Stephania

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Stephania
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Ranunculales
Family: Menispermaceae
Genus: Stephania
Lour.
Species

See text

Stephania is a genus of flowering plants in the family Menispermaceae, native to eastern and southern Asia and Australasia. They are herbaceous perennial vines growing to around 4 m tall, with a large, woody caudex. The leaves are arranged spirally on the stem, and are peltate, with the leaf petiole attached near the centre of the leaf.

One species, S. tetrandra, is among the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine, where it is called han fang ji (漢防己, "Chinese fang ji"). Other plants named fang ji are sometimes substituted for it. Notable among these is guan fang ji (廣防己, "Broad fang ji"), Aristolochia fanchi. This plant tends to contain toxic amounts of aristolochic acid and can cause renal failure and even death; it is used in TCM only with great caution.

[edit] Selected species

  • Stephania aculeata FM Bailey
  • Stephania bancroftii FM Bailey
  • Stephania brevipes Craib
  • Stephania capitata (Blume) Spreng.
  • Stephania cephalantha Hayata
  • Stephamia corymbosa (Blume) Walp.
  • Stephania crebra Forman
  • Stephania elegans Hook.f. & Thomson
  • Stephania glabra (Roxb.) Miers
  • Stephania glandulifera Miers
  • Stephania gracilenta Miers
  • Stephania hernandiifolia (Willd.) Walp.
  • Stephania hispidula (Yamamoto) Yamamoto
  • Stephania japonica (Thunb.) Miers
  • Stephania longa Lour.
  • Stephania merrillii Diels
  • Stephania oblata Craib
  • Stephania papillosa Craib
  • Stephania pierrei Diels
  • Stephania reticulata Forman
  • Stephania rotunda Lour.
  • Stephania sinica Diels
  • Stephania suberosa L.L.Forman
  • Stephania subpeltata H.S.Lo
  • Stephania tetrandra S. Moore
  • Stephania tomentella Forman
  • Stephania venosa (Blume) Spreng.

[edit] References