''Nepenthes'' × ''alisaputrana'' ( preferably, or ; after Datuk Lamri Ali), or the leopard pitcher-plant,Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. ''

Pitcher-Plants of Borneo ''Pitcher-Plants of Borneo'' is a monograph by Anthea Phillipps and Anthony Lamb on the tropical pitcher plants of Borneo. It was first published in 1996 by Natural History Publications (Borneo), in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Ke ...

''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. is a

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

of two well-known ''

Nepenthes ''Nepenthes'' () is a genus of carnivorous plants, also known as tropical pitcher plants, or monkey cups, in the monotypic family Nepenthaceae. The genus includes about 170 species, and numerous natural and many cultivated hybrids. They are mos ...

pitcher plant Pitcher plants are several different carnivorous plants which have modified leaves known as pitfall traps—a prey-trapping mechanism featuring a deep cavity filled with digestive liquid. The traps of what are considered to be "true" pitcher p ...

species: '' N. burbidgeae'' and '' N. rajah''. The plant is confined to

Mount Kinabalu Mount Kinabalu ( ms, Gunung Kinabalu, Dusun language, Dusun: ''Gayo Ngaran or Nulu Nabalu'') is the highest mountain in Borneo and Malaysia. With an elevation of , it is List of islands by highest point, third-highest peak of an island on Eart ...

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...

.Clarke, C.M. 1997. ''

Nepenthes of Borneo ''Nepenthes of Borneo'' is a monograph by Charles Clarke on the tropical pitcher plants of Borneo.Clarke, C.M. 1997. ''Nepenthes of Borneo''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. It was first published in 1997 by Natural History ...

''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. Alisaputrana&rajah

''Nepenthes'' × ''alisaputrana'' was described in 1992 by J. H. Adam and C. C. Wilcock and is named in honour of Datuk Lamri Ali, a former Director of

Sabah Parks Sabah Parks ( ms, Taman-Taman Sabah) is a conservation-based statutory body established in 1964 with the purpose of conserving the scenic, scientific and historic heritage of the state of Sabah, Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. The organisation ...

. It is only known from a few remote localities within

Kinabalu National Park Kinabalu Park ( ms, Taman Kinabalu), established as one of the first national parks of Malaysia in 1964, is Malaysia's first World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO in December 2000 for its "outstanding universal values" and the role as one of ...

, where it grows in stunted, open vegetation over serpentine soils at around 2000 m above sea level, often amongst populations of ''N. burbidgeae''.Clarke, C.M. 2001. ''

A Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Sabah This list of ''Nepenthes'' literature is a listing of major published works dealing with the tropical pitcher plants of the genus ''Nepenthes''. It includes specialised standalone publications and Biological classification, taxonomic monographs ...

''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. It grows alongside both parent species on Pig Hill,Thong, J. 2006. ''

Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society Journal ''Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society Inc.'', formerly titled simply ''Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society'' and also known as the ''VCPS Journal'', is a quarterly periodical A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simp ...

'' 82: 6–12. where it is found at 1930–1950 m. This plant is notable for combining the best characters of both parent species, not least the size of its pitchers, which rival those of ''N. rajah'' in volume (≤35 cm high, ≤20 cm wide). The other hybrids involving ''N. rajah'' do not exhibit such impressive proportions. The pitchers of ''N.'' × ''alisaputrana'' can be distinguished from those of ''N. burbidgeae'' by a broader peristome, larger lid, and simply by their sheer size. The hybrid differs from its other parent, ''N. rajah'', by its lid structure, indumentum of short, brown hairs, narrower and more cylindrical peristome, and pitcher colour, which is usually yellow-green with red or brown flecking. For this reason,

Anthea Phillipps Datin Anthea Phillipps B.Sc. (born 3 June 1956) is a British botanist. Phillipps was brought up in Sabah, Borneo as a child (and still dwells there today). She received a Botany degree from the University of Durham, England. She worked at the S ...

and Anthony Lamb gave it the common name "Leopard Pitcher-Plant". The peristome is green to dark red and striped with purple bands. Leaves are often slightly peltate. The hybrid is a strong climber and frequently produces upper pitchers. ''Nepenthes'' × ''alisaputrana'' more closely resembles ''N. rajah'' than ''N. burbidgeae'', but it is difficult to confuse this plant with either. However, this mistake has previously been made on at least one occasion; a pitcher illustrated in Adrian Slack's ''Insect-Eating Plants and How to Grow Them'' as being ''N. rajah''Slack, A. 1986. ''Insect-Eating Plants and How to Grow Them''. Alphabooks, Dorset, UK. is in fact ''N. burbidgeae'' × ''N. rajah''. In 2002,

phytochemical Phytochemicals are chemical compounds produced by plants, generally to help them resist fungi, bacteria and plant virus infections, and also consumption by insects and other animals. The name comes . Some phytochemicals have been used as poisons ...

screening and analytical chromatography were used to study the presence of phenolic compounds and

leucoanthocyanin Leucoanthocyanidin (flavan-3,4-diols) are colorless chemical compounds related to anthocyanidins and anthocyanins. Leucoanthocyanins can be found in ''Anadenanthera peregrina'' and in several species of ''Nepenthes'' including '' N. burbidgeae ...

s in ''N.'' × ''alisaputrana'' and its putative parent species. The research was based on leaf material from nine dry herbarium specimens. Eight spots containing

phenolic acid Phenolic acids or phenolcarboxylic acids are types of aromatic acid compounds. Included in that class are substances containing a phenolic ring and an organic carboxylic acid function (C6-C1 skeleton). Two important naturally occurring types of ...

flavonol Flavonols are a class of flavonoids that have the 3-hydroxyflavone backbone (IUPAC name : 3-hydroxy-2-phenylchromen-4-one). Their diversity stems from the different positions of the phenolic -OH groups. They are distinct from flavanols (with "a ...

flavone Flavone is an organic compound with the formula . A white solid, flavone is a derivative of chromone with a phenyl (Ph) substituent adjacent to the ether group. The compound is of little direct practical importance, but susbstituted derivatives, t ...

s and 'unknown

flavonoid Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans. Chemically, flavonoids ...

' 1 and 3 were identified from chromatographic profiles. The distributions of these in the hybrid ''N.'' × ''alisaputrana'' and its putative parental species ''N. burbidgeae'' and ''N. rajah'' are shown in the adjacent table. A specimen of ''N.'' × ''alisaputrana'' grown from

tissue culture Tissue culture is the growth of tissues or cells in an artificial medium separate from the parent organism. This technique is also called micropropagation. This is typically facilitated via use of a liquid, semi-solid, or solid growth medium, su ...

(''

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in biology an ...

'') was also tested.

Luteolin Luteolin is a flavone, a type of flavonoid, with a yellow crystalline appearance. Luteolin is the principal yellow dye compound that is obtained from the plant ''Reseda luteola'', which has been used as a source of the dye since at least the fir ...

cyanidin Cyanidin is a natural organic compound. It is a particular type of anthocyanidin (glycoside version called anthocyanins). It is a pigment found in many red berries including grapes, bilberry, blackberry, blueberry, cherry, chokeberry, cranb ...

and 'Unknown Flavonoid 3' were undetected in ''N. burbidgeae'', while concentrations of 'Unknown Flavonoid 1' were found to be weak. Chromatographic patterns of the ''N. × alisaputrana'' samples studied showed complementation of its putative parental species.

Myricetin Myricetin is a member of the flavonoid class of polyphenolic compounds, with antioxidant properties. Common dietary sources include vegetables (including tomatoes), fruits (including oranges), nuts, berries, tea, and red wine. Myricetin is structu ...

was found to be absent from all studied taxa. This agrees with the findings of previous authorsSom, R.M. 1988. Systematic studies on ''Nepenthes'' species and hybrids in the Malay Peninsula. Ph.D. thesis, Fakulti Sains Hayat, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, UKM Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan. and suggests that the absence of a widely distributed compound like myricetin among the ''Nepenthes'' examined might provide additional diagnostic information for these

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

References

Further reading