''Clerodendrum umbellatum'' is a scandent African shrub of the family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savo ...

, but previously placed in

Verbenaceae The Verbenaceae ( ), the verbena family or vervain family, is a family of mainly tropical flowering plants. It contains trees, shrubs, and herbs notable for heads, spikes, or clusters of small flowers, many of which have an aromatic smell. Th ...

. It is found in

Tropical Africa Although tropical Africa is mostly familiar to the West for its rainforests, this biogeographic realm of Africa is far more diverse. While the tropics are thought of as regions with hot moist climates, which are caused by latitude and the tr ...

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

and

Tropical Asia Tropical Asia refers to the entirety of the areas in Asia with a tropical climate. These areas are of geographic and economic importance due to their natural resources and biodiversity, which include many species of agricultural value. There are ...

, its distribution being to some extent

anthropogenic Anthropogenic ("human" + "generating") is an adjective that may refer to: * Anthropogeny, the study of the origins of humanity Counterintuitively, anthropogenic may also refer to things that have been generated by humans, as follows: * Human i ...

, and is often planted for its showy flowers. The genus ''

Clerodendrum ''Clerodendrum'' is a genus of flowering plants formerly placed in the family Verbenaceae, but now considered to belong to the Lamiaceae (mint) family. Its common names include glorybower, bagflower and bleeding-heart. It is currently classified ...

'' is large with more than 300 species currently accepted. This climber, first described in 1804 by

Jean Louis Marie Poiret Jean Louis Marie Poiret (11 June 1755 in Saint-Quentin7 April 1834 in Paris) was a French clergyman, botanist, and explorer. From 1785 to 1786, he was sent by Louis XVI of France, Louis XVI to Algeria to study the flora. After the French Re ...

, has slender, finely pubescent branches. Leaves are oblong to ovate-elliptic, with entire margins, an acute apex, and subcordate base; petiole is from 2–8 cm in length. Inflorescence of umbellate cymes is terminal and many-flowered. The fragrant flowers may be red or white, with a pink or red tinge to the centre. Calyx cup-shaped, with 5 lobes; corolla-tube puberulous, also 5-lobed. Drupe bluish-black, enclosed by a red calyx, and splitting into 4

pyrenes Pyrene is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) consisting of four fused benzene rings, resulting in a flat aromatic system. The chemical formula is . This yellow solid is the smallest peri-fused PAH (one where the rings are fused through mor ...

when mature.

Medicinal

The species has been used traditionally in some Central African countries for treating several diseases including intestinal

helminthiasis Helminthiasis, also known as worm infection, is any macroparasite, macroparasitic disease of humans and other animals in which a part of the body is infected with parasitism, parasitic worms, known as helminths. There are numerous species of the ...

. An extract of its bitter leaves is effective against '' Schistosoma mansoni''. The leaf and its sap are used as pain-killers, while the roots are taken for stomach ailments. Extracts of the leaves are employed as

abortifacients An abortifacient ("that which will cause a miscarriage" from Latin: '' abortus'' "miscarriage" and '' faciens'' "making") is a substance that induces abortion. This is a nonspecific term which may refer to any number of substances or medication ...

ecbolic Labor induction is the process or treatment that stimulates childbirth and delivery. Inducing (starting) labor can be accomplished with pharmaceutical or non-pharmaceutical methods. In Western countries, it is estimated that one-quarter of pregna ...

s and for curing venereal diseases. It is also used to treat dropsy, swellings, oedema and gout, and as an antidote for venomous stings and bites. In

Northern Uganda The Northern Region is one of four regions in the country of Uganda. As of Uganda's 2014 census, the region's population was . Districts As of 2010, the Northern Region had 30 districts A district is a type of administrative division tha ...

a study found this species to be the most frequently used medicinal plant.

References

External links

West African Plants
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15350063 umbellatum