'' Asteranthe asterias'' is a species of plant in the family Annonaceae. It is native to Kenya and Tanzania. Spencer Le Marchant Moore, the English botanist who first formally described the species using the

basionym In the scientific name of organisms, basionym or basyonym means the original name on which a new name is based; the author citation of the new name should include the authors of the basionym in parentheses. The term "basionym" is used in both botan ...

''Uvaria asterias'', did not explicitly explain the epithet, but was likely referencing the star-like appearance of its flower’s petals.

Description

It is a tree reaching 1.5 to 8 meters in height. Its young branches are covered in dense grey or rust colored hairs. Its mature branches are hairless and have

lenticel A lenticel is a porous tissue consisting of cells with large intercellular spaces in the periderm of the secondarily thickened organs and the bark of woody stems and roots of dicotyledonous flowering plants. It functions as a pore, providing a ...

s. Its oval to oblong leaves are 4-16.5 by 2-6 centimeters and come to a tapering point at their tips. The leaves are hairless and sometimes shiny on their upper surface, while their lower surface is densely hairy when young, but when mature hairless. Its petioles are 2-7 millimeters long. Its fragrant, hermaphroditic flowers are on 3-8 millimeter long

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

that have oval, hairy bracteoles that are 2.5-4 by 1-1.5 millimeters. Its sepals are 0.6-1.2 by 4-7 millimeters, covered in dense rust colored hairs, and come to a tapered point at their tip. Its flowers have 6 petals. The petals are green when young, turning to a cream-color with deep purple highlights extending from their thick bases. The petals are 2.5-6 by 0.7-1.5 centimeters and taper to a sharp point at their tip. The petals are dense with silky hairs on the outer surface of their base, but less so at their apex. Its

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s are 1.5-2.5 millimeters long. Its flowers have 10-22 green, oblong, densely hairy

carpels Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...

that are 2-2.5 millimeters long. Its carpels have around 10 ovules. Its fruit are 2-4 by 0.8-1 centimeters and covered in dense, brown, velvety hairs. Its yellow to brown seeds are 7-8 by 4-5 millimeters.

Reproductive biology

Its pollen is shed as permanent tetrads.

Distribution and habitat

It has been observed growing in coastal areas at elevations of 10 meters.

Uses

Bioactive molecules extracted from the bark of the stems and roots have been reported to have

antiplasmodial ''Plasmodium'' is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of ''Plasmodium'' species involve development in a blood-feeding insect host which then injects parasites into a verteb ...

and antitrypanosomal activities.

References

{{Taxonbar asterias Flora of Kenya Flora of Tanzania Plants described in 1901 Taxa named by Adolf Engler Taxa named by Ludwig Diels