''Curculigo'' is a flowering plant genus in the family
Hypoxidaceae
Hypoxidaceae is a family of flowering plants, placed in the order Asparagales of the monocots.
The APG IV system of 2016 (unchanged from the 1998, 2003, and 2009 versions) recognizes this family. The family consists of five genera, with some 16 ...
, first described in 1788. It is widespread across tropical regions of
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
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
Americas
The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...
.
[Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]
/ref>
Curculin
Curculin or neoculin is a sweet protein complex that was discovered and isolated in 1990 from the fruit of '' Curculigo latifolia'' ( Hypoxidaceae). Like miraculin, curculin exhibits taste-modifying activity; however, unlike miraculin, it also ...
is a sweet protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...
that was discovered and isolated in 1990 from the fruit of ''Curculigo latifolia'',Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
. Like miraculin
Miraculin is a taste modifier, a glycoprotein extracted from the fruit of '' Synsepalum dulcificum''. The berry, also known as the miracle fruit, was documented by explorer Chevalier des Marchais, who searched for many different fruits during ...
, curculin exhibits taste-modifying activity; however, unlike miraculin, it also exhibits a sweet taste by itself. After consumption of curculin, water and sour solutions taste sweet. The plant is referred to locally as or ; English: 'weevil-wort'.
Species
Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
History
Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...
[ includes:
# '' Curculigo annamitica'' Gagnep. – Vietnam
# '' Curculigo breviscapa'' S.C.Chen – China (Guangxi, Guangdong)
# '' Curculigo capitulata''
# '' Curculigo conoc'' Gagnep. – Vietnam
# '' Curculigo crassifolia''
# '' Curculigo disticha'' Gagnep. – Vietnam
# '' Curculigo ensifolia'' R.Br. – Australia
# '' Curculigo erecta'' Lauterb. – Philippines, Sumatra, New Guinea, Solomon Islands
# '' Curculigo fabrei''
# '' Curculigo fakimensis''
# '' Curculigo gracilis''
# '' Curculigo janarthanamii'' R.D. Gore & S.P.Gaikwad – India
# '' Curculigo latifolia''
# '' Curculigo maharashtrensis'' M.R.Almeida & S.Yadav – Maharashtra
# '' Curculigo maheensis''
# '' Curculigo oligantha''
# '' Curculigo orchioides'' Gaertn. – China, Japan, Indian Subcontinent, Papuasia, Micronesia
# '' Curculigo pilosa'' (Schumach. & Thonn.) Engl. – tropical Africa, Madagascar
# '' Curculigo prainiana''
# '' Curculigo racemosa'' Ridl. – Borneo
# '' Curculigo rhizophylla''
# '' Curculigo sabui'' S.P. Gaikwad & Gore – India][S.P.Gaikwad & Gore (2019) ''Nordic J. Bot.'' 37(7)-e02340: 2.]
# '' Curculigo savantwadiensis'' M.R.Almeida & S.Yadav – Maharashtra
# '' Curculigo scorzonerifolia'' (Lam.) Baker – southern Mexico, Central America, West Indies, northern South America
# '' Curculigo seychellensis'' Bojer ex Baker – Seychelles
# '' Curculigo sinensis'' S.C.Chen – China (Yunnan)
# '' Curculigo tonkinensis'' Gagnep. – Vietnam
# '' Curculigo trichocarpa''
References
External links
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q2707264
Asparagales genera
Pantropical flora
Taxa named by Joseph Gaertner