Pentadiplandra brazzeana

An evergreen climbing vine reaching 12 m in height with a spread of 0.5 m, growing at a fast rate. Hardy to UK zone 10. Thrives in light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils that are well-drained. Tolerates mildly acid, neutral, and basic soils. Requires full sun and prefers consistently moist conditions. Cannot tolerate shade.

Description

A small climbing shrub. It grows 3 m tall. It can be 20 m long. The leaves are 5-15 cm long by 1-8 cm wide. The flowers are in the axils of leaves. Flowers are white with red or blue spots near the top. The fruit is round and orange-red. It has white specks. The fruit is 3 cm across. The flesh is red and very sweet

Edible Uses

The red fruit pulp is eaten raw as a snack, especially by children, and is sometimes used to sweeten maize porridge. The fruit is a globose red or mottled grey berry 35–50mm in diameter, containing many seeds. The fruit contains an extremely sweet crude protein originally called pentadin; the purified form, isolated in the 1990s, is known as brazzein. Its sweetness profile closely resembles that of sucrose but develops slightly more slowly and lasts longer. Brazzein is highly thermostable, retaining its sweetness after 4 hours at 100°C, is stable across a wide pH range, and is the most water-soluble protein sweetener identified to date. Depending on the method of measurement, it is reported to be 500–2,000 times sweeter than sucrose. It has been under development as a low-calorie food industry sweetener, though as of early 2008 it had not yet received GRAS status in the United States nor approval for use in foods in the European Union. The root is occasionally eaten as a vegetable, and powdered root bark is reportedly an ingredient in a cheap but dangerous drink known as 'African whiskey in sachets'.

Traditional Uses

The fruit is rich in a protein sweetener. The fruit pulp is eaten raw. The roots and leaves are also eaten. The roots taste like horseradish. Caution: The roots are used in medicine and may contain poison.

Medicinal Uses

The roots, which have a horseradish-like taste, are widely used throughout central Africa to treat many conditions, particularly those related to childbirth and a range of skin problems. Phytochemical analysis has led to isolation of urea derivatives including sulphur-containing compounds. Carbamates from the roots have demonstrated antibacterial activity in vitro against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and the yeast Candida albicans. The root is also rich in glucosinolates and is believed to help revitalise collagen and restore skin tonicity. Crude tuber extracts have shown moderately strong antiplasmodial activity in vitro, though less effective than chloroquine. An aqueous root extract given to rats increased the weight of the testes and prostate and elevated testosterone levels. The roots are used as an antibacterial, aphrodisiac, cathartic, emmenagogue, laxative, and purgative. A root decoction can stimulate uterine contractions and has been used to induce abortion — it should generally be avoided by pregnant women until the later stages of pregnancy. Root decoctions are given orally or as an enema to assist expulsion of the placenta and to help prevent post-partum haemorrhage. Root bark forms one of more than 20 ingredients in the yellow, slimy 'nkui' sauce of the Bamileke people of Cameroon, given to new mothers to stimulate milk production. A root decoction taken orally or as an enema helps reduce pain from hernia. Crushed root or root bark is applied topically, or taken as an infusion, for chest pain, toothache, lumbago, rheumatism, and haemorrhoids. Macerated roots, alone or combined with other ingredients, are taken orally or as an enema against malaria. Adding Capsicum pepper to macerated roots produces a cough-soothing drink. A bark decoction combined with the bark and roots of other plants treats stiffness or weakness of the limbs and back. The roots and tubers are used for intestinal complaints including dysentery, colic, urethritis, gonorrhoea, and other uro-genital infections. A tuber decoction and juice from macerated roots, combined with pounded leaves, are taken as an anthelmintic. A root decoction treats pneumonia and serious bronchitis. Fresh root pulp or pounded dry root mixed with palm oil is applied topically to protect newborn navels from infection — because the plant is vesicant, this treatment must be kept brief to avoid blistering. Powdered dry root bark applied to scarifications treats intercostal and abdominal pain. Crushed root is used for several skin infections, applied externally as an antiseptic and to treat wounds, sores, ulcers, and furuncles, and used on the abdomen for oedema. A root preparation combined with leaves of Kalanchoe crenata is used as nose drops to halt epileptic episodes. A leaf decoction is used to wash the skin against scabies.

Known Hazards

The plant is vesicant; treatments causing blistering must be limited in duration. The root bark is an ingredient in dangerous 'African whiskey in sachets.'

Distribution

A tropical plant. It grows on the edges of forest and in grassland.

Where It Grows

Africa, Angola, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Congo DR, Congo R, Gabon,

Cultivation

The flowers can be single-sex or bisexual. The flowering period continues for several months; fruit production is normally low and spread out, though shrubby plants seem to have a shorter but more condensed fruiting season. Unconsumed fruits rot on the plant, without falling. They serve as temporary nesting sites to arboreal ants. Seed dispersal is facilitated by the contrast between the extreme sweetness of the pulp of the fruit and the unpleasant bitter taste of seeds, provoking consumers to spit out the seeds. In natural habitats, squirrels, monkeys and apes contribute to the distribution of the seed; in the vicinity of human habitation, distribution by children into secondary habitats is common. Commercial interest in brazzein, the protein obtained from the fruit, is strong. The technology to extract the protein from the fruit pulp as well as technologies to produce brazzein by transferring the gene coding for brazzein into other organisms have been patented, without the intention of benefit sharing. The gene encoding for brazzein has been transferred to the bacteria Escherichia coli and Lactococcus lactis and to maize. Bacterial production systems for brazzein have been developed. Mutants and sections of brazzein have been discovered with sweet-taste properties superior to those of the natural protein.

Propagation

Propagate by seed.

Other Uses

The roots smell of aspirin and are hung over doorways or placed inside roofs to repel snakes.

Production

In Central African Republic plants flower in February and fruit from February to June.

Notes

There is only one Pentadiplandra species and only one Genus in the Pentadiplandraceae family. The chemical ingredient has been isolated and patented. It is now used in transgenic maize.

Synonyms

Also Known As

Amelalokulu, Bosimi, Chimbochonise, Digabi, Etekele, Hamba, Kiasa, Mandangela, Mbalaka, Nikenge-kyasa, Nke-kuasa, Ofanda, Ophana, Tophanda

References (16)

• Billong Fils, P. E., et al, 2020, Ethnobotanical survey of wild edible plants used by Baka people in southeastern Cameroon. Journal or Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 16:64 p 9
• Bouba, A. A., et al, 2012, Proximate Composition, Mineral and Vitamin Content of Some Wild Plants Used as Spices in Cameroon. Food and Nutrition Sciences 3:423-432
• Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Paris 1:611. 1886
• Danforth, R.M., & Boren, P.D., 1997, Congo Native fruits. Twenty-five of the best. Privately published. p 67
• Grubben, G. J. H. and Denton, O. A. (eds), 2004, Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 2. Vegetables. PROTA, Wageningen, Netherlands. p 564