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Smilax aristolochiifolia
Mill.,
S. febrifuga
Kunth, S. regelii Killip & C. V. Morton
Standardized Common
Name: Sarsaparilla
Other Common Names: The listed species
are the three most commonly sold as Sarsaparilla, although several others may
be found in trade. As presently understood, S. aristolochiifolia is the
source of Mexican Sarsaparilla, also called Gray or Vera Cruz Sarsaparilla. Smilax
febrifuga is the source of Ecuadorian and Peruvian Sarsaparilla, also
called Guayaquil Sarsaparilla. Smilax regelii is the source of Honduran
Sarsaparilla, also called Brown or Jamaican Sarsaparilla and additionally
produced in Guatemala and British Honduras, where S. aristolochiifolia
also occurs. The species of Smilax have been and remain very poorly
understood, and older literature often attributes material from the regions
mentioned above to different species than those named here.
Family: Smilacaceae
Taxonomy: Smilax
includes perhaps 300 widely distributed species of dioecious vines. Their
taxonomy is not well understood, as herbarium material from many regions is
limited, often sterile, and vegetatively variable within species. Many species
have been named repeatedly, and by chance an unusual number of the names
published for important New World species were illegitimate later homonyms.
Synonyms of S. aristolochiifolia include S. medica Schltdl. &
Cham. (by which it was commonly known in older literature) and S. ornata
Lem. Synonyms of S. regelii include S. grandifolia Regel, S.
ornata Hook [non Lem.], and supposedly S. officinalis Kunth, which
more likely is referable to the South American S. longifolia Richard.
Description: Long vines with long
narrow roots; roots sometimes to 3 m long, rarely branching, arising from a
short thick knotty rhizome. Stems and branchlets bearing numerous sturdy
prickles to 1 cm long along internodes. Stipules modified into tendrils. Leaves
alternate, ovate to oblong, quite variable in size (sometimes reaching 30 cm in
length); major veins curving, parallel; petioles and undersides of leaves often
bearing prickles. Flowers unisexual, plants dioecious. Inflorescences lateral
in leaf axils, umbellate. Flowers with 2 subequal whorls of 3 tepals, usually 6
stamens (with long anthers, filaments shorter than anthers) or 1 3-loculed
ovary. Fruit a berry.
S.
aristolochiifolia:
Stems and branchlets weakly 4-angled or subcylindrical. Major leaf veins usually
7; leaf apex rounded to obtuse, often short-acuminate; leaf base cordate to
hastate. Tepals 3–4 mm long. Fruits red, <1 cm in diameter.
S.
regelii:
Stems and branchlets sharply 4-angled, branchlets sometimes shallowly winged.
Major leaf veins 5–7; leaf apex acuminate to rounded and mucronate; leaf base
more or less cordate or hastate. Tepals 3.5–5 mm long. Fruits black, to 1.3 cm
in diameter.
S.
febrifuga:
Stems and branchlets usually not conspicuously angled, but with longitudinal
striations. Leaves narrowly or broadly ovate to elliptical. Major leaf veins 3
(5 in some large leaves); leaf apex acuminate; leaf base shallowly cordate or
rounded to tapering, often somewhat asymmetrical. Tepals 4–5 mm long. Fruits
orange, 1–1.4 cm in diameter, somewhat ovoid.
Parts
in Commerce:
Roots
Identification:
- Roots
(1–)2–5(–6) mm in diameter, very long if not cut, seldom branching;
traditionally roots were cut into pieces over 0.5 m long and sold wrapped
in cylindrical bundles
- Outer surface
longitudinally wrinkled, sometimes bearing small rootlets
- In
cross-section, contains epidermis; at least 1 layer of distinctive cells
(“exodermis”) beneath epidermis; cortex; endodermis; vascular cylinder
with numerous clusters of phloem cells and groups of 1 or a few xylem vessels
in a ring surrounding a central pith of thin-walled cells
- Dividing line
between vascular tissue and pith is wavy
- Vascular tissue
yellowish and porous; pith pale to almost white
- Fracture of
central portion usually tough and fibrous, sometimes short
- Taste
mucilaginous and bitter, not very strong
|
S.
aristolochiifolia
|
S.
regelii
|
S.
febrifuga
|
Color
of outer surface
|
Reddish
to pale, grayish brown
|
Reddish
to rich brown
|
Reddish
brown to dark with purple tinge
|
Texture
of outer surface
|
Smooth
except for few deep wrinkles; rootlets very few
|
Wrinkled
|
Wrinkled
|
Cortex
|
Pale
orange, often mealy
|
Pale
orange to brown, starchy
|
Reddish
to brown, mealy
|
Adulterants: A broad variety of
adulterants were reported in older literature, including the rhizomes of
tropical Pteris or other ferns, the rhizomes of Carex arenaria L.
and C. hirta L. (sedges), and the roots of a Philodendron and an Agave.
In India the root of Hemidesmus indicus Br. (Asclepiadaceae) may be
employed interchangeably with Smilax. Potential contaminants are limited
to plants producing long, slender, seldom-branched roots or rhizomes. The most
important feature to be observed is the presence of a conspicuous pith inside
the yellowish ring of vascular tissue containing numerous xylem bundles, as
this kind of root anatomy is found only in some monocots, including Smilax.
Distinguishing features of reported contaminants include the following:
- Roots of dicots,
such as Hemidesmus, have vascular tissue, not pith, in the central
portion of the root.
- Fern rhizomes
have complex vascular anatomy, often containing numerous bundles in one or
more rings or in other patterns. Pteris has at least one unbroken
ring of vascular tissue, not separated into distinct bundles, and often a
protrusion of xylem into the central pith or a complete second ring or
spot of xylem inside the first. Bands of dark, thick-walled sclerenchyma
may also be present; there is no endodermis.
- Agave roots have a
ring of parenchyma several layers thick between the endodermis and the
beginning of the vascular tissue; they contain large crystals that may be
observed under a microscope.
- Philodendron roots contain,
inside the epidermis, one layer of exodermis and one layer of hypodermis
(a ring of small cells with very thick walls); lines of large clear
secretory cells are present, at least near the vascular bundles; they also
contain large crystals that may be observed under a microscope.
- Carex rhizomes have a
broad cortex occupying most of the diameter; often most of the cortex is
spongy with conspicuous air spaces. The small vascular cylinder is
surrounded by a layer of thick-walled cells that resembles an endodermis,
but can be several cells thick. Vascular bundles are arranged in a circle
around a pith; individual bundles usually have a circular pattern, with a
ring of xylem around a central spot of phloem.
The inclusion of excessive rhizome or aerial
stems of Smilax is also a form of adulteration.
References:
Evans WC. Trease and Evans’ Pharmacognosy, 14th ed. London: WB Saunders
Company Ltd.; 1996:300–301.
Grayum MH. Evolution and phylogeny of the Araceae. Ann
Missouri Bot Gard. 1990;77:628–697. [For details of Philodendron]
Hare HA, Caspari Jr. C,
Rusby HH. National
Standard Dispensatory, 8th ed.
Philadelphia, PA: Lea Bros. and Co.; 1905:1363–1366.
Huft MJ. 1994. Smilacaceae. In: Davidse G, Sousa S.
M, Chater AO, eds. Flora Mesoamericana, vol. 6. Ciudad Universitaria:
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Biología; 1994:20–25.
Killip EP, Morton CV. A revision of the Mexican and
Central American species of Smilax. Carnegie Inst Wash Publ.
1936;461:257–297, pls. 1–11.
Metcalfe CR. Anatomy of the Monocotyledons. V.
Cyperaceae. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 1971. [For details of Carex]
Ogura Y. Comparative Anatomy of Vegetative Organs
of the Pteridophytes, 2nd rev. ed. Berlin: Gebrüder Borntraeger;
1972. [For details of Pteris]
Standley PC, Steyermark JA. Flora of Guatemala
part III. Chicago, IL: Chicago Natural History Museum; 1952. [Fieldiana
vol. 24, part III.]
Youngken HW. Text-Book of Pharmacognosy, 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA: The
Blakiston Company; 1943:181–187.