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Centaurium Erythraea
''Centaurium erythraea'' is a species of flowering plant in the gentian family known by the common names common centaury and European centaury. Description This is an erect biennial herb which reaches half a meter in height. It grows from a small basal rosette and bolts a leafy, erect stem which may branch. The triangular leaves are arranged oppositely on the stem and the erect inflorescences emerge from the stem and grow parallel to it, sometimes tangling with the foliage. Each inflorescence may contain many flowers. The petite flower is pinkish-lavender and about a centimeter across, flat-faced with yellow anthers. The fruit is a cylindrical capsule. It flowers from June until September. Distribution This centaury is a widespread plant of Europe (including Scotland, Sweden and Mediterranean countries) and parts of western Asia and northern Africa. It has also naturalised in parts of North America, New Zealand, and eastern Australia, where it is an introduced species. Taxono ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carl Gottlob Rafn
Carl Gottlob Rafn (31 July 1769 – 17 May 1808) was a Danish Enlightenment scientist and civil servant. He wrote influential papers on a broad array of basic and applied sciences. Life Rafn was born in Viborg, Denmark as the son of a judge. He began studies of medicine and botany at the University of Copenhagen in 1788, but later changed to veterinary science with P.C. Abildgaard at the Veterinary School in Copenhagen. He never took any final exam, however. Instead, he became Assessor in the Ministries of Agriculture and Commerce under the Danish absolute monarchy and filled various other posts, such as being the first director of a new Royal Aquavit Distillery, which was founded on his own initiative. Rafn died in Copenhagen in 1808, only 39 years old. Scientific works Rafn made contributions to many prize essay contests on all disciplines of science. One of these was a flora of Denmark - ''Flora of Denmarks and Holstein'', for which he was runner-up (the first prize went ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sterols
Sterol is an organic compound with formula , whose molecule is derived from that of gonane by replacement of a hydrogen atom in position 3 by a hydroxyl group. It is therefore an alcohol of gonane. More generally, any compounds that contain the gonane structure, additional functional groups, and/or modified ring systems derived from gonane are called steroids. Therefore, sterols are a subgroup of the steroids. They occur naturally in most eukaryotes, including plants, animals, and fungi, and can also be produced by some bacteria (however likely with different functions). The most familiar type of animal sterol is cholesterol, which is vital to cell membrane structure, and functions as a precursor to fat-soluble vitamins and steroid hormones. While technically alcohols, sterols are classified by biochemists as lipids (fats in the broader sense of the term). Types Sterols of plants are called ''phytosterols'' and sterols of animals are called ''zoosterols''. The most important ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medicinal Plants Of Europe
Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness. Contemporary medicine applies biomedical sciences, biomedical research, genetics, and medical technology to diagnose, treat, and prevent injury and disease, typically through pharmaceuticals or surgery, but also through therapies as diverse as psychotherapy, external splints and traction, medical devices, biologics, and ionizing radiation, amongst others. Medicine has been practiced since prehistoric times, and for most of this time it was an art (an area of skill and knowledge), frequently having connections to the religious and philosophical beliefs of local culture. For example, a medicine man would apply herbs and say prayers for healing, or a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medicinal Plants Of Asia
Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness. Contemporary medicine applies biomedical sciences, biomedical research, genetics, and medical technology to diagnose, treat, and prevent injury and disease, typically through pharmaceuticals or surgery, but also through therapies as diverse as psychotherapy, external splints and traction, medical devices, biologics, and ionizing radiation, amongst others. Medicine has been practiced since prehistoric times, and for most of this time it was an art (an area of skill and knowledge), frequently having connections to the religious and philosophical beliefs of local culture. For example, a medicine man would apply herbs and say prayers for healing, or an ancie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medicinal Plants Of Africa
Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness. Contemporary medicine applies biomedical sciences, biomedical research, genetics, and medical technology to diagnose, treat, and prevent injury and disease, typically through pharmaceuticals or surgery, but also through therapies as diverse as psychotherapy, external splints and traction, medical devices, biologics, and ionizing radiation, amongst others. Medicine has been practiced since prehistoric times, and for most of this time it was an art (an area of skill and knowledge), frequently having connections to the religious and philosophical beliefs of local culture. For example, a medicine man would apply herbs and say prayers for healing, or an anci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Centaurium
''Centaurium'' (centaury) is a genus of 20 species in the gentian family (Gentianaceae), tribe Chironieae, subtribe Chironiinae. The genus was named after the centaur Chiron, famed in Greek mythology for his skill in medicinal herbs. It is distributed across Europe and into Asia. Until 2004, ''Centaurium'' was given a much wider circumscription, comprising about 50 species ranging across Europe, Asia, the Americas, Australasia and the Pacific. However this circumscription was polyphyletic, so in 2004 the genus was split in four, being ''Centaurium'' sensu stricto, ''Zeltnera'', ''Gyrandra'' and '' Schenkia''. Species * '' Centaurium barrelieri'' (Duf.) F. Q. & Rothm. * '' Centaurium bianoris'' (Sennen) Sennen * '' Centaurium calycosum'' (Buckley) Fernald * '' Centaurium capense'' Broome * '' Centaurium centaurioides'' (Roxb.) Rolla Rao & Hemadri * '' Centaurium chloodes'' (Brot.) Samp. * '' Centaurium davyi'' (Jeps.) Abrams * ''Centaurium erythraea'' Rafn * '' Centaurium exalt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glycoside
In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. These can be activated by enzyme hydrolysis, which causes the sugar part to be broken off, making the chemical available for use. Many such plant glycosides are used as medications. Several species of ''Heliconius'' butterfly are capable of incorporating these plant compounds as a form of chemical defense against predators. In animals and humans, poisons are often bound to sugar molecules as part of their elimination from the body. In formal terms, a glycoside is any molecule in which a sugar group is bonded through its anomeric carbon to another group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides can be linked by an O- (an ''O-glycoside''), N- (a ''glycosylamine''), S-(a ''thioglycoside''), or C- (a '' C-glycoside'') glycosidic bond. According to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Secoiridoid
Iridoids are a type of monoterpenoids in the general form of cyclopentanopyran, found in a wide variety of plants and some animals. They are biosynthetically derived from 8-oxogeranial. Iridoids are typically found in plants as glycosides, most often bound to glucose. The chemical structure is exemplified by iridomyrmecin, a defensive chemical produced by the ant genus ''Iridomyrmex'', for which iridoids are named. Structurally, they are bicyclic ''cis''-fused cyclopentane-pyrans. Cleavage of a bond in the cyclopentane ring gives rise to a subclass known as ''secoiridoids'', such as oleuropein and amarogentin. Occurrence The iridoids produced by plants act primarily as a defense against herbivores or against infection by microorganisms. The variable checkerspot butterfly also contains iridoids obtained through its diet which act as a defense against avian predators. To humans and other mammals, iridoids are often characterized by a deterrent bitter taste. Aucubin and catal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stigmasterol
Stigmasterol – a plant sterol (''phytosterol'') – is among the most abundant of plant sterols, having a major function to maintain the structure and physiology of cell membranes. In the European Union, it is a food additive listed with E number E499, and may be used in food manufacturing to increase the phytosterol content, potentially lowering the levels of LDL cholesterol. Discovery Once called ''Wulzen factor'' in the mid-20th century, stigmasterol was discovered by the University of California physiologist Rosalind Wulzen (born 1886). Natural occurrences Stigmasterol is an unsaturated phytosterol occurring in the plant fats or oils of numerous plants, such as soybean, calabar bean, and rape seed, and in herbs used in herbalism practices, including the Chinese herbs ''Ophiopogon japonicus'' (Mai men dong), in ''Mirabilis jalapa''. Stigmasterol is a constituent of various vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and unpasteurized milk. Pasteurization will inactivate stig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brassicasterol
Brassicasterol (24-methyl cholest-5,22-dien-3β-ol) is a 28-carbon sterol synthesised by several unicellular algae (phytoplankton) and some terrestrial plants, like rape. This compound has frequently been used as a biomarker for the presence of (marine) algal matter in the environment, and is one of the ingredients for E number E499. There is some evidence to suggest that it may also be a relevant additional biomarker in Alzheimer's disease. Chemical properties Solubility Brassicasterol has a low water solubility and, as a consequence, a high octanol-water partition coefficient. This means that, in most environmental systems, brassicasterol will be associated with the solid phase. Degradation In anaerobic sediments and soils, brassicasterol is stable for many hundreds of years, enabling it to be used as an indicator of past algal production (see below). Chemical analysis Since the molecule has a hydroxyl (-OH) group, it is frequently bound to other lipids including glycerols; m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
