Sinopodophyllum

''Sinopodophyllum'' is an herbaceous perennial plant in the family Berberidaceae, described as a genus in 1979. It includes only one known species, ''Sinopodophyllum hexandrum'', native to Afghanistan, Bhutan, northern India, Kashmir, Nepal, Pakistan, and western China (Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan). Common names include Himalayan may apple and Indian may apple.

Description

''Sinopodophyllum hexandrum'' is low to the ground with glossy green, drooping, lobed leaves on its few stiff branches, bearing a pale pink flower and bright red-orange bulbous fruit. The ornamental appearance of the plant make it a desirable addition to woodland-type gardens. It can be propagated by seed or by dividing the rhizome. It is very tolerant of cold temperatures, as would be expected of a Himalayan plant, but it does not tolerate dry conditions. Its name in Hindi and Ayurveda is ''bantrapushi'' or ''Giriparpat'' and is locally referred to as 'ban kakdi' in the Valley of Flowers National Park.

Medicinal uses

The root and rhizome of the plant are poisonous, but used traditionally for medicine. They are composed of aryltetralin lignans that have anticancer, antifungal, and immunomodulatory properties.Kharkwal, A.C., Kushwaha, R., Prakash, O., Ogra, R.K., Bhattacharya, A., Nagar, P.K. and Ahuja, P.S., (2008). An efficient method of propagation of Podophyllum hexandrum: an endangered medicinal plant of the Western Himalayas under ex situ conditions. ''Journal of natural Medicines'', ''62''(2), pp.211-216. The rhizome of the plant also contains a resin, known generally and commercially as Indian Podophyllum Resin, which can be processed to extract podophyllin (podophyllotoxin), a neurotoxin. Rhizomes contain up to 15% podophyllin. In carefully administered doses, the resin can be applied topically to treat genital warts.

Distribution and habitat

''Sinopodophyllum hexandrum'' grows across the Himalayan region, east to Afghanistan, and north to Southwest China. It is reasonably abundant in the Great Himalayan National Park of Himachal Pradesh. In the fringes of the Valley of Flowers National Park, the plant's density is about one individual per square meter according to a study by C.P. Kala.

Conservation

Harvesting from the wild is becoming unsustainable.Chaurasia, O., & Ballabh, B. (2012). Podophyllum L: An endergered and anticancerous medicinal plant–An overview. ''Indian Journal Traditional of Traditional Knowledge'', ''11'', 234–241. http://nopr.niscair.res.in/handle/123456789/13851''Podophyllum peltatum'' L. (May-apple). Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC)(2012). http://www.agr.gc.ca/eng/science-and-innovation/science-publications-and-resources/resources/canadian-medicinal-crops/medicinal-crops/podophyllum-peltatum-l-may-apple/?id=1301436227464Rawal, D. S., Sijapati, J., Rana, N., Rana, P., Giri, A., & Shrestha, S. (2009). Some high value medicinal plants of Khumbum region Nepal, ''10'', 73–82. Over-exploitation of ''S. hexandrum'' and deforestation have resulted in its current IUCN endangered listing.Ghimire, S. K., Mckey, D., & Aumeeruddy-Thomas, Y. (2006). Himalayan medicinal plant diversity in an ecologically complex high altitude anthropogenic landscape, Dolpo, Nepal. ''Environmental Conservation'', ''33'', 1. doi:10.1017/S0376892906002943 It is also listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) in which collecting and exporting all plant parts of ''S. hexandrum'' except for seed and pollen is illegal.

A study published by Kharkwal et al. (2008) found that propagating ''S. hexandrum'' seeds in an off-site controlled environment allowed seedlings to grow one year faster than in the field. Effective ex situ methods such as this can conserve genetic diversity while providing a substantial volume of transplants to go back out into the wild to combat over-harvesting vulnerability.

File:Podophyllum hexandrum leaf early autumn.jpg, Close-up of single leaf
File:Podophyllum hexandrum ripe fruit early autumn.jpg, The approximately 5 cm long ripe fruit
File:Podophyllum hexandrum 1.JPG, Flowers
File:Podophyllum hexandrum 'Majus', 2020.jpg, Portrait of a flower with leaves underneath
File:Podophyllum hexandrum 'Majus', side view 2020.jpg, Close-up on a flower and its reproductive parts
File:Podophyllum hexandrum 2.JPG, Some fruits of a >20-year-old plant

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q9077845, from2=Q15347589

Flora of Asia
Berberidaceae
Monotypic Ranunculales genera
Plants used in Ayurveda
Berberidaceae genera