Frankincense is an aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes, obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia in the family Burseraceae, particularly Boswellia sacra, B. carterii, B. frereana, B. serrata, and B. papyrifera. The word is from Old French franc encens.
Morus alba, known as white mulberry, is a fast-growing, small to medium-sized mulberry tree which grows to 10–20 m tall. It is generally a short-lived tree with a lifespan comparable to that of humans, although there are some specimens known to be over 250 years old. The species is native to northern China, and is widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere.
The Burseraceae are a moderate-sized family of 17-19 genera and about 540 species of flowering plants. The actual numbers differ according to the time period in which a given source is written describing this family. The Burseraceae are also known as the torchwood family, the frankincense and myrrh family, or simply the incense tree family. The family includes both trees and shrubs, and is native to tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
Boswellia sacra is a tree in the Burseraceae family. It is the primary tree in the genus Boswellia from which frankincense, a resinous dried sap, is harvested. It is native to the Arabian Peninsula, and northeastern Africa (Somalia).
Boswellia serrata is a plant that produces Indian frankincense. It is also known as Indian oli-banum, Salai guggul, and Sallaki in Sanskrit. The plant is native to much of India and the Punjab region that extends into Pakistan.
Boswellia papyrifera, also known as Sudanese frankincense, is a species of flowering plant and frankincense that is native to Ethiopia, Eritrea and Sudan. The tree is cultivated in Ethiopia because of its valuable resin. The incense smoke is characterized by a fresh lemon-pine scent, and is therefore highly esteemed. In Ethiopia where it is called itan zaf, it comes in semi-translucent yellow tears. The gum resin of Boswellia papyrifera coming from Ethiopia, Sudan and E. Africa is believed to be the main source of frankincense of antiquity.
Polygodial is an active constituent of Dorrigo Pepper, Mountain Pepper, Horopito, Canelo, Paracress and Water-pepper. Furthermore, Polygodial is synthetized by Dendrodoris limbata.
Pausinystalia johimbe, (Rubiaceae), common name yohimbe, is a plant species native to western and central Africa. Extracts from yohimbe have been used in traditional medicine in West Africa as an aphrodisiac and have been marketed in developed countries as dietary supplements.
Anogeissus leiocarpa is a tall deciduous tree native to savannas of tropical Africa. It is the sole West African species of the genus Anogeissus, a genus otherwise distributed from tropical central and east Africa through tropical Southeast Asia. A. leiocarpa germinates in the new soils produced by seasonal wetlands and grows at the edges of the rainforest, although not in the rainforest, in the savanna, and along riverbanks forming gallery forests. The tree flowers in the rainy season, from June to October. The seeds, winged samaras, are dispersed by ants.
Astilbin is a flavanonol, a type of flavonoid. Astilbin is the (2R-trans)-isomer; neoisoastilbin is the (2S-cis)-isomer and isoastilbin is the (2R-cis)-isomer.
Hyperoside is a chemical compound. It is the 3-O-galactoside of quercetin.
In general use, herbs are plants with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, medicinal purposes, or for fragrances; excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from spices. Herbs generally refers to the leafy green or flowering parts of a plant, while spices are usually dried and produced from other parts of the plant, including seeds, bark, roots and fruits.
Ocimum gratissimum, also known as clove basil, African basil, and in Hawaii as wild basil, is a species of Ocimum. It is native to Africa, Madagascar, southern Asia, and the Bismarck Archipelago, and naturalized in Polynesia, Hawaii, Mexico, Panama, West Indies, Brazil, and Bolivia.
Zanthoxylum zanthoxyloides, also called Senegal prickly-ash or artar root, is a plant species in the genus Zanthoxylum.
Combretum molle, the velvet bushwillow, is a plant species in the genus Combretum found in West-, East- and South Africa.
Breonadia is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the Rubiaceae family. It was described by Colin Ernest Ridsdale in 1975. The genus contains only one species, viz. Breonadia salicina, which is found in tropical and southern Africa from Mali and Benin east to Ethiopia, south to South Africa, as well as Yemen, Saudi Arabia and Madagascar.
Anisopus mannii is a perennial herbaceous shrub in the Asclepiadoideae subfamily of the Apocynaceae family — commonly referred to as the dogbane family. The flowering species grows in the tropical environments of central Africa, and is renown in traditional Nigerian medicine for treating sexual impotence, the common cold, diarrhea, and most notably, its potent hypoglycemic effect. Recent research has been conducted, looking in to the species' potential anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant bioactivities and mechanisms of action.
