Domestication Potential of Garcinia kola Heckel (Clusiaceae): Searching for Diversity in South Cameroon

Abstract

Seeds and bark of Garcinia kola Heckel (Clusiaceae) are popular products in West and Central Africa. Despite the tree’s economic and cultural importance, little is known about its phenotypic and genotypic variation. This study characterised the morphological and genetic diversity of G. kola in South Cameroon, searching for traits and populations that might be used for domestication. Morphological assessment and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers were applied to characterise diversity among geographic populations from Central and South regions, and between managed and wild trees. AFLP-SURV and analysis of molecular variance results indicated that a major part of genetic diversity is harboured within populations rather than between them. Bayesian analysis, principal component analysis and t-SNE identified three clusters where Ebolowa emerged as the transition population combining features from both regions. Trees from the South demonstrated a higher incidence of domestication-related traits, showing higher genetic diversity compared to the Central region. This suggests that individuals from the South might be more suitable for selection as “elite trees” in future breeding strategies for the species. No significant differences in phenotype and genotype were revealed between wild and managed populations, suggesting G. kola is still in the early stages of its domestication process.

Plant use and perceptions in the context of sexual health among people of Congolese descent in Belgium

“…On another level, the use of plants as sexual stimulators may have social implications. Relying on herbal stimulants may give users a sense of dependency, which could further amplify feelings of inadequacy and anxiety [ 70 ].…”

Kolaviron neuroprotective effect against okadaic acid-provoked cognitive impairment

“…Bioactive compounds in medicinal plants especially their polyphenols have shown potential and promising effects to combat against AD pathophysiological processes [ [13] , [14] , [15] ]. Garcinia kola (Garcinia genus, Clusiaceae family, Malpighiales order), commonly known as the bitter kola, is a dioecious, multifunctional, and agroforestry tree which is found in some tropical African and even in Asian countries [ 16 , 17 ]. This amazing and medicinal plant has a multitude of therapeutic applications.…”

Assessment of the Microbial Stability of Preserved and Unpreserved Bi-Herbal Formulated Syrup of Citrus Aurantifolia Whole Fruits and Garcinia Kola Seed Extracts

“…The microbial stability of preserved and unpreserved bi-herbal formulated syrup of 75% ethanolic extracts of Citrus aurantifolia whole fruit (CA) and Garcinia kola seed (GK) was assessed for 90 days. These two plants have been reported in various studies to contain bioactive components in the management of some respiratory tract infections especially cough (Tauchen et al, 2023;Maňourová et al, 2023;FDA 2023;Hussein et al, 2019;Jesumirhewe et al, 2019). According a Balekundri and Mannur (2020) a pharmaceutical syrup is a liquid preparation of medicinal substances in a concentrated aqueous solution of sugar (may contain approximately 85% sucrose), polyols which serve as solubilizing agent (such as glycerin or sorbitols), antimicrobial agents, preservatives, viscosity enhancers and flavouring agents.…”