Psoralea
Psoralea is a genus in the legume family (Fabaceae) with 121 species of shrubs, trees, and herbs native to southern and eastern Africa, ranging from Kenya to South Africa. In South Africa they are commonly referred to as fountainbush (English); fonteinbos, bloukeur, or penwortel (Afrikaans); and umHlonishwa (Zulu).
Species
GENUS
- KingdomPlantae
- PhylumTracheophyta
- ClassMagnoliopsida
- OrderFabales
- FamilyFabaceae
Native toCape Provinces, Eswatini, Free State, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Northern Provinces, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe
General: (Grimes, 1997). Hallia was subsumed into Psoralea on the basis
via GBIF · Kew POWO
Article
4 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Species
- References
- External links
Psoralea is a genus in the legume family (Fabaceae) with 121 species of shrubs, trees, and herbs native to southern and eastern Africa, ranging from Kenya to South Africa. In South Africa they are commonly referred to as fountainbush (English); fonteinbos, bloukeur, or penwortel (Afrikaans); and umHlonishwa (Zulu).
== Etymology == The name ‘Psoralea’ is derived from the Greek term ‘Psoraleos’, which means “affected with itch or with leprosy”. Psoralen occurs naturally in the seeds of Psoralea corylifolia, and is used in PUVA (psoralen + UVA) treatment, for several diseases including such as psoriasis.