''Clausena'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

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 in the citrus family,

Rutaceae The Rutaceae () is a family (biology), family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in Bo ...

. It was first defined by the Dutch botanist

Nicolaas Laurens Burman Nicolaas Laurens Burman (27 December 1734 – 11 September 1793) was a Dutch botanist. He was the son of Johannes Burman (1707–1780). He succeeded his father to the chair of botany at the Athenaeum Illustre of Amsterdam., and at the Hortus Bot ...

in 1768. It is distributed in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, southern

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and the

Pacific Islands The Pacific islands are a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of several ...

.''Clausena''.
Flora of China. This genus is in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Aurantioideae Aurantioideae (sometimes known as Citroideae) is the subfamily within the rue and citrus family (biology), family (Rutaceae) that contains the citrus. The subfamily's center of diversity is in the monsoon region of eastern Australasia, extending ...

, which also includes genus ''

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

''. It is in the subtribe Clauseninae, which are known technically as the remote citroid fruit trees.Swingle, W. T., rev. P. C. Reece
Chapter 3: The Botany of ''Citrus'' and its Wild Relatives.
In: ''The Citrus Industry'' vol. 1. Webber, H. J. (ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. 1967.
College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences. University of California, Riverside. ''Clausena'' was named for the Norwegian clergyman, Peder Claussøn Friis (1545-1614), the translator of the Icelandic historian and poet,

Snorri Sturluson Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of th ...

Description

The genus includes

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

s and

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

s. Some species are variable, with many forms. ''C. anisata'', for example has been described as a shrub under a meter tall and as a tree of . The leaves of these plants are pinnate, divided into leaflets. The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

varies in form, but is generally a cluster of several flowers with 4 or 5 petals and

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s. The fruit is a

berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples of berries in the cul ...

which lacks the pulp of many other fruits in the citrus family. The genus can be distinguished from related plants by the presence of a gynophore, a structure supporting the

ovary The ovary () is a gonad in the female reproductive system that produces ova; when released, an ovum travels through the fallopian tube/ oviduct into the uterus. There is an ovary on the left and the right side of the body. The ovaries are end ...

in the flower. It looks very different in the various species, however, and can be hard to recognize.

Uses

'' C. anisata'' is a tree used for its wood, and in

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

. ''C. excavata'' is used medicinally in Asia for a variety of conditions, including snakebite,

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

dysentery Dysentery ( , ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications may include dehyd ...

, and HIV infection.Thongthoom, T., et al. (2010)
Biological activity of chemical constituents from ''Clausena harmandiana''.
''Archives of Pharmacal Research'' 33(5), 675-80. Some species, such as ''C. indica'' and '' C. lansium'' (''wampi''), produce edible fruit. ''Wampi'' is cultivated as a fruit tree, and though it is only a remote relative of citrus, it can be grafted to various citrus trees. There are sour, sweet, and intermediate varieties of C. lansium.

Fossil record

A ''Clausena'' leaf

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

from the

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

, represents so far the oldest record of the genus.Citrus linczangensis sp. n., a Leaf Fossil of Rutaceae from the Late Miocene of Yunnan, China by Sanping Xie, Steven R Manchester, Kenan Liu and Bainian Sun - International Journal of Plant Sciences 174(8):1201-1207 October 2013.

Diversity

The

taxonomy image:Hierarchical clustering diagram.png, 280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme o ...

of the genus is unclear. There are between about 15 and 30 species. Many formerly used names were made

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

in a 1994 revision. Species include:''Clausena''.
The Plant List.GRIN Species Records of ''Clausena''.
Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). *'' Clausena abyssinica'' *'' Clausena anisata''– horsewood *'' Clausena anisum-olens'' (syn. ''C. sanki'', nom. rejic.) *'' Clausena austroindica'' *'' Clausena brevistyla'' *'' Clausena dentata'' *'' Clausena engleri'' *'' Clausena excavata'' *'' Clausena harmandiana'' *'' Clausena henryi'' *'' Clausena heptaphylla'' *'' Clausena indica'' *'' Clausena inolida'' *'' Clausena kanpurensis'' *'' Clausena lansium''– wampi, wampee, Chinese clausena *'' Clausena lenis'' *'' Clausena luxurians'' *'' Clausena poilanei''Molino, J. F. (1994)
Révision du genre ''Clausena'' Burm. f.(Rutaceae).
''Adansonia'' 1, 105-53. *'' Clausena smyrelliana'' *'' Clausena wallichii''

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q2993704 Aurantioideae genera Taxa named by Nicolaas Laurens Burman