| Fritillaria cirrhosa | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Liliales |
| Family: | Liliaceae |
| Subfamily: | Lilioideae |
| Genus: | Fritillaria |
| Species: | F. cirrhosa |
| Binomial name | |
| Fritillaria cirrhosa | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
Synonymy
| |
Fritillaria cirrhosa, common name yellow Himalayan fritillary, [2] is an Asian species of herbaceous plant in the lily family, native to China (Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan), the Indian subcontinent (Nepal, Pakistan, India, Bhutan), and Myanmar. [3] [4]
Fritillaria cirrhosa produces bulbs up to 20 mm (0.8 in) in diameter. The stem is up to 60 cm (24 in) tall, usually with one flower at the top, sometimes two or three. Leaves are narrowly lanceolate, usually opposite, sometimes whorled, up to 13 cm (5.1 in) long. Flowers are bell-shaped, yellowish-green to brownish-purple flowers which are usually with a chequered pattern in dull purple. The plant is commonly found in alpine slopes and shrublands of the Himalayas, at altitudes of 2,700–4,000 m (9,000–13,000 ft). [4] [5] [6] [7] It is in danger of extinction, due to be being aggressively collected to make a traditional Chinese medicine, Bulbus fritillariae cirrhosae . [8]
It was first published and described in the "Prodromus Florae Nepalensis 51" by David Don in 1825 [6] . Fritillaria is the genus name which comes from the latin word fritillus, meaning dice box [9] in reference to the typical checkered box pattern of the genera. Cirrhosa comes from the latin words cirrh, curls/tendrils, and os, plenty, meaning with lots of tendrils, curls [10] .
Several names have been coined at infraspecific levels (variety, subspecies, and form) for plants once believed to belong to Fritillaria cirrhosa. None of these is currently recognized. Some of the names are regarded as synonyms of Fritillaria cirrhosa not deserving recognition (see synonym list at right). A few others are considered as belonging to distinct species. Those are:
Fritillaria cirrhosa contains steroidal alkaloids, nucleosides, and terpenoids [11] .
Fritillaria cirrhosa is mainly used in China, especially in medicine, specifically the bulbs. However, it is also used in foods [12] . For centuries, the bulbs have been used for coughs [13] .
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