''Dioscorea villosa'' (synonym D. quaternata) is a species of twining tuberous vine which is native to eastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. It is commonly known as wild yam, colic root, rheumatism root, devil's bones, and fourleaf yam. It is common and widespread in a range stretching from

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

north to

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and

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
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Description

''Dioscorea villosa'' flower petal color is commonly known to be green to brown, or white. Lengths of the flower petals range from . The flowers tend to grow out of the axil; this is the point at which a branch or leaf attaches to the main stem. There is only one flower present on the inflorescence. The fruit of the plant is a capsule that splits and releases the seeds within to then begin the dispersal process The fruit of ''Dioscorea villosa'' ranges in size from . The flower does not produce aerial bulblets. The leaves are heart-shaped, usually a whorl of four at each

node In general, a node is a localized swelling (a "knot") or a point of intersection (a vertex). Node may refer to: In mathematics * Vertex (graph theory), a vertex in a mathematical graph *Vertex (geometry), a point where two or more curves, lines ...

, but there can be as many as nine in a whorl.

Taxonomy

Synonyms of ''Dioscorea villosa'' include ''Dioscorea hirticaulis'' and ''Dioscorea villosa'' var. ''hirticaulis''. Common names of ''Dioscorea villosa'' include wild yam, Atlantic yam, common wild yam, wild yam-root, yellow yam, colic root, and rheumatism root.

Chemistry

''Dioscorea villosa'' contains

diosgenin Diosgenin, a phytosteroid sapogenin, is the product of hydrolysis by acids, strong bases, or enzymes of saponins, extracted from the tubers of '' Dioscorea'' wild yam species, such as the Kokoro. It is also present in smaller amounts in a num ...

, which despite claims is not a phytoestrogen and does not interact with estrogen receptors. Other steroidal

saponins Saponins (Latin ''sapon'', 'soap' + ''-in'', 'one of') are bitter-tasting, usually toxic plant-derived secondary metabolites. They are Organic compound, organic chemicals that become foamy when agitated in water and have high Molar mass, molecul ...

are also found in the plant.

Medical use

Some of the English common names of this plant reflect its use in Native American and other traditional medicines. Native Americans in the southeast cultivated this plant. In traditional Russian herbal medicine,

saponin Saponins (Latin ''sapon'', 'soap' + ''-in'', 'one of') are bitter-tasting, usually toxic plant-derived secondary metabolites. They are organic chemicals that become foamy when agitated in water and have high molecular weight. They are present ...

extracts from the roots of various varieties of wild yam are thought to be an

anticoagulant An anticoagulant, commonly known as a blood thinner, is a chemical substance that prevents or reduces the coagulation of blood, prolonging the clotting time. Some occur naturally in blood-eating animals, such as leeches and mosquitoes, which ...

, antisclerotic,

antispasmodic An antispasmodic (synonym: spasmolytic) is a pharmaceutical drug or other agent that suppresses muscle spasms. Smooth muscle spasm One type of antispasmodics is used for smooth muscle relaxation, especially in tubular organs of the gastrointestina ...

cholagogue A cholagogue is a substance that is purported by humoral practitioners to encourage the discharge of bile from the system, purging it downward. Deployment is no longer recommended because the biliary purge, like the traditional kidney purge, can c ...

, depurative,

diaphoretic Perspiration, also known as sweat, is the fluid secreted by sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and Apocrine sweat gland, apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distribu ...

diuretic A diuretic () is any substance that promotes diuresis, the increased production of urine. This includes forced diuresis. A diuretic tablet is sometimes colloquially called a water tablet. There are several categories of diuretics. All diuretics ...

and a

vasodilator Vasodilation, also known as vasorelaxation, is the widening of blood vessels. It results from relaxation of smooth muscle cells within the vessel walls, in particular in the large veins, large arteries, and smaller arterioles. Blood vessel wal ...

.Zevin, Igor Vilevich. ''A Russian Herbal''. 1997. Rochester, Vermont: Healing Arts Press. p.146-47. There is little modern clinical research on ''Dioscorea villosa'', and the one study of a wild yam-containing cream for menopausal symptoms failed to find any value from this therapy. According to the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

, there is no evidence to support wild yam or diosgenin being either safe or effective in humans. Dioscorea villosa seeds

Description

Taxonomy

Chemistry

Medical use

References

Further reading