Comparative wood anatomy of species of Psychotria L. (Rubiaceae) in Atlantic Rainforest remnants of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil

Abstract

Psychotria is the largest Rubiaceae genus and one of the most abundant in the Atlantic Rainforest of Rio de Janeiro State. The present work aims to characterize and compare the wood of nine of these species. The Psychotria wood were characterized by: slightly distinct growth rings; diffuse porosity; solitary vessels or on radial multiples of 2-6 or clusters of 3-5 vessel elements, with terminal and lateral simple perforation plates and vestured and alternate intervessel and vessel-ray pits; septate fiber-tracheids; and rare axial parenchyma. Although, the wood anatomy of the Psychotria may be considered homogeneous, the statistical analyses, based on qualitative and quantitative features, allowed the segregation of the species and indicated the importance of habit (arboreous or shrubby) on the wood anatomy of the species. It is worth mentioning that the sampling was realized in only one studied site (Ilha Grande), which contributed to the conclusion that the wood characteristics are more related to the specificities of each studied taxon than to with environmental variations.

Ecological significance of wood anatomy of Alseis pickelii Pilg. & Schmale (Rubiaceae) in a Tropical Dry Forest

“…Starch deposits, such as those observed in radial parenchyma and in the fiber-tracheids of A. pickelii, serve as a survival strategy for plants that inhabit environments with defined seasonality and species that undergo periods of stress, especially at the end of the growing season (Scatena & Scremin-Dias 2006). The presence of crystals is an important taxonomic character in Rubiaceae (Jansen et al 2001;2002;Costa et al 2006), and are found in the genera Simira (Callado & Silva Neto 2003), Bathysa (Barros et al 2008) and Psychotria (Barros & Callado 1997;Marques et al 2015). Prismatic and sand crystals were present in the wood of A. pickelli, as well as in the colleters (Tullii et al 2013).…”

Evaluation of some pharmacognostic parameters of the herbs for a traditional hematinic (Haematol -B) powdered formulation in Ogbomoso, Nigeria

“…It can be implied from the above account that, while empirical data on wood anatomy provided by authors such as Perrone et al 49 , Akinloye et al 51 and Marques and Callado 52 have been successfully used to diagnose many medicinal and non-medicinal plants, the story has not been the same for the three woody species reported in this study. This is a further justification for the present effort, with the results that qualitative and quantitative characteristics of wood anatomy are reliable in evaluating pharmacognostic parameters of the species.…”

Características anatômicas da madeira de Handroanthus cryshotchus submetida ao processo de modificação térmica

“…O resultado obtido no tratamento controle para o comprimento de fibra, também foi verificado por Costa et al ( 2017) para madeira de Mimosa schomburgkii, em que, os mesmos encontraram valor médio de 1180 µm. Marques et al (2015) estudando as espécies de Psychotria spp. obtiveram para Psychotria deflexa um comprimento de 1170 µm demonstrando semelhança com a espécie utilizada nesse estudo.…”