Lunasia

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Lunasia
Lunasia amara.jpg
In The Palmetum, Townsville
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Sapindales
Family: Rutaceae
Genus: Lunasia
Blanco [2]
Species:
L. amara
Binomial name
Lunasia amara
Blanco [3]
Synonyms
List
Fruit Lunasia amara fruit.jpg
Fruit
Foliage in Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens Lunasia amara foliage.jpg
Foliage in Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens

Lunasia amara is the only species of flowering plant in the genus Lunasia of the family Rutaceae, and is native to Malesia, New Guinea, and Queensland. It is a dioecious shrub with simple leaves and head-like clusters of small flowers, the female flowers with larger petals than the male flowers. The fruit has up to 3 follicles joined at the base, each containing a single seed.

Contents

Description

Lunasia amara is a shrub that typically grows to a height of 2–3 m (6 ft 7 in – 9 ft 10 in), sometimes a small tree, with its young shoots, twigs and leaves covered in star-shaped hairs or scales. The leaves are simple, narrowly egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, 55–60 mm (2.2–2.4 in) long with toothed or lobed edges and many oil dots. Separate male and female flowers are arranged in clusters about 3–6 mm (0.12–0.24 in) in diameter, the male flowers sessile with petals about 1 mm (0.039 in) long and 3 stamens. Female flowers are on a short pedicel, the petals 2.0–2.3 mm (0.079–0.091 in) long and densely hairy carpels with 1 ovule per locule and 3 styles. The fruit has up to 3 follicles 6–15 mm (0.24–0.59 in) long and 5–10 mm (0.20–0.39 in) long and joined at the base, each containing a single seed. [4] [5]

Taxonomy

The genus Lunasia was first formally published in 1837 by Francisco Manuel Blanco [6] and the first species he described was Lunasia amara. [7] The descriptions were published in his book, Flora de Filipinas . [8] The epithet Lunasia is a Tagalog word for L. amara. [4]

Distribution and habitat

Lunasia amara is found in the Philippines, south to East Java Borneo, New Guinea and in the Iron and McIlwraith Ranges in Queensland. It grows as an understorey plant in undisturbed rainforest. [5]

Uses

The plant is used in Malesia to treat skin disease and digestive disorders. [4] [5] Extracts from the bark have been used in New Guinea to treat tropical ulcers, and have been found to have antibacterial properties. [9]

Related Research Articles

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Geijera is a genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rutaceae and are native to New Guinea, Australia and New Caledonia. They have simple leaves arranged alternately, panicles of bisexual flowers usually with five, sometimes four, sepals, petals and stamens and fruit containing shiny black seeds.

<i>Harpullia</i> Genus of trees

Harpullia is a genus of about 27 species of small to medium-sized rainforest trees from the family Sapindaceae. They have a wide distribution ranging from India eastwards through Malesia, Papuasia and Australasia to the Pacific Islands. They grow naturally usually in or on the margins of rainforests or associated vegetation. Plants in the genus Harpullia are usually dioecious shrubs or trees covered with simple or star-shaped hairs. The leaves are paripinnate and the flowers are usually arranged in leaf axils, usually with 5 petals, 5 to 8 stamens and a 2-locular ovary. The fruit is a 2-lobed capsule.

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<i>Melicope elleryana</i> Species of shrub

Melicope elleryana, commonly known as pink flowered doughwood, pink evodia, corkwood, or saruwa, is a species of rainforest shrub or tree in the family Rutaceae, and is native to New Guinea, parts of eastern Indonesia, the Solomon Islands and northern Australia. It has trifoliate leaves and pink to white, bisexual flowers arranged in panicles in leaf axils.

<i>Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum</i> Species of tree

Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum, known as thorny yellow-wood, satinwood, satin tree or scrub mulga, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to north-eastern Australia. It is a rainforest shrub or tree with thick, cone-shaped spines on the trunk and prickles on the branches, pinnate leaves, and male and female flowers arranged in panicles.

<i>Cryptocarya laevigata</i> Species of tree

Cryptocarya laevigata, commonly known as red-fruited laurel, glossy laurel or grey sassafras, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lauraceae and is native to Malesia, New Guinea and eastern Australia. It is a shrub or tree with lance-shaped to elliptic leaves, creamy white, pale green and perfumed flowers, and more or less spherical, red to orange-yellow drupes.

<i>Micromelum minutum</i> Species of flowering plant

Micromelum minutum, commonly known as limeberry, dilminyin. kimiar margibur, tulibas tilos (Philippines), sesi (Indonesia) and samui (Thailand), is a species of small tree or shrub in the citrus plant family Rutaceae. It occurs from India and Indochina to Australia. It has pinnate leaves with egg-shaped to lance-shaped leaflets, hairy, pale green or creamish, scented flowers arranged in large groups and yellow to orange or red, oval to spherical berries in dense clusters.

<i>Harpullia arborea</i> Species of plant in the family Sapindaceae

Harpullia arborea, commonly known as Cooktown tulipwood in Australia, is species of flowering plant in the family Sapindaceae is native to the Indian subcontinent, Sri Lanka throughout Mainland Southeast Asia and Malesia to Queensland in Australia and the Western Pacific. It is a tree with paripinnate leaves with 6 to 10 leaflets, small pink or pale green flowers arranged in leaf axils or on old woody stems, and orange-yellow to red capsules containing shiny black seeds.

<i>Tabernaemontana pandacaqui</i> Species of plant

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<i>Meiogyne cylindrocarpa</i> Species of plant in the family Annonaceae

Meiogyne cylindrocarpa, commonly known as fingersop or native apricot in Australia, is a small tree or shrub in the custard apple family Annonaceae, native to parts of tropical Asia and Australasia.

<i>Goniocheton arborescens</i> Species of plant in the family Meliaceae

Goniocheton arborescens, commonly known in Australia as Mossman mahogany, is a small tree in the mahogany family Meliaceae. It is native to rainforests of Malesia, Papuasia, Queensland and nearby islands.

<i>Zanthoxylum rhetsa</i> Species of flowering plant

Zanthoxylum rhetsa, commonly known as Indian prickly ash, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and occurs from India east to the Philippines and south to northern Australia. It is a deciduous shrub or tree with cone-shaped spines on the stems, pinnate leaves with between nine and twenty-three leaflets, panicles of white or yellowish, male and female flowers, followed by spherical red, brown or black follicles.

<i>Zanthoxylum ovalifolium</i> Species of plant in the family Rutaceae

Zanthoxylum ovalifolium, commonly known as thorny yellowwood, oval-leaf yellow wood or little yellowwood, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae. It is a shrub or tree usually with trifoliate leaves, white, male and female flowers arranged in panicles in leaf axils or on the ends of branchlets and red, purple or brown follicles.

<i>Melicope broadbentiana</i> Species of shrub

Melicope broadbentiana, commonly known as false euodia, is a species of shrub or tree in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to Queensland. It has simple leaves, trifoliate leaves or both, and small white flowers borne in short panicles in leaf axils.

<i>Melicope rubra</i> Species of plant in the family Rutaceae

Melicope rubra, commonly known as the little evodia, is a species of small tree in the citrus family Rutaceae, native to New Guinea and northeast Queensland. It was originally described as Euodia rubra in 1900. It has trifoliate leaves and pink bisexual flowers arranged on branches below the leaves.

<i>Melicope vitiflora</i> Species of tree

Melicope vitiflora, commonly known as northern evodia, fishpoison wood, leatherjacket or leatherwood, is a species of shrub or small tree in the family Rutaceae and is native to north-eastern Australia and New Guinea. It has trifoliate leaves and green to white or cream-coloured flowers borne in panicles in leaf axils.

Elaeocarpus arnhemicus, commonly known as elaeocarpus, blue plum, bony quandony or Arnhem Land quandong, is species of flowering plant in the family Elaeocarpaceae and is native to northern Australia, New Guinea, Timor and certain other islands in the Indonesian Archipelago. It is a tree with narrow elliptic to lance-shaped or egg-shaped leaves with serrated edges, racemes of white or cream-coloured flowers and metallic blue fruit.

<i>Bursaria tenuifolia</i> Species of plant

Bursaria tenuifolia is a species of flowering plant in the family Pittosporaceae and is endemic to north-eastern Queensland. It is a shrub or spindly tree with elliptic to rhombic adult leaves, spiny foliage when young, flowers with five whitish petals, and slightly flattened, papery fruit.

<i>Lasianthus chlorocarpus</i> Species of plant

Lasianthus chlorocarpus, commonly known as blue rubi, is a plant in the family Rubiaceae native to parts of Malesia, Papuasia and Australia. It is an evergreen shrub growing up to 2 m high in well developed rainforest.

<i>Atractocarpus sessilis</i> Species of plant

Atractocarpus sessilis, commonly known as brown randia, is an evergreen shrub in the family Rubiaceae. It is native to both Queensland, Australia, and Papua New Guinea (PNG).

References

  1. Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI).; IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group. (2019). "Lunasia amara". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T146096013A146096015. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T146096013A146096015.en . Retrieved 13 April 2023.
  2. "Lunasia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  3. "Lunasia amara". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 Hartley, T.G. Wilson, Annette J.G. (ed.). "Lunasia". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 "Lunasia amara". Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  6. "Lunasia". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  7. "Lunasia amara". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  8. Blanco, Francisco M. (1837). Flora de Filipinas. Manila: En la imprenta de Sto. Thomas por D. candido Lopez. pp. 783–786. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  9. Prescott, Thomas A.K.; Sadler, Ian H.; Kiapranis, Robert; Maciver, Sutherland K. (2007). "Lunacridine from Lunasia amara is a DNA intercalating topoisomerase II inhibitor". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 109 (2): 289–294. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2006.07.036. PMID   16963212 . Retrieved 5 July 2024.