Vangueria

Vangueria
Vangueria parvifolia Sond.
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Rubiaceae
Subfamily: Ixoroideae
Tribe: Vanguerieae
Genus: Vangueria
Juss.
Type species
Vangueria madagascariensis
J.F.Gmel.
Synonyms

Vangueria is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is named for Voa vanguer, as V. madagascariensis is known in Malagasy.[1]

Distribution

The genus contains over 50 species distributed in Africa south of the Sahara with one species occurring in Madagascar (V. madagascariensis). The centre of diversity is in East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania) and they are rare in West Africa.

Bacterial leaf symbiosis

Endophytic bacteria are housed in the intercellular space of the leaf mesophyll tissue. The presence of these bacteria can only be microscopically ascertained. The bacteria are identified as Burkholderia, which is a genus that is also found in the leaves of other Rubiaceae species. Their function remains enigmatic.[2][3]

Gousiekte

Several Vangueria species - V. latifolia, V. pygmaea, V. thamnus - are known to cause gousiekte, a cardiotoxicosis of ruminants characterised by heart failure four to eight weeks after ingestion of certain rubiaceous plants.[4]

Species

References

  1. Thomas, Val; Rina Grant; illustrations: Joan van Gogh; photographs: Jaco Adendorff (2001). Sappi tree spotting : Highlands : Highveld, Drakensberg, Eastern Cape mountains (3rd ed.). Johannesburg: Jacana. p. 262. ISBN 978-1-77009-561-8.
  2. Verstraete B, Janssens S, Smets E, Dessein S (2013). "Symbiotic beta-proteobacteria beyond legumes: Burkholderia in Rubiaceae". PLoS ONE 8: e55260. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0055260.
  3. Verstraete B, Janssens S, Lemaire B, Smets E, Dessein S (2013). "Phylogenetic lineages in Vanguerieae (Rubiaceae) associated with Burkholderia bacteria in sub-Saharan Africa". American Journal of Botany 100: 2380–2387. doi:10.3732/ajb.1300303.
  4. Verstraete B, Van Elst D, Steyn H, Van Wyk B, Lemaire B, Smets E, Dessein S (2011). "Endophytic Bacteria in Toxic South African Plants: Identification, Phylogeny and Possible Involvement in Gousiekte". PLoS ONE 6 (4): e19265. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0019265.