Leonotis leonurus

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Leonotis leonurus
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Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Leonotis
Species:
L. leonurus
Binomial name
Leonotis leonurus
(L.) R.Br. [1]

Leonotis leonurus, also known as lion's tail and wild dagga, is a plant species in the mint family, Lamiaceae. The plant is a broadleaf evergreen large shrub native to South Africa, where it is very common. [2] It is known for its medicinal properties. The main psychoactive component of Leonotis leonurus is hypothesized to be related to the presence of leonurine or labdanes, [3] Leonotis leonurus has been confirmed to contain Leonurine according to peer reviewed journal published phytochemical analysis. [4] Like other plants in the mint family, it also contains marrubiin. The word "dagga" comes from Afrikaans, and derives in turn from the Khoikhoi "dachab". The word "dagga" has been extended to include cannabis in Afrikaans and South African English, so the use of "wild" serves to distinguish Leonotis leonuris from this. [5]

Contents

Leonotis leonurus flower.jpg

Description

The shrub grows 3 to 6 ft (1 to 2 m) tall by 1.5 to 3.5 feet (0.46 to 1.07 m) wide. [2] The medium-dark green 2–4 inches (5.1–10.2 cm) long leaves are aromatic when crushed. The plant has 1.75 inch (4.5 cm) tubular orange flowers in tiered whorls (verticilasters) typical to the mint family, [6] that encircle the square stems. They rise up to three feet (0.9 meters) above the foliage mass during the summer season, with flowering continuing into winter in warmer climates. [2] [7]

Variation in flower color

A white variety (known colloquially as 'Alba') and a yellow variety also exist.

Ecology

The native habitat of Leonotis leonurus is damp grasslands of southern Africa. [8] It attracts nectivorous birds (mainly sunbirds), as well as various insects such as butterflies. The flowers' mainly orange to orange-red colour and tubular shape are indicative of its co-evolution with African sunbirds, which have curved bills suited to feeding from tubular flowers.

Cultivation

Leonotis leonurus is cultivated as an ornamental plant for its copious orange blossom spikes, and is used as an accent or screen in gardens and parks. [2] [7] It is moderately drought tolerant, and a nectar source for birds and butterflies in landscape settings. [2] It was introduced to Europe in the 1600s. [9]

Lion's tail can be found in other subtropical and Mediterranean climate regions beyond South Africa, such as California, Hawaii, [7] and Australia where it has naturalized in some areas. In cooler climates it is used as an annual and winter conservatory plant. [2]

Pharmacology and toxicology

Marrubiin has both antioxidant and cardioprotective properties and has shown to significantly improve myocardial function. [10] [11]

Docosatetraenoylethanolamide (DEA) is a cannabinoid that acts on the cannabinoid (CB1) receptor which has been found in Leonotis leonurus var. albiflora Benth. whole flower extract. [12]

Leonotis leonurus contains several labdane diterpene–based compounds such as Hispanolone, Leonurun, and Leoleorins. C-N [4]

One experimental animal study suggests that the aqueous leaf extract of Leonotis leonurus possesses antinociceptive, antiinflammatory, and hypoglycemic properties. [13]

An animal study in rats indicated that in high doses, lion's tail has significant toxicological adverse effects on organs, red blood cells, white blood cells, and other important bodily functions. Acute toxicity tests in animals caused death for those receiving a 3200 mg/kg dose. A 1600 mg/kg extract led to changes in red blood cells, hemoglobin concentration, mean corpuscular volume, platelets, and white blood cells. [14]

Traditional uses

Infusions made from flowers, seeds, leaves, or stems are widely used to treat tuberculosis, jaundice, muscle cramps, high blood pressure, diabetes, viral hepatitis, dysentery, and diarrhoea. [15] [16] The leaves, roots, and bark are used as an emetic for snakebites, and bee and scorpion stings. [17] The fresh stem juice is used as an infusion drink for "blood impurity" in some parts of South Africa. [18]

Latvia

Leonotis leonurus has been illegal in Latvia since November 2009, and is classified as a Schedule 1 drug. Possession of quantities up to 1 gram are fined up to 280 euros. Possession and distribution of larger quantities can be punished with up to 15 years in prison. [19]

Poland

Leonotis leonurus was banned in Poland in March 2009. Possession and distribution lead to criminal charges. [20]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Leonotis</i> Genus of flowering plants

Leonotis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae. One species, Leonotis nepetifolia, is native to tropical Africa and southern India. It is naturalized throughout most of the tropics. The other species are endemic to southern + eastern Africa.

<i>Stachys</i> Genus of plants in the sage family

Stachys is a genus of plants, one of the largest in the mint family Lamiaceae. Estimates of the number of species vary from about 300, to about 450. Stachys is in the subfamily Lamioideae and its type species is Stachys sylvatica. The precise extent of the genus and its relationship to other genera in the subfamily are poorly known.

<i>Leonurus cardiaca</i> Species of plant

Leonurus cardiaca, known as motherwort, is an herbaceous perennial plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae. Other common names include throw-wort, lion's ear, and lion's tail. Lion's tail is also a common name for Leonotis leonurus, and lion's ear, a common name for Leonotis nepetifolia. Originally from Central Asia and southeastern Europe, it is now found worldwide, spread largely due to its use as a herbal remedy.

<i>Vitex</i> Genus of flowering plants in the sage family Lamiaceae

Vitex is a genus of flowering plants in the sage family Verbenaceae. It has about 250 species. Common names include chaste tree or chastetree, traditionally referring to V. agnus-castus, but often applied to other species, as well.

<i>Leonotis nepetifolia</i> Species of plant

Leonotis nepetifolia,, is a species of plant in the genus Leonotis and the family Lamiaceae (mint), It is native to tropical Africa and southern India. It can also be found growing abundantly in much of Latin America, the West Indies, and the Southeastern United States. It grows to a height of 3 metres and has whorls of striking lipped flowers, that are most commonly orange, but can vary to red, white, and purple. It has drooping dark green, very soft serrated leaves that can grow up to 10 centimetres (4 in) wide. Sunbirds and ants are attracted to the flowers. It has been found growing on road sides, rubbish heaps or waste land.

<i>Prunella vulgaris</i> Species of flowering plant

Prunella vulgaris, the common self-heal, heal-all, woundwort, heart-of-the-earth, carpenter's herb, brownwort or blue curls, is an herbaceous plant in the mint family Lamiaceae.

<i>Leonurus japonicus</i> Species of flowering plant

Leonurus japonicus, commonly called oriental motherwort or Chinese motherwort, is a herbaceous flowering plant native to Asia, including Korea and Japan, and China to Cambodia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leonurine</span> Chemical compound

Leonurine is a pseudoalkaloid that has been isolated from Leonotis leonurus, Leonotis nepetifolia, Leonurus japonicus, Leonurus cardiaca (motherwort), Leonurus sibiricus, as well as other plants of family Lamiaceae. Leonurine is easily extracted into water.

<i>Ficus deltoidea</i> Species of Asian plant known as the mistletoe fig

Ficus deltoidea, commonly known as mistletoe fig is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae, native to Southeast Asia, and widely naturalized in other parts of the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Docosatetraenoylethanolamide</span> Chemical compound

Docosatetraenoylethanolamide (DEA) (Adrenoyl-ethanolamide) (Adrenoyl-EA) is an endogenous ethanolamide that has been shown to act on the cannabinoid (CB1) receptor. DEA is similar in structure to anandamide (AEA, a recognized endogenous ligand for the CB1 receptor), containing docosatetraenoic acid in place of arachidonic acid. While DEA has been shown to bind to the CB1 receptor with similar potency and efficacy as AEA, its role as a cannabinergic neurotransmitter is not well understood.

<i>Glycine tabacina</i> Species of legume

Glycine tabacina, commonly known as variable glycine, is a scrambling plant in the bean family found in Australia. It grows in areas of high rainfall, ranging to semi-arid areas. The leaves are in threes, 7 cm long by 2 cm wide. Bluish to purple flowers form on racemes in the warmer months. The bean pod is up to 3 cm long. The habitat is among grasses, often in open country.

<i>Trema orientale</i> Species of tree

Trema orientale is a species of flowering tree in the hemp family, Cannabaceae. It is known by many common names, including charcoal-tree, Indian charcoal-tree, pigeon wood, Oriental trema, and in Hawaii, where it has become naturalized, gunpowder tree, or nalita. It has a near universal distribution in tropical and warm temperate parts of the Old World, with a range extending from South Africa, through the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent and southern China to Southeast Asia and Australia.

<i>Ichnocarpus frutescens</i> Species of flowering plant

Ichnocarpus frutescens is a species of flowering plant in the dogbane family Apocynaceae, known by the English common name black creeper. It is native to much of China, India, Southeast Asia, and northern Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bakuchiol</span> Chemical compound

Bakuchiol is a meroterpene in the class terpenophenol.

<i>Lobelia laxiflora</i> Species of flowering plant

Lobelia laxiflora is a species of flowering plant in the family Campanulaceae. It is native to the Americas, where it is distributed in South, Central, and North America as far north as Arizona in the United States. It is known by several English-language common names, including Mexican lobelia, Sierra Madre lobelia, Mexican cardinalflower, looseflowers lobelia, and drooping lobelia. In Spanish and Nahuatl it is known as aretitos, acaxóchitl, and chilpanxóchitl. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit as an ornamental.

<i>Leonotis ocymifolia</i> Species of plant

Leonotis ocymifolia, occasionally referred to as the minaret flower, is a flowering plant of the mint family, Lamiaceae. The plant is used in Ethiopian folk medicine and found in Eastern Africa spanning from Sudan to South Africa. The plant is reasonably drought-resistant and wind tolerant. Unlike the similar Leonotus leonuris, in the ocymifolia, the tubular flowers are bolder and larger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dagga</span> Afrikaans word for marijuana

Dagga is a word used in certain areas of Southern Africa to describe cannabis. The term, dating to the 1660s, derives from the word dacha in the Khoekhoe language used to describe the plant as well as various species of Leonotis. The leaves of specifically the Leonotis leonurus resemble the cannabis leaf and is known locally as wild dagga. The word has been spelled many different ways over time as various groups of people began using the term and some examples of these are: daggha, dacha, dacka, dagha, tagga, dachka, daga. According to the Oxford Dictionary, dagga was also used by the Khoekhoe to describe the sensation of intoxication.

<i>Bothriocline longipes</i> Perennial herb or shrub

Bothriocline longipes is a woody perennial herb or shrub capable of reaching three meters tall. It is part of the family Asteraceae.

<i>Gardenia erubescens</i>

Gardenia erubescens is a shrub or small tree species with edible fruits that occurs in the Guinea and Sudan savannah vegetation of West and Central Africa. It is within the Rubiaceae family.

References

  1. ↑ "Leonotis leonurus". Germplasm Resources Information Network . Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture . Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 MBC-Kemper Center - Leonotis leonurus . accessed 7.7.2011
  3. ↑ Wing Shing Ho (4 September 2015). Active Phytochemicals from Chinese Herbal Medicines: Anti-Cancer Activities and Mechanisms. CRC Press. pp. 39–. ISBN   978-1-4822-1987-6.
  4. 1 2 Ofentse Mazimba (2015). "Leonotis leonurus: A herbal medicine review" (PDF). Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry. 3 (6): 74–82. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  5. ↑ "Online Etymology Dictionary". Etymonline.com. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  6. ↑ Bailey, Liberty Hyde (1935). The Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture - Volume II. New York: The MacMillan Co. p. 1839.
  7. 1 2 3 "PLANTS Profile for Leonotis leonurus (lion's ear)". United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service . Retrieved 28 March 2010.
  8. ↑ Umberto Quattrocchi (19 April 2016). CRC World Dictionary of Medicinal and Poisonous Plants: Common Names, Scientific Names, Eponyms, Synonyms, and Etymology (5 Volume Set). CRC Press. pp. 2244–. ISBN   978-1-4822-5064-0.
  9. ↑ Ernst Schmidt; Mervyn Lotter; Warren McCleland (2002). Trees and Shrubs of Mpumalanga and Kruger National Park. Jacana Media. pp. 586–. ISBN   978-1-919777-30-6.
  10. ↑ Popoola KO Elbagory AM, Ameer F, Hussein AA. Marrubiin. Molecules 2013; 18(18):9049-9060.
  11. ↑ XinHua, 2010
  12. ↑ Ethan Hunter; Marietjie Aletta Stander; Jens Kossmann; S. Chakraborty (December 2020). "Toward the identification of a phytocannabinoid-like compound in the flowers of a South African medicinal plant (Leonotis leonurus)". BMC Research Notes. 13 (1): 522. doi: 10.1186/s13104-020-05372-z . PMC   7653773 . PMID   33172494 . Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  13. ↑ Ojewole JA (May 2005). "Antinociceptive, antiinflammatory and antidiabetic effects of Leonotis leonurus (L.) R. BR. [Lamiaceae] leaf aqueous extract in mice and rats". Methods and Findings in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology. 27 (4): 257–64. doi:10.1358/mf.2005.27.4.893583. PMID   16082426.
  14. ↑ Maphosa, V; Masika, P; Adedapo, A (2008). "Safety evaluation of the aqueous extract of Leonotis leonurus shoots in rats". Human & Experimental Toxicology. 27 (11): 837–43. doi:10.1177/0960327108099533. PMID   19244291. S2CID   27776434.
  15. ↑ Van WJB, van OB, Gericke N. Medicinal plants of South Africa. Briza Publications. Cape Town, 2000.
  16. ↑ Noumi E, Houngue F, Lontsi D. Traditional medicines in primary health care: plants used for the treatment of hypertension in Bafia, Cameroon. Fitoterapia 1999; 70(2):134-139.
  17. ↑ Hutchings AH, Scott G, Lewis AB. Cunningham, Zulu medicinal plants, an Inventory. Natal University Press, Pietermaritzburg, 1996, 266-267.
  18. ↑ Watt JM, Breyer BMG. Medicinal and poisonous plants of Southern Africa. E & S Livingstone. Edinburg, 1962.
  19. ↑ "Par Krimināllikuma spēkā stāšanās un piemērošanas kārtību" (in Latvian). likumi.lv . Retrieved 2013-06-23.
  20. ↑ (in Polish) Dz.U. 2009 nr 63 poz. 520, Internetowy System Aktów Prawnych.
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