Griffonia Explained

Griffonia is a genus of central African flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Cercidoideae. Griffonia is known to have a high concentration of 5-HTP in its seeds.

The genus includes four species of scandent shrubs and lianas native to west and west-central tropical Africa, ranging from Liberia to DR Congo and Angola. They grow in humid tropical forests, swamp forests, and thickets in coastal wooded grassland.[1]

G. physocarpa, G. speciosa, and G. tessmannii are native to west-central Africa, with G. physocarpa having the widest distribution. G. simplicifolia ranges from Gabon to Liberia.[1]

Taxonomy

The genus Griffonia was named by Henri Baillon in honour of his friend and fellow physician Marie-Théophile Griffon du Bellay, explorer of Gabon, pioneer in the study of sleeping sickness and also of the African entheogen Iboga, source of the alkaloid ibogaine. [2]

Species

Griffonia comprises the following species:[3] [4] [5] [1]

Notes and References

  1. https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:22523-1 Griffonia Baill.
  2. http://ecole.nav.traditions.free.fr/officiers_griffon_theophile.htm Retrieved at 10.02 on 31/10/20.
  3. Web site: Name - !Griffonia Baill. subordinate taxa . Tropicos . Missouri Botanical Garden . Saint Louis, Missouri . November 14, 2012.
  4. Web site: ILDIS LegumeWeb entry for Griffonia . . International Legume Database & Information Service . Cardiff School of Computer Science & Informatics . 8 May 2014 .
  5. Web site: GRIN species records of Griffonia . USDA . USDA . ARS . Agricultural Research Service . National Genetic Resources Program . Germplasm Resources Information Network—(GRIN) [Online Database] . National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland . 5 May 2014 .