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Actaea pachypoda (White Baneberry)
Actaea (baneberry or
bugbane) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the
family Ranunculaceae, native to temperate
regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
The genus is closely related to Cimicifuga and Souliea, and
many botanists include those genera within Actaea (e.g.
Compton et al. 1998, Compton & Culham 2002, Gao et al. 2006,
RHS Plant Finder, 2007) based on combined evidence from DNA
sequence data, similarity in biochemical constituents and on
morphology; if included, the number of species in Actaea
rises to 25-30. Other botanists (e.g. Hoffman 1999, Wang et al.
1999, Lee & Park 2004) reject this merger because only one
group (Actaea) have fleshy fruit while the remainder have dry
fruit. The genus is treated here in its broader sense.
- Selected species
The name Actaea alba (L.) Mill. is a confused one
(Fernald 1940); although described as an American species (now
named A. pachypoda), the illustration on which the
description was based was actually a picture of the European A.
spicata, and strictly, the name is therefore a synonym
of the European species. Some texts however still treat A.
pachypoda under this name.
Actaea is recorded as a food plant for the larva of the Dot Moth.
Use and
toxicity
Baneberry contains cardiogenic toxins than can have an immediate
sedative effect on human cardiac muscle tissue. The berries are the
most poisonous part of the plant (hence the name
baneberry). Children have been poisoned by eating
the waxy, shiny red or white berries. Ingestion of the berries can
lead to cardiac arrest and death. The berries are harmless to
birds, the plant's primary seed disperser. Actaea species
are closely related to plants in the genus Aconitum, a highly toxic plant genus which
contains wolfbane and several varieties of
monkshood. [1]
The roots of A. rubra contain β-sitosterol glucoside, [2] and
they were used medicinally by Native Americans as an alternative to
Black Cohosh, (A. racemosa), for menstrual cramping and menopausal
discomfort.
References
- ^
Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, ISBN
0-87842-359-1
- ^
Planta Med 2006; 72: 1350-1352 DOI: 10.1055/s-2006-951696
- Compton, J. A., Culham, A. & Jury, S. L. (1998).
Reclassification of Actaea to include Cimicifuga and Souliea
(Ranunculaceae): Phylogeny inferred from morphology, nrDNA ITS, and
cpDNA trnL-F sequence variation. Taxon 47: 593–634.
- Compton, JA & Culham, A., 2002. Phylogeny and
circumscription of tribe Actaeeae (Ranunculaceae). Syst. Bot.,
27(3): 502-511
- Fernald, M. L. 1940. What is Actaea alba? Rhodora 42:
260-265.
- Gao, J-C., Zhang, J-C., Lu, Z-J, Zhu G-Y, Yang, M-S & Xiao,
P-G, 2006. Chemical constituents of Actaea asiatica Hara and their
anti-osteoporosis activities Biochemical Systematics and Ecology,
34(9): 710-713
- Hoffman, M. H. 1999. The phylogeny of Actaea (Ranunculaceae): a
biogeographical approach. Pl. Syst. Evol. 216:
251–263.
- Lee, H.-W. & Park, C.-W. (2004). New Taxa of Cimicifuga
(Ranunculaceae) from Korea and the United States. Novon
14: 180–184 (available online (pdf file).
- RHS Plant Finder http://www.rhs.org.uk/rhsplantfinder/plantfinder.asp
- Wang, W. T., Li, L.-Q. & Wang, Z. (1999). Notulae de
Ran-unculaceis Sinensibus XXIII. Acta Phytotax. Sin. 37:
209–219.
- Germplasm Resources
Information Network: Actaea (treats genus in broad
sense)
- Flora of China:
Actaea (treats genus in narrow sense)
- Flora of North America:
Actaea (treats genus in narrow sense)
- Edible and Medicinal plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford,
ISBN 0-87842-359-1
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