| Cynomorium | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Saxifragales |
| Family: | Cynomoriaceae Endl. exLindl.[1] |
| Genus: | Cynomorium L. |
| Species: | C. coccineum |
| Binomial name | |
| Cynomorium coccineum | |
Cynomorium is a genus ofparasiticperennialflowering plants in the familyCynomoriaceae.[2] The genus consists of only onespecies,Cynomorium coccineum (although one of its subspecies is sometimes treated as a separate species).[3] Its placement in theSaxifragales was resolved in 2016 with the help of nuclear, plastid, and mitochondrial sequences obtained from next-generation sequencing. Common names include the misleadingMaltese fungus orMaltese mushroom; alsodesert thumb,red thumb,tarthuth (Bedouin) andsuoyang (Chinese). A rare or local species, it grows in dry, rocky or sandy soils, often insalt marshes or othersaline habitats close to the coast. It has had a wide variety of uses in European, Arabian and Chinese herbal medicine.[4][5][6]
This plant has nochlorophyll and is unable tophotosynthesise. It is ageophyte, spending most of its life underground in the form of arhizome, which is attached to the roots of its host plant; it is aholoparasite, i.e. totally dependent on its host. The low-growinginflorescence emerges (in spring, following winter rain), on a fleshy, unbranched stem (most of which is underground) with scale-like, membranous leaves. Dark-red or purplish, the inflorescence consists of a dense, erect, club-shaped mass, some 15–30 cm (5.9–11.8 in) long, of minute scarlet flowers, which may be male, female orhermaphrodite.[7] It is pollinated by flies, attracted to the plant by its sweet, slightly cabbage-like odour. Once pollinated, the spike turns black.[5] The fruit is a small,indehiscent nut.[8]
In the Mediterranean region,Cynomorium is a parasite of salt-tolerant plants in theCistaceae (cistus family) orAmaranthaceae (amaranth family); elsewhere it parasitizesAmaranthaceae,Tamaricaceae (tamarisks) and, in China,Nitrariaceae,[9] especiallyNitraria sibirica. Other authorities suggest the host plants are saltbushes (Atriplex species,Amaranthaceae).[5]
DNA studies suggest thatCynomorium is not a member of theBalanophoraceae, as previously thought, but more probably belongs to the Saxifragales, possibly nearCrassulaceae (stonecrop family).[10][11] The issue is complicated by the massivehorizontal gene transfer betweenCynomorium and its different hosts.[12]
.jpg)
.jpg)
Long disputed,Cynomorium was placed in the Saxifragales in 2016, but its placement within thatorder remains uncertain.[13]
Cynomorium coccineum var.coccineum is found from theAtlantic coastal desert in Mauritania and Western Sahara, through Morocco, the Canary Islands, southern Iberia (Portugal and Spain), the Balearic Islands, Algeria, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, southern Italy, Malta, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, the Arabian Peninsula, Somalia, Iran and Afghanistan.[14]
Cynomorium coccineum var.songaricum[15] is found inCentral Asia andMongolia, where it grows at high altitudes. Several authorities consider this to be a separate species,C. songaricum; it is called "suoyang" (Chinese:鎖陽) in China, where it is extensively collected as aherbal remedy for illnesses includingsexual worries andnocturnal emissions.[10][16]
Sir David Attenborough suggests that, following the reasoning of the "Doctrine of signatures", thephallic shape of the inflorescence suggested to earlyherbalists thatCynomorium should be used as a cure forerectile dysfunction and other sexual problems. Its colour suggested that it would cureanaemia and other diseases of the blood.[5] It has been used for similar purposes in the east and west of its range:crusaders carried dried spikes to help them recover from their wounds.[5] Other traditional uses have included treatments forapoplexy,dysentery,sexually transmitted diseases,hypertension, vomiting andirregular menstruation.[5]
The city of Kuyu苦峪 was also known asSuoyang City (the Chinese name for cynomorium), after the 7th-century generalXue Rengui and his army supposedly survived a siege there by eating the plant.[5] Much later, it was "introduced" (or possibly imported) to China from Mongolia during theYuan dynasty as a medicinal plant, and is first mentioned by Zhū Dānxī (朱丹溪) in hisSupplement and Expansion ofMateria Medica (Chinese:本草衍義補遺;pinyin:Běncǎo Yǎnyì Bǔyí) in 1347. It was an ingredient in his recipe for hidden tiger pills (Chinese:虎潛丸 or 虎潜丸;pinyin:hǔqián wán), used for impotence and weak legs.[5]
During the 16th century, theKnights of Malta greatly prized the plant and sent samples of it to European royalty. They incorrectly believed it to be afungus, and it became known as "fungus melitensis", "Maltese mushroom". The Knights jealously guarded "Fungus Rock", a large rock formation, on whose flat top it grew in abundance, just off the coast ofGozo. They even tried smoothing the outcrop's sides to prevent theft of the plants, which was said to be punishable by death. The only access was by a precariouscable car, which was maintained into the early 19th century. The rock is now a nature reserve, so access is still strictly limited.[5]
In the Middle Ages, Arabic physicians called it "tarthuth" and "the treasure of drugs". Anaqrabadhin, or medical formulary, compiled byAl-Kindi in the 9th century lists tarthuth as an ingredient in a salve to relieve skin irritation; later,Rhazes (Al-Razi) recommended it to curepiles, nosebleeds, anddysfunctional uterine bleeding.[5] In Saudi Arabia, an infusion made from the ground, dried mature spike has been used to treatcolic andstomach ulcers. It was eaten on long journeys by theBedouin people, who would clean and peel the fresh spikes and eat the crisp white interior, which is said to be succulent and sweet, with a flavour of apples and a pleasantly astringent effect. It is also relished by camels.[5]
It has often been used as a "famine food" (last reported during the 19th century in the Canary Islands). Among many other uses it has been used as acontraceptive, atoothpaste, and a non-fading crimsonfabric dye.[5]
!["Malteserschwamm" (with "Cytinus hypocistus" [sic], left) from Pflanzenleben: Erster Band: Der Bau und die Eigenschaften der Pflanzen, by Anton Joseph Kerner von Marilaun and Adolf Hansen (1913)](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aCynomorium_coccineum_vMH375.jpg)
Cynomorium containsanthocyanicglycosides,triterpenoid saponins, andlignans.[5]
Cynomorium coccineum var.coccineum from Sardinia was found to containgallic acid andcyanidin-3-O-glucoside as the main constituents.[17]
Media related toCynomorium at Wikimedia Commons
Data related toCynomorium at Wikispecies