Ephedra
Ephedra distachya in France
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Gnetophyta Class: Gnetopsida Order: Ephedrales Family: Ephedraceae Genus: Ephedra L.
Species
See text. Ephedra distachya from French Wiki fr:Image:Ephedra distachya-400. ... For other uses, see Scientific classification (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Plant (disambiguation). ... taxa: Gnetales Welwitschiales Ephedrales The plant division Gnetophyta or gnetophytes comprise three related families of woody plants grouped in the gymnosperms, a paraphyletic group of seed plant divisions. ... taxa: Gnetales Welwitschiales Ephedrales The plant division Gnetophyta or gnetophytes comprise three related families of woody plants grouped in the gymnosperms, a paraphyletic group of seed plant divisions. ... Carl Linnaeus, Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as  , (May 13, 1707[1] – January 10, 1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist[2] who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of nomenclature. ...

This article is about the genus Ephedra. For the use of the plant in medicine, see Ephedra. Ephedra in medicine. ...

Ephedra is a genus of gymnosperm shrubs, the only genus in the family Ephedraceae and order Ephedrales. These plants occur in dry climates over a wide area mainly in the Northern Hemisphere, across southern Europe, north Africa, southwest and central Asia, southwestern North America, and, in the Southern Hemisphere, in South America south to Patagonia. They are also called Joint-pine, Jointfir, or Mormon-tea. The Chinese name is 麻黄, má huáng, which means "yellow hemp". Ephedra is also sometimes called sea grape (from the French raisin de mer), although that is also a common name for Coccoloba uvifera. Divisions Pinophyta (or Coniferophyta) - Conifers Ginkgophyta - Ginkgo Cycadophyta - Cycads Gnetophyta - Gnetum, Ephedra, Welwitschia The gymnosperms (Gymnospermae) are a group of spermatophyte seed-bearing plants with ovules on the edge or blade of an open sporophyll, the sporophylls usually arranged in cone-like structures. ... A broom shrub in flower A shrub or bush is a horticultural rather than strictly botanical category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 6 m tall. ... Northern hemisphere highlighted in yellow. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ... For other uses, see Asia (disambiguation). ... North American redirects here. ... southern hemisphere highlighted in yellow (Antarctica not depicted). ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Patagonia, as most commonly defined (in orange). ... Binomial name Coccoloba uvifera (L.) L. The Seagrape (Coccoloba uvifera) is a sprawling bush or small tree that is found near sea beaches throughout tropical America and the Caribbean, including southern Florida. ...

Medical Uses

Main article: Ephedra

Plants of the Ephedra genus, including E. sinica and others, have traditionally been used by indigenous people for a variety of medicinal purposes, including treatment of asthma, hay fever, and the common cold.^[1] They have also been proposed as a candidate for the Soma plant of Indo-Iranian religion. The alkaloids ephedrine and pseudoephedrine are active constituents of E. sinica and other members of the genus. These compounds are sympathomimetics with stimulant and decongestant qualities and are related chemically to the amphetamines. Ephedra in medicine. ... Binomial name Ephedra sinica Ephedra sinica is a member of the ephedraceae family, native to China. ... For the play, see Hay Fever. ... // Acute viral nasopharyngitis, or acute coryza, usually known as the common cold, is a highly contagious, viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory system, primarily caused by picornaviruses or coronaviruses. ... This article is about the Vedic plant and ritual. ... Indo-Iranian can refer to: The Indo-Iranian languages The prehistoric Indo-Iranian people, see Aryan This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Chemical structure of ephedrine, a phenethylamine alkaloid An alkaloid is, strictly speaking, a naturally occurring amine produced by a plant,[1] but amines produced by animals and fungi are also called alkaloids. ... Ephedrine (EPH) is a sympathomimetic amine similar in structure to the synthetic derivatives amphetamine and methamphetamine. ... Pseudoephedrine (commonly abbreviated as PSE) is a sympathomimetic amine commonly used as a decongestant. ... Epinephrine Norepinephrine Sympathomimetic drugs are substances that mimic the effects of the hormone epinephrine (adrenaline) and the hormome/neurotransmitter norepinephrine (noradrenaline). ... Stimulants are drugs that temporarily increase alertness and wakefulness. ... A decongestant is a broad class of drugs designed to symptomatically treat ailments affecting the respiratory system. ... Amphetamine or Amfetamine(Alpha-Methyl-PHenEThylAMINE), also known as beta-phenyl-isopropylamine and benzedrine, is a prescription stimulant commonly used to treat Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults and children. ...

Species

The following list of species is from the Gymnosperm Database page for Ephedra.

• Ephedra alata Decne
• Ephedra altissima Desf.
• Ephedra antisyphilitica Berl. ex C.A.Meyer - Clapweed, Erect Ephedra
• Ephedra aspera Engelm. ex S.Wats. - Boundary Ephedra, Pitamoreal
• Ephedra californica S.Wats. - California Ephedra, California Jointfir
• Ephedra coryi E.L.Reed - Cory's Ephedra
• Ephedra cutleri Peebles - Navajo Ephedra, Cutler's Ephedra, Cutler Mormon-tea, Cutler's Jointfir
• Ephedra distachya L. - Joint-pine, Jointfir
  • Ephedra distachya subsp. helvetica (C.A.Meyer) Aschers. & Graebn.
• Ephedra equisetina Bunge - Ma huang
• Ephedra fasciculata A.Nels. - Arizona Ephedra, Arizona Jointfir, Desert Mormon-tea
• Ephedra fedtschenkoae Pauls.
• Ephedra fragilis Desf.
  • Ephedra fragilis subsp. campylopoda (C.A.Meyer) Aschers. & Graebn.
• Ephedra frustillata Miers - Patagonian Ephedra
• Ephedra funerea Coville & Morton - Death Valley Ephedra, Death Valley Jointfir
• Ephedra gerardiana Wallich ex C.A.Meyer - Gerard's Jointfir, Shan Ling Ma Huang
• Ephedra intermedia Schrenk ex C.A.Meyer
• Ephedra lepidosperma C.Y.Cheng
  

  

  Ephedra distachya
• Ephedra likiangensis Florin
• Ephedra macedonica Kos.
• Ephedra major Host
  • Ephedra major subsp. procera Fischer & C.A.Meyer
• Ephedra minuta Florin
• Ephedra monosperma C.A.Meyer
• Ephedra nevadensis S.Wats. - Nevada Ephedra, Nevada Jointfir, Nevada Mormon-tea
• Ephedra pedunculata Engelm. ex S.Wats. - Vine Ephedra, Vine Jointfir
• Ephedra przewalskii Stapf
  • Ephedra przewalskii var. kaschgarica (B.Fedtsch. & Bobr.) C.Y.Cheng
• Ephedra regeliana Florin - Xi Zi Ma Huang
• Ephedra saxatilis (Stapf) Royle ex Florin
• Ephedra sinica Stapf - Cao Ma Huang, Chinese ephedra
• Ephedra torreyana S.Wats. - Torrey's Ephedra, Torrey's Jointfir, Torrey's Mormon-tea, Cañutillo
• Ephedra trifurca Torrey ex S.Wats. - Longleaf Ephedra, Longleaf Jointfir, Longleaf Mormon-tea, Popotilla, Teposote
• Ephedra viridis Coville - Green Ephedra, Green Mormon-tea

Ephedra antisyphilitica Binomial name Ephedra distachya L. Ephedra distachya (syn. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1400x2284, 682 KB) Name Ephedra distachya Family Ephedraceae Original book source: Prof. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1400x2284, 682 KB) Name Ephedra distachya Family Ephedraceae Original book source: Prof. ... Binomial name Ephedra sinica Ephedra sinica is a member of the ephedraceae family, native to China. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...	Ephedra distachya Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2272 × 1704 pixel, file size: 1. ... Binomial name Ephedra distachya L. Ephedra distachya (syn. ...	Ephedra fragilis Male plant with cones Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 685 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (800 × 700 pixel, file size: 253 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Description: Ephedra fragilis, male plant in bloom: BG BotaniCactus, Ses Salines, Mallorca, Spain Source: self-made Date: created 16. ...	Ephedra fragilis Pollen cones Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 685 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (800 × 700 pixel, file size: 159 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Description: Ephedra fragilis, flowers of a male plant: BG BotaniCactus, Ses Salines, Mallorca, Spain Source: self-made Date: created 16. ...
Ephedra viridis in western Nevada ImageMetadata File history File links Ephedra_viridis_1. ...	Ephedra regeliana with Canadian quarter for scale	Ephedra chilensis

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Ephedraceae

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References

External links

• Ephedra viridis (Plants for a Future Database)
• Usage in Chinese Medicine