Physalis minima L. (Solanaceae)

Synonyms

 Physalis angulata villosa Bonati. ; Physalis micrantha Link. ; Physalis parviflora R.Br.

Venacular names

 Kinyarwanda : Agahago

 Français : Coqueret, coqueret anguleux
 English : Gooseberry, Hogweed, Balloon cherry, Angular winter cherry, Cut-leaf Ground cherry, Sunberry
 Portuguais : Alquequenje amarelo, Balão rajado, Joá de capote, Camapú

Description:

The plant is a very variable annual herb, much-branched, prostrate or erect to 90 cm high; of waste and disturbed places across the Region from Senegal to N and S Nigeria and into Ethiopia and East Africa.The plant is a common weed of farmland cultivations and into irrigation. In Ethio

Uses

Nutrition

Young leaves and fruit are edible

The leaves are eaten as a salad, although the taste is bitter. In larger quantities the plant is poisonous to cattle and sheep, and it gives the meat a musk-like smell.

The edible fruit is sometimes gathered from the wild and eaten as a snack, but eating too many fruits may cause dizziness.

Fruits Tastes like a cherry tomato. Scarcely worthwhile. Juicy, mildly astringent and sweet with a pleasant blend of acid, the overall quality is good. The unripe fruit can be cooked as a vegetable.

The fruit is about 1.5cm in diameter.
It contains about 6% sugars, 2.7% protein, 1.2% ash, 0.6% tannin and 0.5% pectin. A good quantity of vitamin C. about 24.5mg per 100ml of juice. The fruit is formed and ripens consecutively over a long period. Average yields from a plant covering 2.5 square metres are about 545g. The plant conveniently wraps up each fruit in its own ’paper bag’ (botanically, the calyx) to protect it from pests and the elements. This calyx is toxic and should not be eaten.

Traditional medicine :

The plant has a range of medicinal uses.
 generally healing (leaf)
 pain-killers (leaf)
 arthritis, rheumatism, etc.
 stomach troubles (leaf)
 vermifuges (leaf)
 liver diseases
 cutaneous, subcutaneous parasitic infection (leaf)
 menstrual cycle (leaf-sap)
 paralysis, epilepsy, convulsions, spasm (leaf)
 heart

All parts of the plant are used as a diuretic and antipyretic.

The fruit is said to be alterative, appetizer, bitter, diuretic, laxative and tonic.

The pounded leaves are used as a remedy for headache and itches. The juice of the leaves, mixed with mustard oil and water, has been used as a remedy for earache.

The root is febrifuge and vermifuge. An extract of the root is taken for fevers, whilst the root is chewed to act as a vermifuge. A decoction of the roots is drunk to treat hypertension and diabetes.

The roots are chewed and applied as a poultice to the lower abdomen in order to reduce pain.

Extracts from the plant have shown anticancer activity.

The leaves are analgesic and used externally throughout tropical Africa to treat skin ailments such as itch, smallpox pustules, whitlow lesions, infected scarification wounds and rheumatic pain, and to relieve muscular stiffness and pain. The leaves are also applied to Guinea worm sores, killing the worms and easing extraction. In Côte d’Ivoire sleeping sickness is treated with a mixture of leaves of Physalis angulata and Anchomanes difformis (Blume) Engl. A lotion prepared from the leaves is applied to treat ophthalmia in children. Leaves are eaten or applied as an enema to cure stomach-ache, colic, lithiasis and anuria, and are added to palm wine to cure fever and to calm attacks of asthma, vomiting and diarrhoea.

In Central and South America Physalis angulata is also widely used as a medicinal plant. It is used to treat malaria, toothache, liver ailments including hepatitis, rheumatism, and is considered a diuretic and relaxant. Plant infusions are taken to treat gonorrhoea, indigestion, nephritis and fever.

In South-East Asia an infusion of the aerial parts, including the fruits, is taken to cure digestive and intestinal problems, and is externally applied to treat various skin problems such as sores, boils and cuts. In Papua New Guinea a leaf decoction is drunk to treat constipation. The sap of the leaves mixed in water is taken as an abortifacient, although the use of the leaves to treat sterility is also mentioned.

Agri-horticulture :

The plant is often considered as a weeds, and a parasites

Products: pastimes-carving, musical instruments, games, toys, etc.

Properties

The aerial parts of Physalis angulata contain several steroidal lactones belonging to the physaline and withanolide types: physalins A–I, physagulin A–G, withangulatin A and withanolide T. They further contain several vitasteroids, e.g. vamonolide. The pyrrolidine alkaloid phygrine (bis-hygrine) was isolated from the roots and aerial parts. The physalins B and F were found to inhibit the growth of several types of human leukaemia cells in vitro and physalin F showed cytotoxicity in vitro on 5 other human cancer cell lines. In addition, physalin F had an antitumour effect in mice in vivo. In vitro withangulatin A was found to be a topoisomerase II inhibitor and a cytotoxin. In tests on rats and mice, vitanolides (isolated from aerial parts) and hyperoside (quercetin-3-O-galactoside; from the leaves) were confirmed to have anti-inflammatory activity. Extracts of Physalis angulata have proven effectiveness against both human African sleeping sickness (Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense) and Chagas’ disease (Trypanosoma cruzi). They also have an inhibitory effect against several strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and molluscicidal properties (Biomphalaria tenagophila).

Description

Annual herb up to 100 cm tall, with procumbent or prostrate stem, glabrous or with a few short appressed hairs; stems sharply angled, hollow. Leaves arranged spirally, simple; stipules absent; petiole 2–11 cm long; blade ovate to lanceolate, 4–15 cm × 2.5–10 cm, base cuneate, apex obtuse, margin irregularly toothed or entire. Flowers axillary, solitary, erect or nodding, bisexual, regular, 5-merous; pedicel 6–12 mm long, elongated in fruit up to 22 mm; calyx campanulate, 5-lobed, 3–5 mm long, angled or ribbed, in fruit 2–4 cm long; corolla campanulate, 5–10 mm long, pale yellow with or without 5 dark spots; stamens inserted near the base of the corolla tube, filaments 1.5–5 mm long, anthers pale blue; ovary superior, 2-celled, style filiform, stigma head-shaped. Fruit a globose berry 10–16 mm in diameter, yellow, viscid, many-seeded, enclosed in the persistent, inflated bladdery calyx. Seeds kidney-shaped, 1.5–2 mm × 1–1.5 mm. Seedlings with epigeal germination.

Other botanical information
Physalis comprises about 90 species, all but one being native to tropical and temperate America. The species are variable and taxonomically confusing, and no comprehensive study of the genus exists. Physalis is closely related to Margaranthus and Nicandra. Physalis minima L. is a synonym of Physalis angulata, but in Africa the name Physalis minima has been misapplied to specimens of Physalis lagascae Roem. & Schult. and Physalis ixocarpa Brot. Physalis angulata is very similar to the American Physalis philadelphica Lam. of which a larger-fruited, cultivated type (‘Japanese gooseberry’ or ‘tomatillo’) and a smaller-fruited, wild type exist. Physalis philadelphica has been cultivated in southern Africa for its edible fruits and is locally naturalized.

Growth and development
When free of stress Physalis angulata can grow to 80–100 cm tall before flowering, but where growing under stress flowering may start when the plants are 25–30 cm tall. It is cross-pollinated. Plants raised from seed may start flowering after 6 weeks, and fruits are ripe 6 weeks later.

Ecology
Physalis angulata grows best in moist, fertile soils, is tolerant of partial shade and occurs widely as a weed of crops and pastures, and in waste areas. It can be found up to 3000 m altitude. Light frost does not kill it. At high temperatures the plants do not develop well.

Propagation and planting
Physalis angulata can be easily propagated by seed. Shallow sowing and alternating temperatures, e.g. 10 hours at 21°C and 14 hours at 30°C, will give best germination results.

Management
Although Physalis angulata is reported to be cultivated occasionally, both for its edible fruits and for medicinal use, optimal cultivation techniques are not documented.

Diseases and pests
Physalis angulata is sensitive to many fungal diseases and is a host of the causal agent of tomato bacterial spot Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria. Physalis angulata hosts viruses found in tobacco, potato, okra, capsicum pepper, beans and several other crops, as well as physalis mottle virus (PhyMV), and also several root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.)

Yield
In a field test in Indonesia, the maximum number of fruits per plant was about 130, and the number of seeds per fruit was 130 at most.

Handling after harvest
The fruits will keep for 3 months if stored in their calyx under dry conditions.

Genetic resources
Physalis angulata is widespread as a pantropical weed and is not liable to genetic erosion. Large collections of Physalis, including Physalis angulata, are kept in Mexico, Guatemala, Germany and the Netherlands.

Prospects
The steroidal lactones of the physaline and withanolide types isolated from Physalis angulata show very interesting activities, e.g. in the field of tumour inhibition. More research on their toxicity toward non-malignant cells is, however, needed to fully evaluate their possibilities as lead compounds in cancer research. A taxonomic monograph of Physalis will contribute to botany and other areas of research that currently publish research results under wrong or doubtful names.

Major references
Burkill, H.M., 2000. The useful plants of West Tropical Africa. 2nd Edition. Volume 5, Families S–Z, Addenda. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom. 686 pp.
Chiang, H.C., Jaw, S.M., Chen, C.F. & Kan, W.S., 1992. Antitumor agent, physalin F from Physalis angulata L. Anticancer Research 12(3): 837–843.
Chiang, H.C., Jaw, S.M. & Chen, P.M., 1992. Inhibitory effects of physalin B and physalin F on various human leukemia cells in vitro. Anticancer Research 12(4): 1155–1162.
Damu, A.G., Kuo, P.-C., Su, C.-R., Kuo, T.-H., Chen, T.H., Bastow, K.F., Lee, K.H. & Wu, T.S., 2007. Isolation, structures, and structure-cytotoxic activity relationships of withanolides and physalins from Physalis angulata. Journal of Natural Products 70(7): 1146–1152.
Gonçalves, A.E., 2005. Solanaceae. In: Pope, G.V., Polhill, R.M. & Martins, E.S. (Editors). Flora Zambesiaca. Volume 8, part 4. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom. 124 pp.
Jarvis, C., 2007. Order out of chaos: Linnean plant names and their types. Linnean Society of London, London, United Kingdom. 1016 pp.
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Whitson, M. & Manos, P.S., 2005. Untangling Physalis (Solanaceae) from the Physaloids: a two-gene phylogeny of Physalinae. Systematic Botany 30: 216–230.
Other references
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Sources of illustration
Slamet Sutanti Budi Rahayu, 2001. Physalis L. In: van Valkenburg, J.L.C.H. & Bunyapraphatsara, N. (Editors). Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 12(2): Medicinal and poisonous plants 2. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, Netherlands. pp. 423–426.
Author(s)
F.S. Mairura, Kenya Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute of CIAT, P.O. Box 30677, Nairobi, Kenya
Correct citation of this article
Mairura, F.S., 2008. Physalis angulata L. In: Schmelzer, G.H. & Gurib-Fakim, A. (Editors). PROTA (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa / Ressources végétales de l’Afrique tropicale), Wageningen, Netherlands. Accessed 12 November 2020.