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Strophanthus Amboensis
''Strophanthus amboensis'' is a plant in the dogbane family Apocynaceae. Description ''Strophanthus amboensis'' grows as a deciduous shrub up to tall, or as a liana up to long, with a stem diameter up to . Its flowers feature an orange-yellow turning purple corolla tube, white-streaked on the inside. Distribution and habitat ''Strophanthus amboensis'' is native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola and Namibia. Its habitats are forest margins, scrubland or rock fissures, from altitude. Uses ''Strophanthus amboensis'' is used in local traditional medicine treatments for rheumatism, venereal diseases and scabies. The plant has been used as arrow poison Arrow poisons are used to poison arrow heads or darts for the purposes of hunting and warfare. They have been used by indigenous peoples worldwide and are still in use in areas of South America, Africa and Asia. Notable examples are the poisons se .... References amboensis Plants used in traditional African m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hans Schinz
Hans Schinz (6 December 1858 – 30 October 1941) was a Swiss explorer and botanist who was a native of Zürich. In 1884 he participated in an exploratory expedition to German Southwest Africa that was organized by German merchant Adolf Lüderitz (1834–1886). For the next few years Schinz undertook extensive scientific studies of the northern parts of the colony. As a result of the expedition, he published ''Deutsch-Südwestafrika, Forschungsreisen durch die deutschen Schutzgebiete Groß- Nama- und Hereroland, nach dem Kunene, dem Ngamisee und Kalahari 1884-1887'' (German South West Africa: Research Expedition of Herero and Nama Country, the Kunene Region, Lake Ngami and the Kalahari; 1884–1887). This work was an important scientific, geographic and ethnographic study of the colony, and was one of the first comprehensive works on the Ovamboland region. It was during this expedition that he made the acquaintance of the Finnish missionary Martti Rautanen (1845–1926) at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adolf Engler
Heinrich Gustav Adolf Engler (25 March 1844 – 10 October 1930) was a German botanist. He is notable for his work on plant taxonomy and phytogeography, such as ''Die natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien'' (''The Natural Plant Families''), edited with Karl Anton Eugen Prantl, Karl A. E. von Prantl. Even now, his system of plant classification, the Engler system, is still used by many Herbarium, herbaria and is followed by writers of many manuals and Flora (plants), floras. It is still the only system that treats all 'plants' (in the wider sense, algae to flowering plants) in such depth. Engler published a prodigious number of taxonomic works. He used various artists to illustrate his books, notably Joseph Pohl (1864–1939), an illustrator who had served an apprenticeship as a wood-engraver. Pohl's skill drew Engler's attention, starting a collaboration of some 40 years. Pohl produced more than 33 000 drawings in 6 000 plates for ''Die naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien''. He also illustrate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ferdinand Albin Pax
Ferdinand Albin Pax (26 July 1858 – 1 March 1942) was a German botanist specializing in spermatophytes. A collaborator of Adolf Engler, he wrote several monographs and described several species of plants and animals from Silesia and the Carpathians. He was a professor at University of Wrocław, Wrocław University from 1893. His son Ferdinand Albert Pax (1885–1964) was a noted zoologist. Life and work Pax was born on 26 July 1858 in Dvůr Králové nad Labem, in what was then known as Bohemia, to Carl Ferdinand, a mine superintendent in Žacléř, and Elisabeth Haas (died 1861). He graduated from the Kamienna Góra gymnasium and joined the University of Wrocław. He received a PhD in 1882 studying under Heinrich Göppert and moved to Kiel and Habilitation, habilitated in 1886 for studies on the Cyperaceae. He served as an assistant at the Botanical Garden and moved to Berlin in 1889 where he worked with Adolf Engler. In 1893 he became the chair of botany at Wrocław. He be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apocynaceae
Apocynaceae (, from '' Apocynum'', Greek for "dog-away") is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, stem succulents, and vines, commonly known as the dogbane family, because some taxa were used as dog poison. Notable members of the family include oleander, dogbanes, milkweeds, and periwinkles. The family is native to the European, Asian, African, Australian, and American tropics or subtropics, with some temperate members as well. The former family Asclepiadaceae (now known as Asclepiadoideae) is considered a subfamily of Apocynaceae and contains 348 genera. A list of Apocynaceae genera may be found here. Many species are tall trees found in tropical forests, but some grow in tropical dry ( xeric) environments. Also perennial herbs from temperate zones occur. Many of these plants have milky latex, and many species are poisonous if ingested, the family being rich in genera containing alkaloids and cardiac glycosides, those containing the latter oft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liana
A liana is a long-Plant stem, stemmed Woody plant, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the Canopy (biology), canopy in search of direct sunlight. The word ''liana'' does not refer to a Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic grouping, but rather a habit of plant growth—much like ''tree'' or ''shrub''. It comes from standard French , itself from an Antilles French dialect word meaning to sheaf (agriculture), sheave. Ecology Lianas are characteristic of Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical moist broadleaf forests (especially Tropical seasonal forest, seasonal forests), but may be found in temperate rainforests and temperate deciduous forests. There are also temperate lianas, for example the members of the ''Clematis'' or ''Vitis'' (wild grape) genera. Lianas can form bridges in the forest canopy, providing Arboreal locomotion, arboreal animals—including ants and many ot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Corolla (flower)
Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually surrounded by an outer whorl of modified leaves called sepals, that collectively form the ''calyx'' and lie just beneath the corolla. The calyx and the corolla together make up the perianth, the non-reproductive portion of a flower. When the petals and sepals of a flower are difficult to distinguish, they are collectively called tepals. Examples of plants in which the term ''tepal'' is appropriate include genera such as '' Aloe'' and '' Tulipa''. Conversely, genera such as '' Rosa'' and '' Phaseolus'' have well-distinguished sepals and petals. When the undifferentiated tepals resemble petals, they are referred to as "petaloid", as in petaloid monocots, orders of monocots with brightly coloured tepals. Since they in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It may be the mature vegetation type in a particular region and remain stable over time, or it may be a transitional community that occurs temporarily as the result of a disturbance, such as fire. A stable state may be maintained by regular natural disturbance such as fire or browsing (predation), browsing. Shrubland may be unsuitable for human habitation because of the danger of fire. The term was coined in 1903. Shrubland species generally show a wide range of adaptations to fire, such as heavy seed production, lignotubers, and fire-induced germination. Botanical structural form In botany and ecology a shrub is defined as a much-branched woody plant less than 8 m high, usually with many plant stem, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rheumatism
Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including arthritis and "non-articular rheumatism", also known as "regional pain syndrome" or "soft tissue rheumatism". There is a close overlap between the term soft tissue disorder and rheumatism. Sometimes the term "soft tissue rheumatic disorders" is used to describe these conditions. The term "Rheumatic Diseases" is used in MeSH to refer to connective tissue disorders. The branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and therapy of rheumatism is called rheumatology. Types Many rheumatic disorders of chronic, intermittent pain (including joint pain, neck pain or back pain) have historically been caused by infectious diseases. Their etiology was unknown until the 20th century and not treatable. Postinfectious arthritis, also known as react ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scabies
Scabies (; also sometimes known as the seven-year itch) is a contagious human skin infestation by the tiny (0.2–0.45 mm) mite ''Sarcoptes scabiei'', variety ''hominis''. The word is from . The most common symptoms are severe itchiness and a papular, pimple-like rash. Occasionally, tiny burrows may appear on the skin. In a first-ever infection, the infected person usually develops symptoms within two to six weeks. During a second infection, symptoms may begin within 24 hours. These symptoms can be present across most of the body or just in certain areas such as the wrists, between fingers, or along the waistline. The head may be affected, but this is typically only in young children. The itch is often worse at night. Scratching may cause skin breakdown and an additional bacterial infection in the skin. Various names have been given to this condition and the name 'seven year itch' has been recorded in many documents from the 1800's. Although the 1952 The_Seven_Year_Itch_( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arrow Poison
Arrow poisons are used to poison arrow heads or darts for the purposes of hunting and warfare. They have been used by indigenous peoples worldwide and are still in use in areas of South America, Africa and Asia. Notable examples are the poisons secreted from the skin of the poison dart frog, and curare (or 'ampi'), a general term for a range of plant-derived arrow poisons used by the indigenous peoples of South America. History Poisoned arrows have featured in mythology, notably the Greek story of Heracles slaying the centaur Nessus using arrows poisoned with the blood of the Lernaean Hydra. The Greek hero Odysseus poisons his arrows with hellebore in Homer's ''Odyssey''. Poisoned arrows also figure in Homer's epic about the Trojan War, the ''Iliad'', in which both Achaeans and Trojans used toxic arrows and spears. Poisoned arrows were known to be used by many ancient civilizations, including the Gauls, Scythians, and Svans. Ancient Greek and Roman historians describe recipe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Strophanthus
''Strophanthus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1802. It is native primarily to tropical Africa, extending to South Africa, with a few species in Asia from southern India to New Guinea and southern China. The genus name is a compound of the Greek words στρόφος (''stróphos'') "twisted cord" and ἄνθος (''ánthos'') "flower", in reference to the Corolla (flower), corolla lobes which, in some species - notably ''S. petersianus'' (see below) - resemble long twisted ribbons or threads and can reach a length of 30–35 cm. This trait, in addition to colouring involving combinations of bright pinks, purples and oranges, combine to make the flowers among the most ornamental in the plant kingdom. The genus includes vines, shrubs, and small trees. The leaf, leaves are opposite or whorled, simple broad lanceolate, 2–20 cm long, with an entire margin. Several African tribes used ''Strophanthus'' as the principa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plants Used In Traditional African Medicine
Plants are the eukaryotes that form the kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with cyanobacteria to produce sugars from carbon dioxide and water, using the green pigment chlorophyll. Exceptions are parasitic plants that have lost the genes for chlorophyll and photosynthesis, and obtain their energy from other plants or fungi. Most plants are multicellular, except for some green algae. Historically, as in Aristotle's biology, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi. Definitions have narrowed since then; current definitions exclude fungi and some of the algae. By the definition used in this article, plants form the clade Viridiplantae (green plants), which consists of the green algae and the embryophytes or land plants (hornworts, liverworts, mosses, lycophytes, ferns, conifers and other gymnosper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
