Aphelandra squarrosa

The macrocyclic spermidine alkaloid pleurostyline," isolated from the leaves of Pleurostylia africana, has structure (26). Aphelandrine, obtained from the roots of Aphelandra squarrosa, has been assigned structure (27 R = H). It is present in eight other species of Aphelandra and also in Encephalosphaera lasiandra its O-methyl ether (27 R = Me) was isolated only from Aphelandra sinclairianOy however. 

Benzoxazinoid biosynthesis is restricted to single isolated species within the families Ranunculaceae (i.e., Consolida orientalis), Lamiaceae (Lamium galeobdolon), and Plantaginaceae (Scoparia dulcis) [374, 375] and to several species in the Acan-thaceae Acanthus mollis, Aphelandra tetragona, Aphelandra squarrosa, Blepharis edulis) [376]. 

Homaliaceae) (27) (Fig. 28.12). The Homaliaceae may be confamilial with the Flacourtiaceae. These alkaloids also are known to occur in Aphelandra squarrosa (Acanthaceae), Cannabis sativa (Cannabaceae) (28, 29), Pleurostylia afri-cana (Celastraceae) (30), Chaenorrhinum spp. (Scrophulari-aceae), and a number of other sources (Cordell, 1981 Gug-gisberg and Hesse, 1983). 

Fig. 13.17. SEM image of the ablation crater produced by a single laser pulse on the ad-axial leaf surface of a Zebra plant Aphelandra squarrosa). Scale bar indicates 200 pm. Multiple laser pulses penetrated deeper. The wrinkles on the cuticle were caused by the collapse of the underlying cells due to water loss in the vacuum enviromnent during SEM imaging. Adapted from Ref. [53] with permission. The American Chemical Society, 2008.

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