Esfand

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• African-rue
• Syrian-rue
• wild rue
• African rue
• Syrian rue
• aspand
• esfand
• harmal peganum

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Peganon harmalum
• Harmala peganum

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant belongs to the kingdom Plantae and is classified under the phylum Streptophyta within the class Equisetopsida. As a member of the subclass Magnoliidae and the order Sapindales, it is further categorized into the family Nitrariaceae. Ultimately, it is identified by the genus Peganum, specifically known as Peganum harmala.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a diverse geographical distribution across several European regions. In Middle Europe, it can be found growing in Hungary. Its presence extends into Southwestern Europe, where it inhabits the Baleares islands. Additionally, the species is located within the territories of France and Sardegna. Finally, it is also widely distributed throughout Spain.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Peganum harmala is characterized by its remarkable adaptability to diverse and often harsh environmental conditions. It thrives across a wide spectrum of landscapes, including crop fields, deserts, meadows, mountains, oases, plains, saline places, semideserts, and steppes. This versatility allows the species to occupy a broad altitudinal gradient, ranging from elevations as low as 400 m AMSL to heights reaching up to 4200 m AMSL. Such a vast vertical distribution underscores its ability to tolerate varying temperature regimes and atmospheric pressures, enabling it to persist in both lowland arid zones and high-altitude montane ecosystems.

Elevational range max:

4200 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

400 m AMSL

Habitat :

crop fields, desert, meadows, mountains, oasis, plains, saline places, semidesert, steppe

Life history

The life history of Peganum harmala is characterized by its classification as a perennial plant, allowing it to persist through multiple growing seasons within its natural habitat. Structurally, it functions as a hemicryptophyte, a life form where the perennating buds are located at or near the soil surface, protected by the remains of previous seasons' foliage or the soil layer itself. This combination of a long-lived life cycle and a low-growing, bud-protected strategy enables the species to endure varying environmental conditions and establish a stable presence in arid or semi-arid landscapes.

Life form :

hemicryptophyte

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Peganum harmala is characterized by its growth form as a non-woody herb and specifically a forb. It is a self-supporting plant that does not function as a climber or a liana, maintaining an independent existence as it is neither a parasite nor an epiphyte, instead occupying a terrestrial habitat. The plant typically reaches a height ranging from a minimum of 0.2 m to a maximum of 0.8 m.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

herb

Growth form :

forb

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

0.8 m

Plant height min:

0.2 m

Woodiness :

non-woody

Physiology

The physiological profile of Peganum harmala is characterized by a C3 photosynthetic pathway, which governs its carbon fixation processes and metabolic efficiency. Its foliar morphology is defined by linear leaf forms that possess entire margins, lacking any specialized defensive structures such as leaf thorns or spines. The dimensions of these leaves are relatively consistent, typically ranging from a minimum length of 2 cm to a maximum length of 5 cm, contributing to the overall structural architecture of the plant's vegetative growth.

Leaf form :

linear

Leaf length max:

5 cm

Leaf length min:

2 cm

Leaf margin :

entire

Leaf spines :

no

Leaf thorns :

no

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Reproduction

The reproduction of Peganum harmala is characterized by a sexual process facilitated by bisexual flowers, which contain both male and female reproductive organs. The flowering period typically commences in May and concludes in July, though the timing can be variable depending on environmental conditions. Following pollination, the plant develops fruit in the form of a capsule. This fruit is dehiscence, meaning it splits open at maturity to release its seeds. The seeds produced are notably small, with a mean mass of approximately 0.0022654545 g, ranging from a minimum of 0.00192 g to a maximum of 0.004 g.

Dehiscence :

dehiscent

Flowering time :

May

Flowering time :

Jul

Fruit type :

capsule

Reproduction sexual :

bisexual

Seed mass max:

0.004 g

Seed mass mean:

0.0022654545 g

Seed mass min:

0.00192 g

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Plant Parts

Peganum harmala has 6 reported plant parts identified across 27 scientific publications and several other databases that are studied for medicinal purposes. The most consistently reported plant part include seed, root, leaf, fruit, flower.

Seed

1. Phytotherapy research : PTR
2. Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters
3. Therapie
4. TheScientificWorldJournal
5. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences

Root

1. Saudi journal of biological sciences
2. Organic letters
3. Journal of parasitic diseases : official organ of the Indian Society for Parasitology
4. Microorganisms

Leaf

1. Saudi journal of biological sciences
2. Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets
3. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences

Fruit

1. Avicenna journal of phytomedicine
2. Saudi journal of biological sciences

Flower

1. Avicenna journal of phytomedicine

Stem

1. PloS one

Chemicals

Peganum harmala has 84 reported phytochemicals identified across 27 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include HARMINE, harmaline, harmalol, HARMANE, Harmol.

HARMINE

1. Dr. Duke
2. Avicenna journal of phytomedicine
3. European journal of pharmacology
4. Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association
5. Journal of chromatographic science

harmaline

1. Dr. Duke
2. Avicenna journal of phytomedicine
3. European journal of pharmacology
4. Metabolic brain disease
5. Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association

harmalol

1. Dr. Duke
2. European journal of pharmacology
3. Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association
4. Journal of chromatographic science
5. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)

HARMANE

1. Journal of chromatographic science
2. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)
3. Neuroscience letters
4. Phytotherapy research : PTR
5. DNA and cell biology

Harmol

1. Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association
2. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)
3. Phytotherapy research : PTR
4. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)

Peganine

1. Dr. Duke
2. Avicenna journal of phytomedicine
3. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
4. Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association

Flavonoids

1. Toxicon : official journal of the International Society on Toxinology
2. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening
3. Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets

Vasicine

1. European journal of pharmacology
2. Scientific reports
3. Journal of analytical methods in chemistry

Deoxypeganine

1. Dr. Duke
2. Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association

Norharmane

1. Journal of chromatographic science
2. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences

Activities

Peganum harmala has 119 reported activities identified across 27 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported activities include Antibacterial, Antioxidant, Antidiabetic, Antitumor, Anticancer.

Antibacterial

1. Dr. Duke
2. Therapie
3. EXCLI journal
4. Communications biology
5. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)

Antioxidant

1. Chemistry & biodiversity
2. Journal of ethnopharmacology
3. Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets
4. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
5. Pakistan journal of biological sciences : PJBS

Antidiabetic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Chemistry & biodiversity
3. Journal of traditional Chinese medicine = Chung i tsa chih ying wen pan
4. Archives of pharmacal research
5. Pharmaceutical biology

Antitumor

1. Dr. Duke
2. Scientific reports
3. Asian Pacific journal of tropical biomedicine
4. Archives of pharmacal research
5. DNA and cell biology

Anticancer

1. International journal of cancer
2. Oncotarget
3. Current pharmaceutical design
4. DNA and cell biology

Antifungal

1. Therapie
2. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
3. Asian Pacific journal of tropical biomedicine
4. Mycopathologia

Antiviral

1. Dr. Duke
2. Therapie
3. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
4. Archives of pharmacal research

Antimicrobial

1. European journal of pharmacology
2. Asian Pacific journal of tropical biomedicine
3. Journal of traditional Chinese medicine = Chung i tsa chih ying wen pan

Cytotoxic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Asian Pacific journal of tropical biomedicine
3. Research in pharmaceutical sciences

Hallucinogenic

1. Dr. Duke
2. Therapie
3. Asian Pacific journal of tropical biomedicine

Conditions

Peganum harmala has 76 reported investigations on conditions identified across 27 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported conditions include inflammation, Staphylococcus aureus, oxidative stress, Alzheimer's disease, Candida albicans.

Inflammation

1. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening
2. American journal of therapeutics
3. Archives of pharmacal research
4. International journal of environmental health research

Staphylococcus aureus

1. Biopolymers
2. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)
3. PloS one

Oxidative stress

1. Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets
2. International journal of environmental health research
3. Cell journal

Alzheimer's disease

1. Metabolic brain disease
2. Scientific reports

Candida albicans

1. Pharmaceutical biology
2. PloS one

E. coli

1. Phytotherapy research : PTR
2. Plants (Basel, Switzerland)

Escherichia coli

1. Biopolymers
2. PloS one

Leishmania

1. Annals of medicine and surgery (2012)
2. Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters

Analgesic

1. American journal of therapeutics
2. Journal of traditional Chinese medicine = Chung i tsa chih ying wen pan

Asthma

1. Phytomedicine : international journal of phytotherapy and phytopharmacology
2. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

Preparations

Peganum harmala has 36 reported preparations identified across 27 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported preparations include seeds, methanolic extracts, extract, methanol extract, Crude alkaloids.

Seeds

1. TheScientificWorldJournal
2. Phytotherapy research : PTR
3. Phytomedicine : international journal of phytotherapy and phytopharmacology
4. Journal of ethnopharmacology
5. Research in pharmaceutical sciences

Methanolic extracts

1. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences
2. BMC chemistry
3. Pakistan journal of biological sciences : PJBS
4. Acta parasitologica

Extract

1. Iranian journal of basic medical sciences
2. Cytobios

Methanol extract

1. BMC complementary and alternative medicine
2. Journal of ethnopharmacology

Crude alkaloids

1. BMC complementary and alternative medicine

Dried ethanol extracts

1. Phytotherapy research : PTR

Extract

1. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)

Extracts from seeds

1. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)

Methanolic extract

1. Pakistan journal of pharmaceutical sciences

Peganum harmala extract

1. Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences