| Threeleaf goldthread | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coptis trifolia, Pancake Bay, Ontario | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Coptis |
| Species: | C. trifolia |
| Binomial name | |
| Coptis trifolia | |
| Synonyms [3] | |
| |
Coptis trifolia, commonly known as the threeleaf goldthread or savoyane, is a perennial plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to North America.
C. trifolia is a small perennial forb that spreads by slender, creeping rhizomes that are bright golden-yellow in color, hence the common name goldenthread. [4]
The evergreen leaves, about 1 inch long and wide, are divided into three leaflets and rise from the stems on 3 inch long petioles. Each leaflet is roughly fan-shaped with serrate margins. The leaf surface is shiny and dark green in color. [5]
Solitary flowers, about 0.5 inches wide, are born from the ends of naked stalks which rise 4-6 inches above the stem. [5] Each flower has 5-7 white, petal-like sepals which alternate with short, yellow, club-shaped petals. The flowers are bisexual with several bright green styles, curled at the tips, surrounded by numerous white-tipped stamens. [6]
The fruits are an array of 4-7 erect, stalked pods. Each pod is 1/3 inches long, elliptic in shape and tapered to a point. [6] The fruits dehisce when mature, releasing several small seeds, 1-1.5 mm wide. [7]
The plant blooms between April and July, depending on the latitude, with fruits developing soon after. [8]
It is native to North America and Asia across the subarctic region. [9] [10] Its range is divided into three broad groups. The first is from southern Greenland and Labrador that extends to Manitoba to the west and to the mountains of North Carolina to the south. The second is in Alaska and adjacent areas of British Columbia, extending towards eastern Siberia and into Japan and Manchuria. Records from Norway and central Russia are most likely based on confusion. [11] The disrupted and wide range of the species suggests that the three populations have been isolated from each other for significant periods of time. [11]
C. trifolia seems to prefer coniferous or mixed canopies dominated by Eastern hemlock, but it has also been found in deciduous canopies in moist, acidic soils. [4]
The rhizome of the plant was chewed by Native Americans, including Algonquian-speaking peoples and the Iroquois, to relieve canker sores, and is the source of another common name, canker-root. [8] [12] It has also been used to make a tea that is used as an eyewash. [13] Like the medicinal plant goldenseal, goldthread is used to treat symptoms of influenza and the common cold. Coptis trifolia has been shown to be biologically active against E.coli and Bacillus subtilis . The active compounds of Coptis trifolia are the alkaloids berberine and coptine. [4]
In 1963, a species of fungus in the genus Lambertella, Lambertella copticola , was discovered growing on the dead leaves and petioles of C. trifolia. [14]
Species of the fungal genus Gloeosporium can infect C. trifolia, as well as other species of Coptis, and reduce normal plant function. The slug Arion fasciatus also feeds on goldthread.
C. trifolia is not tolerant of disturbance and often does not recover from logging, either due to loss of the canopy or mechanical damage to the root system. [15] The species is also not well adapted to fire due to its shallow roots, occurring in areas that tend to have long fire rotations of up 500 years. [16] Because of its sensitivity to disturbance, C. trifolia is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of human development and recreation. [4]
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