''Roccella phycopsis'' is a species of
lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a hybrid colony (biology), colony of algae or cyanobacteria living symbiotically among hypha, filaments of multiple fungus species, along with yeasts and bacteria embedded in the cortex or "skin", in a mutualism (biology), m ...
in the family
Roccellaceae
The Roccellaceae are a family (biology), family of mostly lichen-forming fungi in the order Arthoniales, established by the French botanist François Fulgis Chevallier in 1826. Species in the family exhibit various lichen growth forms, growth ...
.
A study of ''Roccella phycopsis'' in
Tunisia
Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
revealed that it contains
methyl orcellinate, a chemical compound of interest for its
anti-inflammatory
Anti-inflammatory is the property of a substance or treatment that reduces inflammation, fever or swelling. Anti-inflammatory drugs, also called anti-inflammatories, make up about half of analgesics. These drugs reduce pain by inhibiting mechan ...
activity.
References
phycopsis
Lichen species
Lichens described in 1804
Lichens of North Africa
Taxa named by Erik Acharius
{{Arthoniomycetes-stub