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Useful Tropical Plants

Tabernaemontana coffeoides

Bojer ex A.DC.

Apocynaceae

+ Synonyms

Conopharyngia coffeoides (Bojer ex A.DC.) Summerh.

Ervatamia membranacea (A.DC.) Markgr.

Ervatamia methuenii Stapf & M.L.Green

Ervatamia modesta (Baker) Stapf

Hazunta angustifolia Pichon

Hazunta coffeoides (Bojer ex A.DC.) Pichon

Hazunta costata Markgr.

Hazunta graciliflora Pichon

Hazunta membranacea (A.DC.) Pichon

Hazunta modesta (Baker) Pichon

Hazunta silicicola Pichon

Hazunta velutina Pichon

Tabernaemontana coffeifolia Bojer ex Baker

Tabernaemontana membranacea A.DC.

Tabernaemontana modesta Baker

Common Name:

Tabernaemontana coffeoides
Flower
Photograph by: Martin W. Callmander
Creative Commons License
Tabernaemontana coffeoides Tabernaemontana coffeoides Tabernaemontana coffeoides

General Information

Tabernaemontana coffeoides is a shrub or a tree that usually grows up to 7 metres tall, occasionally to 10 metres. The bole can be 10cm in diameter, occasionally to 20cm[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
,
455
Title
Flore de Madagascar et des Comores
Publication
 
Author
Humbert H.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/
Publisher
Museum National D'Histoire Naturelle; Paris
Year
1946 - 1984
ISBN
 
Description
Written in French, an excellent flora of the area though it has not been completed. Available for download from the Internet.
].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and source of wood and fibre. It is very rich in pharmacologically interesting indole alkaloids. This warrants more investigations towards its possible development as an important medicinal plant[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

455
Title
Flore de Madagascar et des Comores
Publication
 
Author
Humbert H.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/
Publisher
Museum National D'Histoire Naturelle; Paris
Year
1946 - 1984
ISBN
 
Description
Written in French, an excellent flora of the area though it has not been completed. Available for download from the Internet.

Range

Africa - Madagascar and the Comoros to the Seychelles.

Habitat

Dunes or rocks, often on limestone, in dry forest, bush or savannah, at elevations up to 1,300 metres[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Properties

Edibility Rating *  *
Medicinal Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *
HabitTree
Height5.00 m
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details



The plant can flower and produce fruit all year round[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Edible Uses

The bitter bark is added to alcoholic beverages, some of which are used during circumcision rituals[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Medicinal

The bitter twig bark is chewed to combat fatigue and to suppress hunger[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. A twig or bark infusion is reputed to promote weight loss as it reduces appetite[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The bitter bark is added to alcoholic beverages, some of which are used during circumcision rituals[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Tabernaemontana coffeoides contains mainly monomeric indole alkaloids, although some bisindolic alkaloids occur in the leaves as well[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
]. The root bark contains most alkaloids, followed by the stem bark and the leaves[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The alkaloids of the root bark, stem bark and leaves consist for up to 50% of vobasine, tabernaemontanine, dregamine, methuenine and silicine (all corynanthean class); small amounts of apparicine (pericalline, aspidospermatan class) are also present[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The alkaloids of the stem bark and root bark also contain 12 - 16% of ibogamine (ibogan class).
The leaves also contain many alkaloids of the plumeran class including the pharmacologically active tabersonine. They also contain akuammidine and normacusine B (both corynanthean class), heyneanine (ibogan class) and vincanidine (strychnan class). In addition they contain the dimeric hazuntiphylline ( plumeran-plumeran class) and stemmadenine (conynanthean-plumeran class)[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Dregamine shows convulsant and respiration-stimulant activities. It also inhibits muscular fatigue in the same way as ibogaine from Tabernanthe iboga. It has been used in treatments of muscular and nervous asthenia, respiratory depression and type III poliovirus (HPV-3)[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Tabernaemontanine has a vasodilatory effect and can be used in humans in cases of arteriosclerosis, cerebral trauma and circular irregularities. It shows antibacterial activity against several human pathogenic bacterial strains, and is cytotoxic to human nasopharyngeal epidermoid carcinoma cells in vitro, but is inactive against P-388 lymphocytic leukaemia in mice[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Methuenine might be effective in the control of cardiac arrhythmias since it mainly decreases the excitability of depolarized arterial fibres in frogs. It also showed a noncompetitive antagonistic activity against histamine and acetylcholine in guinea-pig ileum[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Reserpiline produces hypotension in dogs and cats, but it exerts a tranquilizing action as well. It is about as potent as reserpine, which is commonly used against high blood pressure and it lacks the side effects of reserpine[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Normacusine B is sympatholytic and its hypotensive activity is greater than that of reserpine[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Akuammidine has hypotensive, skeletal-muscle-relaxant and local-anaesthetic activities. Its local anaesthetic activity is about 3 times as potent as cocaine[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
At low doses, vincanidine stimulates spontaneous mobility in mice, but at high doses it causes muscular paralysis. It has an emetic effect in dogs. It has significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus spp., Micrococcus spp. And Escherichia coli[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Stemmadenine increases or decreases blood pressure in vitro and in vivo, depending on the conditions of the experiment[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Tabersonine has about a quarter of the hypotensive activity of reserpine, and a spasmolytic effect on the smooth muscle of the intestine[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Apparicine also showed strong activity against type III poliovirus, as well as significant cytotoxicity against P-388 lymphocytic leukaemia cell cultures. Apparicine showed opioid activity in opiate receptor studies[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
Vobasine exhibited little activity in general pharmacological screening tests[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Other Uses

The bark was formerly used to make string for cloth[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

The leaves and fruits are used to curdle the latex of rubber plants[
455
Title
Flore de Madagascar et des Comores
Publication
 
Author
Humbert H.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/
Publisher
Museum National D'Histoire Naturelle; Paris
Year
1946 - 1984
ISBN
 
Description
Written in French, an excellent flora of the area though it has not been completed. Available for download from the Internet.
].

In Mayotte, branched twigs were formerly used as an oil-lamp support[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].
The wood is used for fuel[
299
Title
Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa.
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.prota.org
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
].

Propagation

Seed -
Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2024-03-29. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Tabernaemontana+coffeoides>

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