Musa (genus)

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Musa
Starr 050826-4195 Musa sp..jpg
Banana plants, Kanaha Beach, Maui
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Zingiberales
Family: Musaceae
Genus: Musa
L. [1]
Type species
Musa acuminata
Species

Around 80, see text.

Musa is one of three genera in the family Musaceae. The genus includes 83 species of flowering plants producing edible bananas and plantains. Though they grow as high as trees, banana and plantain plants are not woody and their apparent "stem" is made up of the bases of the huge leaf stalks. Thus, they are technically gigantic herbaceous plants. Musa species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the giant leopard moth and other Hypercompe species, including H. albescens (only recorded on Musa), H. eridanus , and H. icasia .

Description

Banana plants are among the largest extant herbaceous plants, some reaching up to 9 m (30 ft) in height or 18 m (59 ft) in the case of Musa ingens . The large herb is composed of a modified underground stem (rhizome), a false trunk or pseudostem formed by the basal parts of tightly rolled leaves, a network of roots, and a large flower spike. A single leaf is divided into a leaf sheath, a contracted part called a petiole, and a terminal leaf blade. The false trunk is an aggregation of leaf sheaths; [2] only when the plant is ready to flower does a true stem grow up through the sheath and droop back down. [3] At the end of this stem, a peduncle forms (with M. ingens having the second-longest peduncle known, exceeded only by Agave salmiana ), bearing many female flowers protected by large purple-red bracts. The extension of the stem (the rachis) continues growth downward, where terminal male flowers grow. The leaves originate from a pseudostem and unroll to show a leaf blade with two lamina halves. [2] The lamina can be as much as 7 m (23 ft) long in the case of M. acuminata subsp. truncata (syn. M. truncata) of the Malay Peninsula). [4] Musa species reproduce by both sexual (seed) and asexual (suckers) processes, using asexual means when producing sterile (unseeded) fruits. Further qualities to distinguish Musa include spirally arranged leaves, fruits as berries, the presence of latex-producing cells, flowers with five connate tepals and one member of the inner whorl distinct, and a petiole with one row of air channels. [5]

Bananas have a green skin when unripe. While plantains remain green all the way, many varieties change their skin to a yellow, orange or reddish colour as they ripen.[ citation needed ]

Distribution

The native distribution of the genus Musa includes most of the Indomalayan realm and parts of north-eastern Australasia. It has been introduced to many other parts of the world with tropical or subtropical climates. [6]

Systematics and taxonomy

History

Classical Latin briefly had a name for bananas, namely ariena, used by Pliny the Elder (Natural History, XII.12). According to Alexander von Humboldt, [7] that term may have been a borrowing from Sanskrit varana[ clarification needed ] via Greek rendition ouarana[ clarification needed ], following the Indian campaign of Alexander the Great.

Due to the rarity of bananas in the Late Antiquity and early Middle Ages, the term ariena faded out of use. During the late Middle Ages, international trade brought bananas to Europe, which created the need for a name. In the 1, Medieval Latin innovated a term musa: this was most likely [Note 1] the latinization of the Arabic name for the fruit, mauz (موز). Thus, the 11th-century Arabic encyclopedia The Canon of Medicine , which was translated to Latin in medieval times and well known in Europe, shows a correspondence between Arabic mauz and Latin musa. [Note 2] Muz is also the Turkish, Persian, and Somali name for the fruit.

According to linguist Mark Donohue and archaeologist Tim Denham, the ultimate origin of the Latinized form musa is in the Trans–New Guinea languages, where certain cultivars of bananas are known under a form *muku. [8] From there, the term was borrowed into the Austronesian languages of the area, and migrated across Asia, via the Dravidian languages of India, into Persian, Greek, and Arabic as a Wanderwort : [9] [10]

Possible transmission of musa from New Guinea to Latin
Trans-New GuineaAustronesianDravidianIndicPersianArabicGreekLatin
#mugu#mugu > muku > muʼumōttai/mōtemocāmōč⁠mawz/mawzamozāmusa

The late Latin term musa was later chosen by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, as the name for the genus. [11]

From the time of Linnaeus until the 1940s, different types of edible bananas and plantains were given Linnaean binomial names, such as Musa cavendishii, as if they were species. In fact, edible bananas have an extremely complicated origin involving hybridization, mutation, and finally selection by humans. Most edible bananas are seedless (parthenocarpic), hence sterile, so they are propagated vegetatively. The giving of species names to what are actually very complex, largely asexual, hybrids (mostly of two species of wild bananas, Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana ) led to endless confusion in banana botany. In the 1940s and 1950s, it became clear to botanists that the cultivated bananas and plantains could not usefully be assigned Linnean binomials, but were better given cultivar names.[ citation needed ]

Serving food on a banana leaf is a popular tradition in certain parts of India, Sri Lanka, and parts of Southeast Asia. Food served on Banana Leaf.jpg
Serving food on a banana leaf is a popular tradition in certain parts of India, Sri Lanka, and parts of Southeast Asia.

As for the word banana , it came to English from Spanish and Portuguese, which had apparently obtained it from a West African language, possibly Wolof (Senegal). [12] The Wolof form might itself be a loanword from Arabic banān mawz (<banān 'finger').[ citation needed ]

Sections

Musa sections have a history dating back to 1887, when M.P. Sagot published "Sur le genre Bananier", where the genus Musa was first formally classified. [13] In this article, Sagot arranged the Musa species into three groups, although no section names were assigned to them. The grouping was based on morphological traits, establishing the trio as bananas with fleshy fruit, ornamental bananas with upright inflorescences and bracts that were vibrantly colored, and bananas that were giant in size.

Five years after Sagot's article, J.G. Baker made the first formal designation of Musa sections. To do so, he named three subgenera that almost paralleled the sections that had been described by Sagot. [14] These sections were:

After this classification, in 1947, Cheeseman reclassified the taxa based on morphological features and chromosome number. [15] This project proposed four sections:

The addition of another Musa section came in 1976 by G.C.G. Ardent. The added section, M. sect. Ingentimusa, Ardent was based on a single species, Musa ingens. [16] This designation put the number of sections in Musa at five: Eumusa, Rhodochlamys, Callimusa, Australimusa, and Ingentimusa.

In the 21st century, genomics have become cheaper, more efficient, and more accurate, and Musa genetic research has increased exponentially. Research was conducted around a diversity of genomic markers (cpDNA, nrDNA, rDNA, introns, various spacers, etc.). The results of many of these studies suggested that the five sections of Musa defined by morphology (and listed above) were not monophyletic. [17] [18]

Based on the incorrect section grouping, Markku Häkkinen proposed another reclassification of the Musa sections in 2013. Using a multitude of genetic evidence and markers from other studies, Häkkinen suggested the reduction of five Musa sections into two: Musa and Callimusa. [18] Unlike sectional classifications of the past, this hypothesis was based on genetic markers rather than morphological features or chromosome number. The two groups were generally formed by the clustering of the previously defined groups:

The advance of genomic analysis technologies and further data on the relatedness of Musa species, formulated Häkkinen's two sections and later corroborated them as correct subcategories for the genus. [19] [20] [21] The history of Musa sections provides an example of genomics superseding morphological evidence and thus classifications.

Species

The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families accepts 68 species and two primary hybrids, as of January 2013, which are listed below. [22] The assignment to sections is based on GRIN (where this gives the species), [23] regrouped according to Wong et al. [24]

Section Callimusa (incorporating Australimusa)

Fruit stalk of Musa sp. Musa JPG01.jpg
Fruit stalk of Musa sp.
Banana flowers Banana flowers.JPG
Banana flowers

[A] and [C] indicate known placement in the former sections Australimusa and Callimusa, respectively. [25]

Section Ingentimusa

Section Musa (incorporating Rhodochlamys)

Musa acuminata with inflorescence Musa acuminata1.jpg
Musa acuminata with inflorescence
Japanese fiber banana (Musa basjoo) flowering at Cotswold Wildlife Park Banana Cotswold Wildlife Park.JPG
Japanese fiber banana (Musa basjoo) flowering at Cotswold Wildlife Park
Musa ornata 'Roxburgh' in China Musa ornata Roxburgh - flower view 01.jpg
Musa ornata 'Roxburgh' in China
Pink banana (Musa velutina) flower Musa velutina1.jpg
Pink banana (Musa velutina) flower

Section undetermined or unknown

Varigated form of Musa sp. Musavar.jpg
Varigated form of Musa sp.
Musa sp. M. splendida A.Chev.jpg
Musa sp.

Formerly placed here

Cultivated bananas

Left to right: plantains, red bananas, latundan, and Cavendish bananas Bananavarieties.jpg
Left to right: plantains, red bananas, latundan, and Cavendish bananas

A number of distinct groups of plants bearing edible fruit have been developed from species of Musa. In English, fruits which are sweet and used for dessert are usually called "bananas", whereas starchier varieties used for cooking are called "plantains", but these terms do not have any botanical significance. By far the largest and now the most widely distributed group of cultivated bananas is derived from section Musa, particularly M. acuminata and M. balbisiana, either alone or in various hybrid combinations. The next but much smaller group is derived from members of section Callimusa (previously classified as Australimusa) and is restricted in importance to Polynesia. Of even more restricted importance are small groups of hybrids from Papua New Guinea; a group from section Musa to which Musa schizocarpa has also contributed, and a group of hybrids between section Musa and section Callimusa.[ citation needed ]

Banana and plantains are the fourth most produced food globally surpassed only by the staple crops of rice, wheat and maize.

Properties

Plants of the Musa spp. including roots, flowers and fruits have been used in the folk medicine cultures of Africa, Asia, India and the Americas. Modern studies examining the properties of the fruits have found diversity of bioactive compounds among genotypes compared with commercially grown cultivars. [27]

Section Musa cultivars

When the Linnaean binomial system was abandoned for cultivated bananas, an alternate genome-based system for the nomenclature of edible bananas in section Musa was devised. Thus, the plant previously known by the "species" name Musa cavendishii became Musa (AAA Group) 'Dwarf Cavendish'. The "new" name shows clearly that 'Dwarf Cavendish' is a triploid, with three sets of chromosomes, all derived from Musa acuminata, which is designated by the letter "A". When Musa balbisiana is involved, the letter "B" is used to denote its genome. Thus, the cultivar 'Rajapuri' may be called Musa (AAB Group) 'Rajapuri'. 'Rajapuri' is also a triploid, expected to have two sets of chromosomes from Musa acuminata and one from Musa balbisiana. In the genome of edible bananas from section Musa, combinations such as AA, BB, ABB, BBB and even AAAB can be found.

Fe'i-type cultivars

No such nomenclature system has been developed for the group of edible bananas derived from section Callimusa. This group is known generally as the "Fe'i" or "Fehi" bananas, and numerous cultivars are found in the South Pacific region. They are very distinctive plants with upright fruit bunches, featuring in three of Paul Gauguin's paintings. The flesh can be cooked before eating and is bright orange, with a high level of beta carotene. Fe'i bananas are no longer very important for food, as imported foods have grown in popularity, although some have ritual significance. Investigations are under way to use the Fe'i karat bananas (the name derives from "carrot" due to the intense orange-yellow color of the fruit) in prevention of childhood blindness in Pohnpei. [28] Fe'i bananas probably derive mainly from Musa maclayi , although their origins are not as well understood as the section Musa bananas. Cultivars can be formally named, as e.g. Musa (Fe'i Group) 'Utafun'.

Other uses

In addition to the edible fruits, the flowers can be eaten cooked, and the heart of the plant (like heart of palm) can be eaten raw or cooked. Additionally, the rootstocks and leaf sheaths of some species can be cooked and eaten. [29]

See also

Notes

  1. Some sources assert that Musa is named for Antonius Musa, physician to the Emperor Augustus: see Bailey, Liberty Hyde (1914–1917). The Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. Vol. 4.. New York: Macmillan. OCLC   2768915.. Pp. 2076–9.
  2. Arabic Mauz meaning Musa or banana is in the medieval Arabic medical encyclopedia by Avicenna, which is online at Avicenna: Book Two. See also "Musa" at Dictionary.Reference.com. See also Musacées in Dictionnaire Étymologique Des Mots Français D'Origine Orientale, by L. Marcel Devic (year 1876).
  3. Musa beccarii is reported as having a haploid chromosome number of 9 or 10, the latter due to multivalent formation during meiosis. Although genetically it nestles comfortably within section Callimusa the chromosome number needs clarification.[ citation needed ]
  4. Musa basjoo is the most cold hardy species of Musa, growing and fruiting successfully in outdoor cultivation in the British Isles and British Columbia.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Banana</span> Tropical/subtropical edible staple, fruit

A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus Musa. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing them from dessert bananas. The fruit is variable in size, color, and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind, which may have a variety of colors when ripe. The fruits grow upward in clusters near the top of the plant. Almost all modern edible seedless (parthenocarp) bananas come from two wild species – Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana. Most cultivated bananas are M. acuminata, M. balbisiana, or hybrids of the two.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Musaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

Musaceae is a family of flowering plants composed of three genera with about 91 known species, placed in the order Zingiberales. The family is native to the tropics of Africa and Asia. The plants have a large herbaceous growth habit with leaves with overlapping basal sheaths that form a pseudostem making some members appear to be woody trees. In most treatments, the family has three genera, Musa, Musella and Ensete. Cultivated bananas are commercially important members of the family, and many others are grown as ornamental plants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blood banana</span> Variety of fruit

The blood banana, is a variety of the wild banana Musa acuminata native to Sumatra, Indonesia. The blood banana is an ornamental plant, named for the dark red patches on its leaves, though its small-seeded fruits are also edible. It grows 6' to 8' tall in the wild, but is well-adapted to container growing and can be maintained at 3' to 5'. It grows best in full or partial sun and is hardy in zones 9 - 11.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Nain</span> Edible fruit cultivar

The Grand Nain banana is a banana cultivar of Musa acuminata. It is one of the most commonly cultivated bananas and a member of the commercial Cavendish banana cultivar group. It is also known as the Chiquita banana because it is the main product of Chiquita Brands International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhino Horn banana</span> Banana cultivar

Rhino Horn bananas, also called Rhino Horn plantains or African Rhino Horn, are hybrid banana cultivars from Africa. It produces strongly curved and elongated edible bananas which can grow to a length of two feet, the longest fruits among banana cultivars.

<i>Musa acuminata</i> Species of banana native to Southeast Asia

Musa acuminata is a species of banana native to Southern Asia, its range comprising the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Many of the modern edible dessert bananas are from this species, although some are hybrids with Musa balbisiana. First cultivated by humans around 10 kya, it is one of the early examples of domesticated plants.

Musa maclayi is a species of seeded banana native to Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. It is placed in section Callimusa. It is regarded as one of the progenitors of the Fe'i banana cultivars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fe'i banana</span> Banana cultivars

Fe'i bananas are cultivated plants in the genus Musa, used mainly for their fruit. Unlike most other cultivated bananas they are diploids of the AA-type. They are very distinct in appearance and origin from the majority of bananas and plantains currently grown. Found mainly in the islands of the Pacific, particularly French Polynesia, Fe'i bananas have skins which are brilliant orange to red in colour with yellow or orange flesh inside. They are usually eaten cooked and have been an important food for Pacific Islanders, moving with them as they migrated across the ocean. Most are high in beta-carotene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Latundan banana</span> Type of banana originating in the Philippines

The Latundan banana is a triploid hybrid banana cultivar of the AAB "Pome" group from the Philippines. It is one of the most common banana cultivars in Southeast Asia and the Philippines, along with Lacatan and Saba bananas. Its Malaysian name is pisang rastali.

<i>Musa coccinea</i> Species of flowering plant

Musa coccinea, commonly known as scarlet banana or red-flowering banana, is a species of flowering plant in the banana and plantain family Musaceae, native to tropical China and Vietnam. It is a bat-pollinated evergreen perennial, placed in section Callimusa, having a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 20.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernest Entwistle Cheesman</span> English botanist (1898–1983)

Ernest Entwistle Cheesman, was an English botanist noted for his work on the family Musaceae. He was the son of Charles Cheesman and Grace Lizzie Davies. About August 1936 he married Ellen Elizabeth B. Weston (1892-1966).

<i>Musa <span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> paradisiaca</i> Species of flowering plant

Musa × paradisiaca is a triploid cultivar of banana, belonging to the Cavendish banana subgroup, originating as the hybrid between Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana, cultivated and domesticated by human very early. Most cultivated bananas and plantains are cultivars of this hybrid. Linnaeus originally used the name M. paradisiaca only for plantains or cooking bananas, but the modern usage includes hybrid cultivars used both for cooking and as dessert bananas. Linnaeus's name for dessert bananas, Musa sapientum, is thus a synonym of Musa × paradisiaca.

<i>Musa beccarii</i> Species of flowering plant

Musa beccarii is a species of wild banana, found in Malaysia, in Sabah. It is placed in section Callimusa.

<i>Musa jackeyi</i> Species of flowering plant

Musa jackeyi is a species of wild banana in the banana family (Musaceae). It is placed in section Callimusa. It has only a small native range in north-east Queensland, Australia. It is the second tallest banana species after Musa ingens, having petioles (stalks) up to 33 ft (10 m) in height, topped by laminae (blades) 14.5 ft (4.4 m) long by 2 ft (61 cm) in width, for a total height of up to 47.5 ft (14.5 m). It resembles the cultivated bananas called "fe'i" or "fehi", having an upright rather than a drooping fruit stalk, with the green terminal bud pointing upwards, and sap which is reddish in colour.

<i>Musa gracilis</i> Species of flowering plant

Musa gracilis is a species of wild banana, native to Peninsular Malaysia. It is placed in section Callimusa, having a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 20. It grows to less than 2 m (7 ft) tall. It has an upright pink-purple bud and produces narrow fruits (bananas), which have magenta and green stripes.

<i>Musa lolodensis</i> Species of flowering plant

Musa lolodensis is a species of wild banana, occurring naturally from the Moluccas through to New Guinea. It is placed in section Callimusa, having a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 20. It is one of the possible parents of the cultivated Fe'i bananas.

Musa monticola, also known as the Kinabalu mountain banana, is a species of wild banana, native to Sabah on the island of Borneo. It is placed in section Callimusa, having a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 20.

Musa peekelii is a species of wild banana, native to eastern New Guinea and the Bismarck Archipelago. It is placed in section Callimusa, members of which have a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 20. It is a very tall plant, reaching over 10 m (33 ft), with a narrow green drooping bud. The ripe bananas are red with bright yellow flesh. It is one of the possible parents of the cultivated Fe'i bananas.

Masak Hijau bananas are triploid banana cultivars from Malaysia. It is a member of the commercially important Cavendish banana subgroup. It is a popular banana cultivar in Southeast Asia and the West Indies.

References

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Further reading