{{Short description|Genus of flowering plants in the broomrape family}} {{For|New World desert hyacinths|Dipterostemon}} {{Automatic taxobox |image = Broomrape (Cistanche tubulosa) Negev.jpg |image_caption = ''Cistanche tubulosa'' |taxon = Cistanche |subdivision_ranks = Species |subdivision = See Text |synonyms =''Haemodoron'' {{au|Rchb. 1828}} }}
'''''Cistanche''''' is a Eurasian and African genus of holoparasitic desert plants in the family Orobanchaceae. They lack chlorophyll and obtain nutrients and water from the host plants whose roots they parasitize. They are often known as desert hyacinths.<ref name="Thorogood et al 2021">{{cite journal |last1=Thorogood |first1=Chris J |last2=Leon |first2=Christine J |last3=Lei |first3=Di |last4=Aldughayman |first4=Majed |last5=Huang |first5=Lin-fang |last6=Hawkins |first6=Julie A |title=Desert hyacinths: An obscure solution to a global problem? |journal=Plants People Planet |date=2021 |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=302–307 |doi=10.1002/ppp3.10215 |s2cid=237761914 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
==Taxonomy== There are between 20 and 30 species of ''Cistanche''. The most comprehensive description of the genus was published in 1930.<ref name="Beck-Mannagetta1930">{{cite journal |last1=Beck-Mannagetta |first1=G |title=Orobanchaceae. |journal=Das Pflanzenreich 4 |date=1930 |volume=261 |pages=1–348}}</ref> The taxonomy is difficult because important features of the flowers are often poorly preserved after drying. The plants are found from the Mediterranean region, North Africa, Middle East through to China. The species of ''Cistanche'' are parasitic plants that connect to the conductive system of a host, extracting water and nutrients from the roots of the host plant.<ref name="Thorogood et al 2021" /> ===Species=== Species as according to Plants of the World Online {{as of|2024|January|lc=yes}}:<ref name="Plants of the World Online s961">{{cite web | title=Cistanche Hoffmanns. & Link | website=Plants of the World Online | url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:30993-1#children | access-date=2024-04-03}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" |- ! Image !! Scientific name !! Distribution |- | ||''Cistanche aethiopica'' {{au|Beck}} ||NW. Ethiopia |- | ||''Cistanche afghanica'' {{au|Gilli}} || SE. Afghanistan |- | ||''Cistanche armena'' {{au|(K.Koch) M.V.Agab.}} ||Transcaucasus |- | ||''Cistanche christisonioides'' {{au|Beck}} ||Pakistan |- | ||''Cistanche compacta'' {{au|(Viv.) Bég. & A.Vacc.}} ||NE. Libya |- |120px||''Cistanche deserticola'' {{au|Ma}} ||China (Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang), Mongolia |- | ||''Cistanche feddeana'' {{au|K.S.Hao}} ||Mongolia, China (Sichuan) |- | ||''Cistanche fissa'' {{au|(C.A.Mey.) Beck}} ||Israel to Central Asia |- | ||''Cistanche flava'' {{au|(C.A.Mey.) Korsh.}} ||Iran, Kazakhstan, Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan |- | ||''Cistanche lanzhouensis'' {{au|Z.Y.Zhang}} ||E. & S. Mongolia to N. China. |- | ||''Cistanche laxiflora'' {{au|Aitch. & Hemsl.}} ||Afghanistan, Iran |- |120px||''Cistanche lutea'' {{au|(Desf.) Hoffmanns. & Link}} ||Algeria, Morocco, Oman, Spain |- | ||''Cistanche mauritanica'' {{au|(Coss. & Durieu) Beck}} ||Algeria, Morocco |- | ||''Cistanche mongolica'' {{au|Beck}} ||Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Tadzhikistan, Uzbekistan, China (Xinjiang) |- |120px||''Cistanche phelypaea'' {{au|(L.) Cout.}} ||Algeria, Benin, Canary Is., Cape Verde, Chad, Cyprus, Egypt, Italy, Kriti, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Portugal, Selvagens, Senegal, Spain, Sudan, Tunisia, Western Sahara |- | ||''Cistanche ridgewayana'' {{au|Aitch. & Hemsl.}} ||Afghanistan, Iran, Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan |- | ||''Cistanche rosea'' {{au|Baker}} ||Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen |- |120px||''Cistanche salsa'' {{au|(C.A.Mey.) Beck}} ||Afghanistan, China (Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia), Russia, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Mongolia, Qinghai, Tadzhikistan, Transcaucasus, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan |- | ||''Cistanche sinensis'' {{au|Beck}} ||China (Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang) |- | ||''Cistanche speciosa'' {{au|Butkov}} ||Uzbekistan |- | ||''Cistanche stenostachya'' {{au|Butkov}} ||Uzbekistan |- | ||''Cistanche trivalvis'' {{au|(Trautv.) Korsh.}} ||Turkmenistan |- |120px||''Cistanche tubulosa'' {{au|(Schenk) Wight ex Hook.f.}} ||Afghanistan, Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gulf States, India, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon-Syria, Libya, Mozambique, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sinai, Socotra, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Turkmenistan, Yemen |- |120px||''Cistanche violacea'' {{au|(Desf.) Hoffmanns. & Link}} ||Algeria, Chad, Lebanon-Syria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sinai, Tunisia, Western Sahara |- |}
==Growth== They typically grow in desert or sand dune areas Growing in arid regions, where their flower spikes that emerge from bare ground are the only evidence of the presence of the plants. They do not have leaves and do not perform photosynthesis.<ref name="Thorogood et al 2021" />
Some species of ''Cistanche'' are native to the Taklimakan desert region of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region northwest China where they grow on desert host plants tamarix and ''Haloxylon ammodendron''.<ref>Cistanche tubulosa and deserticola: An In-Depth Analysis http://urbol.com/cistanche-tubulosa-and-deserticola/</ref>
==Uses== Along with other members of the genus, ''Cistanche deserticola'' is the primary source of the Chinese herbal medicine cistanche ({{Lang-zh|c=肉苁蓉|p=ròucōngróng}}). The main sources of cistanche are ''Cistanche salsa'' and ''Cistanche deserticola'', although it may also be obtained from ''Cistanche tubulosa'', ''Cistanche sinensis'', and ''Cistanche ambigua''. The drug, known in Chinese as ''suosuo dayun'', is collected in spring before sprouting, by slicing the stems of the plant. ''Cistanche deserticola'' has been placed on CITES Appendix 2, a list of endangered species not banned from trade but requiring monitoring. With increased consumption of cistanche, the population of the species has decreased and its area of distribution has shrunk. Aside from over-collection or indiscriminate collection, an important factor in the diminished supply of cistanche is a loss of the host, ''Haloxylon ammodendron'', which is widely used for firewood.
==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== *{{Commons category-inline|Cistanche|''Cistanche''}} *{{Wikispecies-inline|Cistanche|''Cistanche''}}
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Category:Orobanchaceae Category:Orobanchaceae genera Category:Plants used in traditional Chinese medicine