Crocus

Saffron. Saffron spice is the dried stigmas of Crocus sativus L. (Iridaceae), a bulbous perennial native to southern Europe and Asia Minor and cultivated in the Mediterranean countries, particularly Spain. Tme saffron should not be confused with either meadow saffron, ie, Colchicum autumnale L. (Lihaceae) also called safflower, or bastard saffron, ie, Carthamus tinctorius L. (Compositae), both of which are occasionally used to adulterate tme saffron. 

Formulated metal poHshes consist of fine abrasives similar to those involved in industrial buffing operations, ie, pumice, tripoH, kaolin, rouge and crocus iron oxides, and lime. Other ingredients include surfactants (qv), eg, sodium oleate [143-19-1] or sodium dodecylben2enesulfonate [25155-30-0], chelating agents (qv), eg, citric acid [77-92-9], and solvents, eg, alcohols or aUphatic hydrocarbons. 

Rouge is a fine red powder of ferric oxide [1309-37-1] (Fe202). It is usually used in the cake form but is also impregnated in paper or cloth known as crocus cloth. 

Saffron is found in the pistils of the plant Crocus sativus. Saffron is often confused with safflower, sometimes known as bastard saffron. The name of the plant. Crocus sativus, comes from the Arabic word faran, meaning yellow. The Romans and the Greeks used saffron not only as a dye but also as a spice. In the early days of Greece, yellow was the official color, and Grecian women were especially fond of clothes dyed with saffron. Because of its scarcity, saffron ranked among the most expensive dyes of the ancient world. 

The active principle of the autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale), colchicine (48), is one of the very few drugs that have remained in reputable medical use since ancient times. This drug was the only useful treatment available for the excruciating pain associated with crystallization of uric acid in the joints characteristic of gout until the advent of allopurinol. Although the precise mechanism by which colchicine gives this dramatic relief remains undefined, the antimitotic activity of this agent is... 

Eisen-reihe, /. iron aeries, -refin, -resinit, m. (Min.) humboldtine. -rhodanid, n. ferric thiocyanate, iron(III) thiocyanate, -rho-daniir, n. ferrous thiocyanate. iron(II) thiocyanate. -rogenstein, m. oolitic iron ore. -rohr, n., -rohre, /. iron pipe or tube, -rost, m. iron rust, -rostwasser, n. iron liquor, iron mordant, -rot, n. colcothar. -safraQt m. saffron (or crocus) of Mars, -salmiak, m. (Pharm.) ammoniated iron, iron and ammonium chloride, -salz, n. iron salt, -sand, m. ferruginous sand, -sau, /. iron sow. 

Metall-oxyd, n. metallic oxide, -oxydhydrat, n. metal (lie) hydroxide, -papier, n. metal (lie) paper, -poliermittel, n. metal polish, -probe, /, test for metal, assay, -putzmittel, n. metal polish, -rohr, n., -rbhre, /. metal tube oi-pipe, -rohrehett, n. (small) metal tube or pipe, -riickstand, m. metallic residue, -sa-fran, m. crocus of antimony, -salz, n. metallic salt. 

Saffron is the tiny stigma at the center of the crocus flower, Crocus sativus. Because each stigma is plucked from the flower by hand, saffron is one of the most expensive spices in use today. 

By necessity, herbivores have evolved GIT and systemic compensatory mechanisms that allow them to subsist on plant-based diets that have limited nutrient quality and include phytochemicals. Still, herbivores remain susceptible to some of the anti-nutrient and toxic phytochemicals. For example, several herbivores are sensitive to the phytotoxins associated with autumn crocus, which include colchicine (Yamada et al, 2000). As a consequence, herbivores tend to select species and portions of plants based on a combination of nutrient quality and concentrations of phytochemicals (Yeager et al, 1997), and this has an impact on habitat selection and plant ecology (Duncan and Gordon, 1999). Carnivorous species have not been under selective pressure to develop similar compensatory mechanisms, generally have only limited abilities to subsist on plant-based diets, and in many cases are less tolerant of phytochemicals. 

YAMADA M, KOBAYASHi Y, FURUOKA H, MATSUIT (2000) Comparison of enterotoxicity between autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale L.) and colchicine in the guinea pig and mouse enterotoxicity in the guinea pig differs from that in the mouse. . 1 Vet Med Sci. 62 809-13. 

Crocus sativus petals Crocin, crocetin (saffron) Food colouring... 

Pfister, S. et al.. Isolation and structure elucidation of carotenoid-glycosyl esters in gardenia fruits Gardenia jasminoides Ellis) and saffron (Crocus sativus Linne), J. Agric. Food Chem., 44, 2612, 1996. 

Carmona, M. et al., Crocetin esters, picrocrocin and its related compounds present in Crocus sativus stigmas and Gardenia jasminoides fruits. Tentative identification of seven new compounds by LC-ESl-MS, J. Agric. Food Chem., 54, 973, 2006. 

Castillo, R., Fernandez, J.A., and Gomez-Gomez, L., Implications of carotenoid biosynthetic genes in apocarotenoid formation during the stigma development of Crocus sativus and its closer relatives, Plant Physiol. 139, 674, 2005. 

Pfander, H. and Schurtenberger, H., Biosynthesis of C20-carotenoids in Crocus sativus, Phytochemistry 21, 1039, 1982. 

Bouvier, F. et al.. Oxidative remodeling of chromoplast carotenoids Identification of the carotenoid dioxygenase CsCCD and CsZCD genes involved in Crocus secondary metabolite biogenesis. Plant Cell 15, 47, 2003. 

Moraga, A.R. et al., Glucosylation of the saffron apocarotenoid crocetin by a gluco-syltransferase isolated from Crocus sativus stigmas, Planta 219, 955, 2004. 

International Standardization Organisation, Saffron (Crocus sativus L.), ISO 3632-1, Part 1, Specification, Geneva, 1993. 

Crocin, from stigmas of crocus (saffron) or fruits of cape jasmine Gardenia Jasminoides... 

Wouters, J. and Verhecken, A., The scale insect dyes species recognition by HPLC and diode-array analysis of the dyestuffs, Ann. Soc. Entom. France, 25, 393, 1989. International Standardization Organisation. ISO 3632-1 Specification Saffron (Crocus sativus L.), Part 1, Geneva, 1993. 

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