From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Vitaceae
Cissus quadrangularis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Vitales
Family:	Vitaceae
Genus:	Cissus L.
Species
About 350, including: Cissus antarctica - kangaroo treevine Cissus gongylodes - marble treevine Cissus hypoglauca Cissus paniculata Cissus quadrangularis - veld grape Cissus rhombifolia - grape Ivy Cissus striata Cissus trifoliata - sorrelvine Cissus tuberosa Cissus verticillata - seasonvine

Cissus is a genus of approximately 350 species of woody climber in the grape family (Vitaceae). They have a cosmopolitan distribution, though the majority are to be found in the tropics. In Tamil it is known as "pirandai" (பிரண்டை).

Among the most common species, Cissus antarctica and Cissus rhombifolia are garden plants. Cissus striata is a woody wine native from South America, mainly from Chile.

Cissus species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Hypercompe eridanus and Hypercompe icasia.

Medical uses

Cissus quadrangularis has been evaluated for medical uses. As of May 2009, a PubMed search for Cissus returns 68 results.

As a rich source of carotenoids, triterpenoids and ascorbic acid it has potential for medical effects, including "gastroprotective activity" in conjunction with NSAID therapy^[1] and in "lipid metabolism and oxidative stress" ^[2].

Sports and Nutritional Supplement Industry

Cissus has been "discovered" by sports and nutritional supplement manufacturers and, mostly based on anecdotal evidence, many claims for "weight loss" and "muscle protective" effects are being made. Participants in some weightlifting forums also say it can help with soft tissue problems in the joints such as tendonitis.

Cissus is known to be an ancient medical plant, with optimal healing in white tissue areas of the body ( tendons, ligaments, etc).^[3]

Sport supplement manufactures recently purified an extract of the plant to help increase the delivery of nutrients to soft tissue. It also helps heal fractures by increases in new bone growth, and has been shown to relieve arthritis and osteoarthritis when used topically as a balm.^[3]

Taxonomy note

In the 1980's the genus was split according to some details of the flower. The large caudiciform species were moved to the new genus Cyphostemma.

External links

• Cissus striata pictures at Chilebosque
• Decription of the genus

Different views & aspects of different species

Cissus woodrowii in Keesara, Rangareddy district, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Cissus woodrowii in Keesara, Rangareddy district, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Cissus woodrowii in Keesara, Rangareddy district, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Cissus repanda in Keesara, Rangareddy district, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Cissus hypoglauca growing over a creek at Murramarang National Park, Australia

References

From Wikispecies

Cissus woodrowii

Taxonavigation

Main Page
Cladus: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Divisio: Magnoliophyta
Classis: Magnoliopsida
Ordo: Vitales
Familia: Vitaceae
Genus: Cissus
Species: ... - C. alata - C. antarctica - C. anisophylla - C. apendiculata - C. biformifolia - C. bracteosa - C. campestris - C. coccinea - C. descoingsii - C. erosa - C. fuliginea - C. gongylodes - C. hypoglauca - C. microcarpa - C. obliqua - C. peruviana - C. quadrangularis - C. rhombifolia - C. sicyoides - C. spinosa - C. striata - C. trifoliata - C. tuberosa - C. ulmifolia - ...

Name

Cissus L.

For more multimedia, look at Cissus on Wikimedia Commons.