti Uotila (2011): Chenopodiaceae (pro parte majore). – In: Euro+Med Plantbase – the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity. Dysphania. Euro+Med Plantbase, retrieved 30 November 2011.
  4. ^ First publication scanned at Biodiversity Heritage Library
  5. ^ "Dysphania — the Plant List".
  6. ^ "Dysphania R.Br. | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2024-02-13.
  7. ^ Tropicos, retrieved 30 November 2011.
  8. ^ a b Dysphania ambrosioides at Liber Herbarum, retrieved 30 November 2011.
  9. ^ Dysphania schraderiana at Liber Herbarum, retrieved 30 November 2011.
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