''Androsiphonia'' is a genus of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...
s belonging to Paropsieae a subfamily of
Passifloraceae
The Passifloraceae are a family of flowering plants, containing about 750 species classified in around 27 genera.
They include trees, shrubs, lianas, and climbing plants, and are mostly found in tropical regions. The family takes its name from t ...
.
It is a
monotypic genus
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...
consisting of only one species, ''Androsiphonia adenostegia''.
''Androsiphonia adenostegia''
A. adenostegia (previously ''Paropsia adenostegia'') is the sole member of Androsiphonia. The oldest written record of ''A. adenostegia'' dates to 1904. It is described as a shrub or small tree, growing up to 12 feet tall.
It is native to forest and rainforests of
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...
,
Liberia
Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...
,
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...
, and
Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
. It has gray/green flowers and orange fruits.
It shows
chemotaxonomic similarities with other members of Passifloraceae, supporting its classification, specifically production of Cyclopentenylglycines (2S,10R)-2-(20-cyclopentenyl)glycine.
Its twigs can be used topically as an insecticide or chewed for dental health.
References
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q16756119, from2=Q2846969
Passifloraceae
Passifloraceae genera
Monotypic Malpighiales genera
Flora of the Afrotropical realm