Passiflora subgenus Astrophea is one of the five recognised subgenera of Passiflora. Brazil presents ca. 26 species of this subgenus with the majority distributed in the Amazon Basin. During the ongoing taxonomic revision of the Brazilian species of subg. Astrophea, seven species previously unknown for the country were recorded: Passiflora amoena, P. fuchsiiflora, P. jussieui, P. ovata, P. plum...

Mutualism between plants and the ants that defend them from herbivory is a well-known phenomenon. Because of ant aggression, ant mimicry as a defense against predation is very common in the animal kingdom, and has already been suggested as a type of visual anti-herbivory defensive coloration in leaves and stems of several plant species. Many Passiflora species have dark dots and short stripes o...

INTRODUCTION Extracts of the plant Passiflora incarnata L. (Passifloraceae) were administered intraperitoneally in order to test its effects on sleep. METHOD Experiments were carried out on chronically implanted male adult wistar rats to obtain cerebral (EEG), ocular (EOG) and muscular (EMG) activities throughout their states of vigilance. Polygraphic recordings were taken during 9 continuous...

Plants have been the basis of many traditional medicines throughout the world for thousands of years and have continued to provide new remedies to mankind. They are one of the richest sources of bioactive compounds. The genus Passiflora L. comprises about 520 species of dicotyledonous plants in the family Passifloraceae. Passiflora incarnata and P. alata, also commonly known as Passion flower, ...

BACKGROUND Anxiety is a preoperative complication, which most patients encounter. The use of a premedication to reduce preoperative anxiety with minimal cognitive impairment is crucial. OBJECTIVES This study was conducted to compare the sedative effect of preoperative melatonin and Passiflora incarnata in patients undergoing elective surgery regarding their potential for postoperative cogniti...

As part of a long-term investigation on the evolution of Passiflora L., we investigated the divergence ages of the genus and diversification of its subgenera, relating them with biogeographical and/or historical events, and other characteristics of this taxon. The main aim of the present work was to evaluate the biogeographic distribution of this genus to better understand its evolutionary hist...

This study focused on total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant and antibacterial activities of the leaves and stems of Passiflora quadrangularis, P. maliformis, and P. edulis extracted using three solvents: petroleum ether, acetone, and methanol. The maximum extraction yields of antioxidant components from the leaves and stems were isolated using methanol extracts of P. edulis (24.28%) and ...

Recently, it has been suggested that internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences are under selective constraints to preserve their secondary structure. Here, we investigate the patterns of the ITS nucleotide and secondary structure conservation across the Passiflora L. genus to evaluate the potential use of secondary structure data as a helpful tool for the alignment in taxonomically complex ge...

BACKGROUND Anxiety symptoms are frequently observed in dental patients, whether they are undergoing simple or more invasive procedures such as surgery. This research aimed to compare the effects of Passiflora incarnata and midazolam for the control of anxiety in patients undergoing mandibular third molar extraction. MATERIAL AND METHODS Forty volunteers underwent bilateral extraction of their...