The Sapindaceae are a

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

s in the order

Sapindales Sapindales is an order of flowering plants. Well-known members of Sapindales include citrus; maples, horse-chestnuts, lychees and rambutans; mangos and cashews; frankincense and myrrh; mahogany and neem. The APG III system of 2009 inclu ...

known as the soapberry family. It contains 138 genera and 1858 accepted species. Examples include horse chestnut,

maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since ht ...

s, ackee and lychee. The Sapindaceae occur in temperate to tropical regions, many in laurel forest habitat, throughout the world. Many are laticiferous, i.e. they contain

latex Latex is an emulsion (stable dispersion) of polymer microparticles in water. Latexes are found in nature, but synthetic latexes are common as well. In nature, latex is found as a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants (angiosper ...

, a milky sap, and many contain mildly

toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subs ...

saponins with

soap Soap is a salt of a fatty acid used in a variety of cleansing and lubricating products. In a domestic setting, soaps are surfactants usually used for washing, bathing, and other types of housekeeping. In industrial settings, soaps are used ...

-like qualities in either the foliage and/or the seeds, or roots. The largest genera are '' Serjania'', '' Paullinia'', '' Allophylus'' and ''

Acer Acer may refer to: * ''Acer'' (plant), the genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples * Acer Inc., a computer company in Taiwan ** Acer Laboratories Incorporated, a subsidiary company of Acer, Inc., that designs and manufactures integrate ...

''.

Description

Plants of this family have a variety of habits, from

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s to

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition ...

s to

liana A liana is a long- stemmed, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy in search of direct sunlight. The word ''liana'' does not refer to a ...

s. The leaves of the tropical genera are usually spirally alternate, while those of the temperate maples (''

), Aesculus'', and a few other genera are opposite. They are most often

pinnately compound Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

, but are palmately compound in ''Aesculus'', and simply palmate in ''Acer''. The petiole has a swollen base and lacks stipules. Some genera and species have laurel forest foliage due to

convergent evolution Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...

The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

s are small and

unisexual Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproducti ...

, or functionally unisexual, though plants may be either

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproducti ...

or monoecious. They are usually found in cymes grouped in

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is ...

s. They most often have four or five

petal Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usuall ...

s and

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...

s (petals are absent in ''

Dodonaea ''Dodonaea'' is a genus of about 70 species of flowering plants, often known as hop-bushes, in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae. It has a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate regions of Africa, the Americas, s ...

''). The

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 filam ...

s range from four to 10, usually on a nectar disc between the petals and stamens, their filaments are often hairy. The most frequent number is eight, in two rings of four. The

gynoecium 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) '' pistil ...

contains two or three

carpel 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' ...

s, sometimes up to six. The usually single style has a lobed stigma. Most often they are pollinated by

birds Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

insects Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

, with a few species pollinated by

wind Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few ...

. Ripe

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

s may be fleshy or dry. They may be

nuts Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed, or a collective noun for dry and edible fruits or seeds * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut or Nuts may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Com ...

, berries,

drupe In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is an indehiscent fruit in which an outer fleshy part ( exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pit'', ''stone'', or '' pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed (''kerne ...

s, schizocarps, capsules ('' Bridgesia''), or samaras (''Acer''). The embryos are bent or coiled, without endosperm in the seed, and frequently with an aril.

Classification

The Sapindaceae are related to the Rutaceae, and both are usually placed in an order

Rutales Sapindales is an order of flowering plants. Well-known members of Sapindales include citrus; maples, horse-chestnuts, lychees and rambutans; mangos and cashews; frankincense and myrrh; mahogany and neem. The APG III system of 2009 includes it i ...

, depending on whether they are kept separate and which name is used for the order. The most

basal Basal or basilar is a term meaning ''base'', ''bottom'', or ''minimum''. Science * Basal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features associated with the base of an organism or structure * Basal (medicine), a minimal level that is nec ...

member appears to be '' Xanthoceras''. Some authors formerly maintained some or all of Hippocastanaceae and Aceraceae, however this resulted in paraphyly. The former

Ptaeroxylaceae Ptaeroxylaceae Juss. are a small family of Southern African indigenous trees and woody lianes, most of them from Madagascar, comprising only two genera. Such a family was not recognized by the APG II system of classification (2003), which noted th ...

, now placed in Rutaceae, were sometimes placed in Sapindaceae. The family is divided into four subfamilies, Dodonaeoideae (about 38 genera), Sapindoideae (about 114 genera), Hippocastanoideae (5 genera) and Xanthoceroideae (1 genus). The largest genera are '' Serjania'' (about 220 species), '' Paullinia'' (about 180 species), and '' Allophylus'' (about 200 species) in the tropical Sapindoideae and ''

'' (about 110 species) in the temperate Hippocastanoideae. The largely temperate genera formerly separated in the families Aceraceae (''Acer'', '' Dipteronia'') and Hippocastanaceae ('' Aesculus'', ''

Billia ''Billia'' is a genus of trees in the family Sapindaceae and native to the Americas, from central Mexico to Ecuador. The wood is used in carpentry. Species The following species are recognized: * ''Billia hippocastanum'' * ''Billia rosea ...

'', ''

Handeliodendron ''Handeliodendron bodinieri'' is a rare deciduous tree/shrub native to China and the only species in the monotypic genus ''Handeliodendron''. Description It grows up to 15 meters tall, and grows in mountain areas characterized by irregular lim ...

'') were included within a more broadly circumscribed Sapindaceae by the

Angiosperm Phylogeny Group The Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG) is an informal international group of systematic botanists who collaborate to establish a consensus on the taxonomy of flowering plants (angiosperms) that reflects new knowledge about plant relationships dis ...

. Recent research has confirmed the inclusion of these genera in the Sapindaceae.

Notable species

The Sapindaceae include many species of economically valuable tropical

, including the lychee, longan, pitomba, guinip/mamoncillo, korlan, rambutan, pulasan, and ackee. Other products include guaraná, soapberries, and

maple syrup Maple syrup is a syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring. Maple t ...

. Some species of

and buckeye are valued for their wood, while several other genera, such as '' Koelreuteria'', '' Cardiospermum'', and '' Ungnadia'', are popular ornamentals. '' Schleichera trijuga'' is the source of Indian macassar oil. Saponins extracted from the

of ''

Sapindus ''Sapindus'' is a genus of about five to twelve species of shrubs and small trees in the lychee family, Sapindaceae, native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the world. The genus includes both deciduous and evergreen species. Members of ...

'' species are effective surfactants and are used commercially in

cosmetics Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protec ...

and

detergent A detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with cleansing properties when in dilute solutions. There are a large variety of detergents, a common family being the alkylbenzene sulfonates, which are soap-like compounds that are m ...

s. File:Ackee 001.jpg, Ackee (''Blighia Sapida)'' fruit File:Melicoccus bijugatus (Sapindaceae).jpg, Guinep/ Mamoncillo ''(Melicoccus bijugatus)'' fruit File:Lychee fruit.jpg, Lychee Fruit File:Dimocarpus longan males F 070203 035 ime ed.jpg,

Alupag The alupag is a fruit of the ''Dimocarpus malesianus'' tree found in Indochina and Malaysia. Compared to a longan, it has bumpier skin. The tree's wood is used to make combs. Description Tree with brown twigs. Leaves acute to acuminate with a ...

(''Dimocarpus didyma'') fruits File:Essa fruta se divide em tres como o guaraná.jpg, Guaraná fruit

References

External links

Sapindaceae
i

USDA Agricultural Research Service: Fruits and seeds of Sapindaceae.
Retrieved 16 July 2018. {{Authority control Sapindales families Saponaceous plants