''Solanum linnaeanum'' is a

nightshade The Solanaceae , or nightshades, are a family of flowering plants that ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and orna ...

species known as devil's apple and, in some places where it is introduced, apple of Sodom. The latter name is also used for other nightshades and entirely different plants elsewhere, in particular the poisonous milkweed '' Calotropis procera''. This poisonous plant bearing tomato-like fruit is native to many African countries Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique,Species Fact Sheet, Queensland Government and is considered to be an invasive species in Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii,

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

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, other

Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

, the Aseer region of Saudi Arabia, and northern areas of Pakistan. When raw its fruits are green and look exactly like the Thai eggplant and when ripe they are yellow. In Ukambani eastern Kenya children in the villages in summer season use the poisonous yellow fruit as football, cautiously. Solbec Pharmaceuticals attempted to develop

Coramsine Coramsine (SBP002) was an experimental cancer drug that was evaluated in preliminary clinical trials, but was abandoned by Solbec Pharmaceuticals Ltd after the results were insufficient for them to raise investment capital to continue its developm ...

, a 1:1 mixture of the

alkaloids Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar st ...

solamargine Solamargine is a cytotoxic chemical compound that occurs in plants of the family Solanaceae, such as potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplants. It has been also isolated from ''Solanum nigrum'' fungal endophyte ''Aspergillus flavus''. It is a glycoalkaloi ...

and solasonine extracted from ''Solanum linnaeanum'', as a cancer drug. Preliminary clinical trials were initially promising,Millward ''et al.'' (2005) but the drug was ultimately unsuccessful. ''Solanum linnaeanum'' may be confused with '' Solanum cinereum'' (Narrawa burr) in Australia, the neotropical '' Solanum capsicoides'', or ''

Solanum incanum ''Solanum incanum'' is a species of nightshade, a flowering plant in the family Solanaceae. It is native to Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, eastwards to India. The species was introduced to Taiwan and Vietnam. Common names include thorn ...

'' in Africa.

Synonyms

Due to confusion about what species the original ''Solanum sodomeum'' of Carl Linnaeus referred to (most recently, it was identified as '' Solanum ferox''), the old description was discarded and the plant redescribed as currently understood. A new taxon honoring Linnaeus was chosen. A number of invalid taxa have thus become attached to the devil's apple:Solanaceae Source (2008) * ''Solanum astrophorum'' Jan (''

nomen nudum In taxonomy, a ''nomen nudum'' ('naked name'; plural ''nomina nuda'') is a designation which looks exactly like a scientific name of an organism, and may have originally been intended to be one, but it has not been published with an adequate descr ...

'') * ''Solanum hermannii'' Dunal * ''Solanum mccannii'' Santapau * ''Solanum sodomeum'' L. (disputed) * ''Solanum sodomeum var. hermannii'' (Dunal) Dunal * ''Solanum sodomeum var. mediterraneum'' Dunal * ''Solanum undatum'' Bouton ex Dunal (

preoccupied The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linn ...

) :''Solanum undatum'' as described by Walsh is ''

Solanum lycocarpum ''Solanum lycocarpum'', or wolf apple, is common in the Brazilian savanna, the Cerrado ecoregion. The plant is called ''lobeira'' ("wolf's plant") or ''fruta-do-lobo'' ("wolf's fruit") in Portuguese. The name "wolf apple" comes from the fact t ...

''. :''Solanum undatum'' var. ''violaceum'', described by Dunal in de Candolle, is the original ''

Solanum aethiopicum ''Solanum aethiopicum'', the bitter tomato, Ethiopian eggplant, or nakati, is a fruiting plant of the genus ''Solanum'' mainly found in Asia and Tropical Africa. It is also known as Ethiopian nightshade, garden eggs, pumpkin-on-a-stick, and moc ...

'' of Linnaeus. It is not clear whether the plant described by Drège as ''Solanum sodomeum'' was of this species. ''Solanum sodomeum'' by Russ based on

Nees von Esenbeck Christian Gottfried Daniel Nees von Esenbeck (14 February 1776 – 16 March 1858) was a prolific German botanist, physician, zoologist, and natural philosopher. He was a contemporary of Goethe and was born within the lifetime of Linnaeus. He des ...

is another ''nomen nudum''.

References

Footnotes

* (2004): Weeds Australia &ndash
Apple of Sodom
Retrieved 2006-MAY-27. *

006 Alec Trevelyan (006) is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 1995 James Bond film ''GoldenEye'', the first film to feature actor Pierce Brosnan as Bond. Trevelyan is portrayed by actor Sean Bean. The likeness of Bean as Alec T ...

Declared plants list &ndash
Apple of Sodom (''Solanum linnaeanum'')
Retrieved 2006-MAY-27. * (2005): Phase I trial of coramsine (SBP002) in patients with advanced solid tumors. Abstract of presentation at 2005 ASCO Annual Meeting. '' J. Clin. Oncol.'' 23(16S): 310
HTML fulltext
* (2005): An Illustrated Guide to Common Weeds of New Zealand &ndash

Version of 2005-DEC-20. Retrieved 2006-MAY-27. * (2008)
''Solanum linnaeanum''
Version of July 2008. Retrieved 2008-SEP-25. *

br>Coramsine Manufacturing and Operations
Retrieved 2006-MAY-27. *

br>''Solanum linnaeanum'' Fact Sheet, Weeds of Australia, Queensland Government
Retrieved 2012-MAY-15. linnaeanum Flora of South Africa Commemoration of Carl Linnaeus {{Solanales-stub