Bidens pilosa

Bidens pilosa
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Bidens
Species: B. pilosa
Binomial name
Bidens pilosa
L. 1753

Bidens pilosa, commonly known as Spanish Needle, is a species in the plant family Asteraceae. It is an annual that grows up to 1 meter in height.

This plant is considered a weed in some tropical habitats. However, in some parts of the world it is a source of food or medicine.[1] For example, in sub-Saharan Africa, the tender shoots and young leaves are used fresh or dried as a leaf vegetable, particularly in times of scarcity.

Contents

Description

This plant sprouts individual flowers which are small and yellow and which usually contain 4 to 5 white petals. The seeds are black and contain 4-5 black burrs which cling to livestock and humans.

Common names

This plant has many names, sometimes even in the same culture:

Traditional uses

In traditional Chinese medicine, this plant is considered a medicinal herb, called xian feng cao (Chinese: 咸豐草).

Research

The extracts of B. pilosa are potentially useful because of their ability to suppress the growth of adult T-cell leukemia cells.[2]

Phytochemicals

Okanin is a chalcone found in Bidens pilosa (Picao preto).[3]Almost two hundred (198) natural products have been isolated to date from B. pilosa. Polyacetylenes and flavonoids, predominate in the phytochemistry of B. pilosa. [4]

See also

References

  1. ^ Grubben, G.J.H. & Denton, O.A. (2004) Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 2. Vegetables. PROTA Foundation, Wageningen; Backhuys, Leiden; CTA, Wageningen.
  2. ^ Nakama, S; Ishikawa, C; Nakachi, S; Mori, N (2011). "Anti-adult T-cell leukemia effects of Bidens pilosa". International journal of oncology 38 (4): 1163–73. doi:10.3892/ijo.2011.939. PMID 21318218. 
  3. ^ Presence of Compounds in Picao preto (Bidens pilosa)
  4. ^ : Silva FL, Fischer DC, Tavares JF, Silva MS, de Athayde-Filho PF, Barbosa-Filho JM.,"Compilation of secondary metabolites from Bidens pilosa L." Molecules. 2011;16(2):1070-102

External links