You know these giant lily-like flowers for their amazing ability to flower indoor in winter straight from a bulb. We all call them “Amaryllis”, but they are really from the genus Hippeastrum. This is because of botanical confusion over the genera for many years that then resulted in Amaryllis being used as a common name.
They are also sometimes referred to as a lily, however, they are not true lilies (from the Lilium genus).
The Hippeastrum genus is native to South America and consists of about 60 species, half of which are from Brazil.
Hippeastrum cultivars are very popular as ornamentals, and are commonly used for flowering indoors, or can also be grown in gardens in frost-free gardens. As they have been hybridized since the early nineteenth century for producing large colorful flowers, there are many cultivars and flower colors to choose from.
Hippeastrum species are used in many areas of the world in traditional medicine and have become the subject of investigation into their phytochemicals, which have potential uses in medicine.
Hippeastrum species have been used traditionally to treat hemorrhoids, tumors, asthma, and other inflammatory conditions. Galanthamine is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor marketed for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and was obtained from Amaryllidaceae plants. From the demand of this drug, a search into other bioactive alkaloids has been underway. The plant subfamily, the Amaryllidoideae, produce alkaloids that are exclusive to the plant subfamily, numerous and still being discovered.
For example, in a study of H. reticulatum, which is also cultivated as an ornamental and used as a traditional medicine, four previously-unknown alkaloids were characterized and found to potentially be antiparasitological and cholinesterase inhibitory agents.
An alkaloid 11Beta-hydroxygalnthamine with acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity was found from the species H. papilio, along with significant quantities of galanthamine.
Montanine, which exhibited acetylecholinesterase inhibitory, anxiolytic, antidepressant and anticonvulsant activity was found in H. vittatum. Also, candimine, an alkaloid from H. morelianum, was found to be active against the parasite Trichomonas vaginalis.
In a study this year on H. stapfianum, major compounds were identified and the plant extract suggested as a candidate for Alzheimer’s disease as it was found to activate PPAR receptors, and exhibit antioxidant and acetylcholinesterase inhibition activity…and the search continues in these beautifully interesting plants.
#ethnobotany #medicinalplants #amaryllis #alkaloids #flowers
Photo by Gary Ingram