Shield-shaped footplate
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The eponymous shield-shaped (peltate), lobed foliage leaf of the shield-shaped foot leaf ( Podophyllum peltatum ) |
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The Shield-shaped foot blade ( Podophyllum peltatum ), also Mayapple , Duck Foot , American Mayapple called, is a plant from the genus Podophyllum in the family of Barberry (Berberidaceae). It is native to eastern North America.
description
The shield-shaped foot leaf grows as a perennial herbaceous plant . It forms a richly branched, creeping, dark brown, grained rhizome as a persistence organ. They can reach heights of growth of up to 2 meters; a stalk about 30 cm long - sterile (it is only single-leafed) and fertile (multi -leaf) - rises upwards. The flowerless stem usually has only one central, shield-shaped leaf with seven to nine lobes. The (fertile) flower-bearing stem is provided with two opposite leaves at the end. The large, stalked, blue-green, glossy, shield-shaped leaves have six or seven lobes. The leaf margin is roughly serrated.
The large, white, nodding flower with a diameter of about 5 cm stands individually in the leaf fork. The shield-shaped foot leaf blooms in early spring (May).
In August and September, a plum-sized, lemon-yellow, edible berry with a sweet-sour taste and slightly laxative effects ripened, the so-called "wild lime". All vegetative parts of the plant - stem, leaves and rhizome - are poisonous.
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 12.
Occurrence
The shield-shaped foot leaf comes from the shady forests of Atlantic North America. The May apple is a poisonous plant and grows usually, very frequently and extensively, on the edges of the humid North American deciduous forests and on meadows from Nova Scotia to Ontario and Québec in Canada along the east coast of the USA to Florida , Louisiana and Texas . In recent times, the shield-shaped duck foot is being cultivated more and more as a garden ornamental plant.
Important ingredients and effects
Except for the ripe berry, all other parts of the plant are poisonous. The dried rhizome with the attached roots contains lignans with podophyllotoxin , foot resin ( podophyllin ), flavonoids and vegetable gum . The most important component is the resin (podophyllin, pure substance podophyllotoxin), which forms after drying and reaches its greatest toxicity after two years. The medicinal drug has cytostatic , antifungal and virus-static effects. According to Commission E , podophyllin is effective in removing condylomas . The fresh or dried root can cause irritation to the skin. In large doses, podophyllin causes bloody gastrointestinal inflammation , convulsions, incoordination , coma , ulcers and inflammation of the kidneys . Death can result from respiratory paralysis. People who work with the powdered drug can develop conjunctivitis and cornea from the dust .
use
In the medicine
The active ingredient Podophyllum has a safe, but slow, laxative effect. In contrast to other laxatives , the effects are long-lasting and leave the intestines in an improved condition when dosed correctly. But even in a dosage of about 1.5 to 3 grams (about 30 to 60 grains ) the freshly dried root is a drastic laxative and emetic. Small and repeated doses can cause increased salivation. It is also worth mentioning the relationship with the hepatobiliary system and the cholagogue power of this substance. Its main significance of the contained podophyllotoxin in the topical treatment of genital warts and as a raw material in the chemotherapy of cancer . Its glycosides include the cytostatics teniposide and etoposide , which inhibit the enzyme topoisomerase II and, by preventing cell division, lead cancer cells to programmed death .
In cultural history
The May apple root was widely used by the North American Indians as a laxative , emetic and wormer . In addition to the hemlock root , the May apple root was a means for indigenous people to commit suicide . A dangerous increase in effectiveness can be achieved through alcohol consumption .
Linguistic
The botanical genus name Podophyllum is derived from the Greek pous , podos for foot and phyllon (φ_λλον) for leaf. The kind epitheton peltatum is due to pelta (small, light shield) in relation to the shield-shaped (peltaten) leaves. The term “May apple” refers to the fruit that develops from the blossom that appears in May. The German name "Entenfuß" is due to the shield-shaped leaves that resemble a duck foot. The drug from the "rhizome" is called Rhizoma Podophylli .
useful information
The English settlers called the Shield-shaped foot blade ( Podophyllum peltatum ) originally known as Mandrake , the English name of mandrake ( Mandragora officinarum ) since the Maiapfelwurzel as of the North American Indians amulet was used or medicine, although no psychoactive ingredients were detected.
The shield-shaped foot leaf is the only host of the rust fungus Allodus podophylli .
gallery
Shield-shaped foot leaf ( Podophyllum peltatum ):
The solitary flower
The leaves
An unripe fruit
swell
The information in this article is obtained from the following individual references or from the sources given under literature:
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b L. Roth, M. Daunderer & K. Kormann: Toxic Plants - Plant Poisons. Nikol Verlagsgesellschaft, 1994, ISBN 3-933203-31-7 .
- ↑ Elisabeth Mandl: Medicinal plants in homeopathy , Maudrich, 1997, ISBN 3-85175-687-8 .
- ↑ a b c d e Frans Vermeulen: Prisma - Similarities and Parallels between Substance and Drugs , Emryss, 2006, ISBN 90-76189-17-X .
- ↑ Madaus - Online at Henriettes Herbal. .
- ↑ Podophyllum peltatum at Tropicos.org. In: IPCN Chromosome Reports . Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis
- ↑ Podophyll rootstock ( Memento of the original from July 30, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (Accessed May 7, 2009).
- ^ A b Willibald Pschyrembel: Pschyrembel naturopathy and alternative healing methods . 3. Edition. Berlin, New York: de Gruyter, 2006. ISBN 3-11-018524-5 .
- ↑ a b Julius Mezger: Faced homeopathic drug theory , Haug, Saulgau 1950, 12th edition by Haug, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-8304-7232-3 .
- ↑ Christian Rätsch: Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants , AT Verlag, 2007, 8th edition, ISBN 978-3-03800-352-6 .
- ↑ Andrew M. Minnis, Alistair R. McTaggart, Amy Y. Rossman, M. Catherine Aime: Taxonomy of Mayapple Rust: The Genus Allodus Resurrected. In: Mycologia. 104 (4), 2012, pp. 942-950, doi: 10.3852 / 11-350 .
literature
- Gerhard Madaus : Textbook of biological remedies , Olms Verlag, Leipzig, 1938: Online with Henriettes Herbal.
- Karl Hiller, Matthias F. Melzig: Lexicon of Medicinal Plants and Drugs , 2 volumes, approved special edition for area verlag, 2006, ISBN 3-89996-682-1
- L. Roth, M. Daunderer & K. Kormann: Poison plants - plant poisons. Nikol Verlagsgesellschaft, 1994, ISBN 3-933203-31-7
