''Cryptocarya agathophylla'' (known sometimes as clove nutmeg) is a member of the laurel family,

Lauraceae Lauraceae, or the laurels, is a plant Family (biology), family that includes the bay laurel, true laurel and its closest relatives. This family comprises about 2850 known species in about 45 genus (biology), genera worldwide. They are dicotyled ...

, and originates in

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

. Malagasy names include ', ', ' and '. The former genus name ''Ravensara'' is a latinization of the Malagasy word '. However, ''ravintsara'' more properly refers to a local high-cineole chemotype of ''

Camphora officinarum ''Camphora officinarum'' is a species of evergreen tree indigenous to warm temperate to subtropical regions of East Asia, including countries such as China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Korea, and Japan. It is known by various names, most notably the camph ...

''.

Description

''Cryptocarya agathophylla'' is a small to medium-sized tree, growing up to 15 meters high. The leaves and twigs of ''C. agathophylla'' have a mildly camphorous aroma similar to

eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of ''Eucalyptus'' are trees, often Mallee (habit), mallees, and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalyp ...

Range and habitat

''Cryptocarya agathophylla'' is endemic to Madagascar. It grows in humid and subhumid lowland forests and lower montane forests and secondary vegetation between 10 and 1,300 meters elevation. It is known from 11 locations in the central and eastern parts of Bongolava, Vatovavy Analanjirofo and Alaotra-Mangoro regions. Its estimated

extent of occurrence Extent may refer to: Computing * Extent (file systems), a contiguous region of computer storage medium reserved for a file * Extent File System, a discontinued file system implementation named after the contiguous region * Extent, a chunk of st ...

(EOO) is 116,739 km², the minimum

area of occupancy Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while ''surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-dimen ...

(AOO) is 56 km².

Conservation and threats

The species' population is decreasing, and its conservation status is

Near Threatened A near-threatened species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as that may be vulnerable to Endangered species, endangerment in the ne ...

. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

, principally from shifting agriculture, and also from logging, mining, and grazing.

Essential oil

The

essential oil An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the ...

of ''C. agathophylla'' is used as a fragrance material in the

perfumery Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

industry, and as an

antiseptic An antiseptic ( and ) is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue to reduce the possibility of sepsis, infection, or putrefaction. Antiseptics are generally distinguished from ''antibiotics'' by the latter's abil ...

, anti-viral,

antibacterial An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the treatment and prevention ...

, expectorant, anti-infective in natural and

folk 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 ...

. Primary aromatic components are: *

limonene Limonene () is a colorless liquid aliphatic hydrocarbon classified as a cyclic monoterpene, and is the major component in the essential oil of citrus fruit peels. The (+)-isomer, occurring more commonly in nature as the fragrance of oranges, ...

19.38% *

sabinene Sabinene is a natural bicyclic monoterpene with the molecular formula C10H16. It is isolated from the essential oils of a variety of plants including Marjoram, holm oak (''Quercus ilex'') and Norway spruce (''Picea abies''). It has a strained ...

11.40% * methyl chavicol 7.94% * α-pinene 5.55% *

linalool Linalool () refers to two enantiomers of a naturally occurring terpene alcohol found in many flowers and spice plants. Together with geraniol, nerol, and citronellol, linalool is one of the rose alcohols. Linalool has multiple commercial app ...

5.26% *

methyl eugenol Methyl eugenol (allylveratrol) is a natural chemical compound classified as a phenylpropene, a type of phenylpropanoid. It is the methyl ether of eugenol and is important to insect behavior and pollination. It is found in various essential oils. ...

5.00% *

germacrene Germacrenes are a group of five naturally occurring volatile organic hydrocarbons of the sesquiterpene and cycloalkene class. Germacrenes are typically produced in a number of plant species for their antimicrobial and insecticidal properties, th ...

d 4.76% *

terpinen-4-ol Terpinen-4-ol is an isomer of terpineol with the chemical formula C10H18O. A primary constituent of tea tree oil, it is obtained as an extract from the leaves, branches, and bark of '' Melaleuca alternifolia'' Cheel. Despite considerable basic and ...

4.00% * e-

caryophyllene Caryophyllene (), more formally (−)-β-caryophyllene (BCP), is a natural bicyclic sesquiterpene that occurs widely in nature. Caryophyllene is notable for having a cyclobutane ring, as well as a ''trans''-double bond in a 9-membered ring, both ...

3.54% * δ-3- carene 3.52% *

myrcene Myrcene, or β-myrcene, is a terpene, monoterpene. A colorless oil, it occurs widely in essential oils. It is produced mainly semi-synthetically from ''Myrcia'', from which it gets its name. It is an intermediate in the production of several frag ...

3.43% * α-terpinene 2.98% * β-pinene 2.91% * γ-

terpinene The terpinenes are a group of isomeric hydrocarbons that are classified as monoterpenes. They each have the same molecular formula and carbon framework, but they differ in the position of carbon-carbon double bonds. α-Terpinene has been isolate ...

2.15% * α-

phellandrene Phellandrenes are organic compounds with the formula . They have a similar molecular structure and similar chemical properties. α-Phellandrene and β-phellandrene are cyclic monoterpenes and are double-bond isomers. In α-phellandrene, both dou ...

1.99% *

camphene Camphene is a bicyclic organic compound. It is one of the most pervasive monoterpenes. As with other terpenes, it is insoluble in water, flammable, colorless, and has a pungent smell. It is a minor constituent of many essential oils such as tu ...

1.33% * (z)- β-ocimene 1.30% * α-

thujene Thujene (or α-thujene) is a natural organic compound classified as a monoterpene. It is found in the essential oils of a variety of plants, and contributes pungency to the flavor of some herbs such as Summer savory.''PDR for Herbal Medicines'', ...

1.13% * 1,8-

cineole Eucalyptol (also called cineole) is a monoterpenoid colorless liquid, and a bicyclic ether. It has a fresh camphor-like odor and a spicy, cooling taste. It is insoluble in water, but miscible with organic solvents. Eucalyptol makes up about ...

1.08% * para-cymene 0.97% * α-humulene 0.79% * α-

copaene Copaene, or more precisely, α-copaene, is the common (or trivial) chemical name of an oily liquid hydrocarbon that is found in a number of essential oil-producing plants. The name is derived from that of the resin-producing tropical copaiba tree, ...

0.69% * β-

elemene Elemenes are a group of closely related natural chemical compounds found in a variety of plants. The elemenes, which include α-, β-, γ-, and δ-elemene, are structural isomers of each other and are classified as sesquiterpenes. The elemenes c ...

0.63% * δ-

cadinene Cadinenes are a group of isomeric hydrocarbons that occur in a wide variety of essential oil-producing plants. The name is derived from that of the Cade juniper (''Juniperus oxycedrus'' L.), the wood of which yields an oil from which cadinene is ...

0.60% *

terpinolene The terpinenes are a group of isomeric hydrocarbons that are classified as monoterpenes. They each have the same molecular formula and carbon framework, but they differ in the position of carbon-carbon double bonds. α-Terpinene has been isolate ...

0.56% * δ-

0.55% * α- cubebene 0.47% * α-

terpineol Terpineol is any of four isomeric monoterpenoids. Terpenoids are terpene that are modified by the addition of a functional group, in this case, an alcohol. Terpineols have been isolated from a variety of sources such as cardamom, cajuput oil, ...

0.38% * α-

guaiene Guaienes are a series of closely related natural chemical compounds that have been isolated from a variety of plant sources. The guaienes are sesquiterpenes with the molecular formula C15H24. α-Guaiene is the most common and was first isolated ...

0.37% * bornyl acetate 0.36% * elemol 0.34% *

elemicin Elemicin is a phenylpropene, a natural organic compound, and is a constituent of several plant species' essential oils. Natural occurrence Elemicin is a constituent of the oleoresin and the essential oil of '' Canarium luzonicum'' (also referre ...

0.23% * γ-muurolene 0.22% *

borneol Borneol is a bicyclic organic compound and a terpene derivative. The hydroxyl group in this compound is placed in an '' endo'' position. The exo diastereomer is called isoborneol. Being chiral, borneol exists as enantiomers, both of which are fou ...

0.21% * bicyclogermacrene 0.20% * γ-cadinene 0.19% * (e)-β-ocimene 0.19% *

β-cubebene Cubebenes are a pair of chemical compounds, classified as sesquiterpenes, first isolated from ''Piper cubeba'' berries, known as cubebs. The volatile oil from the distillation of cubebs is a pale green or blue-yellow viscous liquid with a warm ...

0.16% *

eugenol Eugenol is an allyl chain-substituted guaiacol, a member of the allylbenzene class of chemical compounds. It is a colorless to pale yellow, aromatic oily liquid extracted from certain essential oils especially from clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, ...

0.12% * α-muurolene 0.11% * δ-amorphene 0.10% * α-eudesmol 0.10% * cis-para-menth-2-en-1-ol 0.10% * ortho-cymene 0.09% * β-selinene 0.09% * β-bourbonene 0.08% * trans-cadina-1,4-diene 0.08% * trans-para-menth-2-en-1-ol 0.08% * cis-sabinene hydrate 0.08% * trans-sabinene hydrate 0.08% * caryophyllene oxide 0.07% * β-copaene 0.07% * germacrene b 0.07% * cis-muurola-3,5-diene 0.07% * trans-cadina-1(6),4-diene 0.06% * γ-eudesmol 0.06% * β-eudesmol 0.05% *

guaiol Guaiol or champacol is an organic compound, a sesquiterpene, sesquiterpenoid alcohol (chemistry), alcohol found in several plants, especially in the oil of guaiacum and cypress pine.The Merriam-Webster Dictionary. It is a crystalline solid that me ...

0.05%

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15612952 agathophylla Endemic flora of Madagascar Flora of the Madagascar lowland forests Flora of the Madagascar subhumid forests