''Renealmia alpinia'' is a

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

species native to the Americas, where it grows from southern Mexico through much of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

, though not in the Southern Cone. It can also be found on several Caribbean islands. In

Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...

it is called ''misk'i p'anqa'' (''misk'i'' sweet; honey, ''p'anqa'' bract, "sweet bract" or "honey bract"). The name alludes to ''R. alpinias value as a

culinary herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

, especially for flavoring fish. Among Spanish-speakers this species is known as ''jenjibre-de-jardin'' ("garden ginger"). Both ''jenjibre-de-jardin'' and ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') are in the family

Zingiberaceae Zingiberaceae () or the ginger family is a family of flowering plants made up of about 50 genera with a total of about 1600 known species of aromatic perennial herbs with creeping horizontal or tuberous rhizomes distributed throughout tropical Af ...

. ''Renealmia alpinia'' is commonly known as ''mardi gras'' in

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

, where hunters administer it either orally or topically to their

hunting dog A hunting dog is a canine that hunts with or for hunters. There are several different types of hunting dog developed for various tasks and purposes. The major categories of hunting dog include hounds, terriers, dachshunds, cur type dogs, and g ...

s to treat a variety of conditions, from sprains to

snakebite A snakebite is an injury caused by the bite of a snake, especially a venomous snake. A common sign of a bite from a venomous snake is the presence of two puncture wounds from the animal's fangs. Sometimes venom injection from the bite may occu ...

. In Suriname it's known as ''masoesa''.

Biochemistry

Zhou et al. (1997) of the

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six regi ...

identified three

diterpene Diterpenes are a class of chemical compounds composed of four isoprene units, often with the molecular formula C20H32. They are biosynthesized by plants, animals and fungi via the HMG-CoA reductase pathway, with geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate being ...

s produced by ''R. alpinia'': 11-hydroxy-8(17),12(E)-labdadien-15,-16-dial 11,15-hemiacetal (1) and 16-oxo-8(17),12(E)-labdadien-15-oic acid (2), which are

labdane diterpene Labdane is a natural bicyclic diterpene. It forms the structural core for a wide variety of natural products collectively known as ''labdanes'' or ''labdane diterpenes''. The labdanes were so named because the first members of the class were or ...

s, and 8(17),12(E)-labdadien-15,16-dial (3). The team performed these assays on the basis of reports that ''R. alpinia'' may be

antipyretic An antipyretic (, from ''anti-'' 'against' and ' 'feverish') is a substance that reduces fever. Antipyretics cause the hypothalamus to override a prostaglandin-induced increase in temperature. The body then works to lower the temperature, which r ...

(fever-reducing).

Biogeography

In Mexico, wild ''R. alpinia'' populations have been found in the southern states of Chiapas,

Oaxaca Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of Mexico. It is ...

, and

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

. It also grows on the Caribbean islands of Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, St. Kitts, Nevis, Trinidad, and Tobago. In

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, it grows in Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama. In South America, it is found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.

References

External links

''Renealmia alpinia''
at Discover Life. Retrieved 24 June 2013. {{Taxonbar, from=Q15296809

alpinia ''Alpinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is named for Prospero Alpini, a 17th-century Italian botanist who specialized in exotic plants. Species are native to Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands, whe ...

Flora of the Amazon Flora of Brazil Flora of Colombia Flora of Costa Rica Flora of Ecuador Flora of French Guiana Flora of Grenada Flora of Guadeloupe Flora of Guatemala Flora of Guyana Flora of Honduras Flora of Martinique Flora of Mexico Flora of Montserrat Flora of Panama Flora of Peru Flora of Puerto Rico Flora of Saint Kitts and Nevis Flora of Suriname Flora of Trinidad and Tobago Flora of Venezuela Medicinal plants of South America Plants described in 1775 Flora without expected TNC conservation status