Serenoa

Serenoa repens, commonly known as saw palmetto, is the sole species currently classified in the genus Serenoa. It is a small palm, growing to a maximum height around 7–10 ft (2.1–3.0 m). It is endemic to the subtropical Southeastern United States, most commonly along the south Atlantic and Gulf Coastal plains and sand hills. It grows in clumps or dense thickets in sandy coastal areas, and as undergrowth in pine woods or hardwood hammocks.[3]

Saw palmetto

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Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Arecales
Family: Arecaceae
Subfamily: Coryphoideae
Tribe: Trachycarpeae
Genus: Serenoa
Hook.f.
Species:
S. repens
Binomial name
Serenoa repens
Natural range
Synonyms[2]

Description

Erect stems or trunks are rarely produced, but are found in some populations. It is a hardy plant; extremely slow-growing, and long-lived, with some plants, especially in Florida possibly being as old as 500–700 years.[4]

Saw palmetto is a fan palm, with the leaves that have a bare petiole terminating in a rounded fan of about 20 leaflets. The petiole is armed with fine, sharp teeth or spines that give the species its common name. The teeth or spines are easily capable of breaking the skin, and protection should be worn when working around a saw palmetto. The leaves are light green inland, and silvery-white in coastal regions. The leaves are 1–2 m in length, the leaflets 50–100 cm long. They are similar to the leaves of the palmettos of genus Sabal. The flowers are yellowish-white, about 5 mm across, produced in dense compound panicles up to 60 cm long.

The fruit is a large reddish-black drupe and is an important food source for wildlife and historically for humans. The plant is used as a food plant by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species such as Batrachedra decoctor, which feeds exclusively on the plant.

The generic name honors American botanist Sereno Watson.

  • Among live oak and sabal palmetto in habitat, Punta Gorda, Florida
  • In habitat, Georgia, US
  • Winding trunks of an old clump, Manasota Key, Florida
  • Detail of flowers
  • A very old example of the silver variant, Largo, Florida

Medical research
See also: Saw palmetto extract

Saw palmetto extract has been studied as a possible treatment for people with prostate cancer and for men with lower urinary tract symptoms associated with Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).[3][5][6] As of 2018, there is insufficient scientific evidence that saw palmetto extract is effective for treating cancer or BPH and its symptoms.[5][6][7]

One 2016 review of clinical studies with a standardized extract of saw palmetto (called Permixon) found that the extract was safe and may be effective for relieving BPH-induced urinary symptoms compared against a placebo.[8]

Ethnobotany

Indigenous names are reported to include: tala (Choctaw); cani (Timucua); ta ́:la (Koasati); taalachoba ("big palm", Alabama); ta:laɬ a ́ kko ("big palm", Creek); talco ́:bˆı ("big palm", Mikasuki); talimushi ("palmetto's uncle", Choctaw), and guana (Taino, possibly).[9] Saw palmetto fibers have been found among materials from indigenous people as far north as Wisconsin and New York, strongly suggesting this material was widely traded prior to European contact.[10] The leaves are used for thatching by several indigenous groups, so commonly so that a location in Alachua County, Florida, is named Kanapaha ("palm house").[11] The fruit may have been used to treat an unclear form of fish poisoning by the Seminoles and Bahamians.[12]

References
  1. "Serenoa repens". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 12 April 2010.
  2. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  3. Serenoa in Flora of North America
  4. Tanner, George W.; J. Jeffrey Mullahey; David Maehr (July 1996). "Saw-palmetto: An Ecologically and Economically Important Native Palm" (PDF). Circular WEC-109. University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 July 2008. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. "Saw palmetto". Drugs.com. 4 December 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  6. "Spotlight on saw palmetto: What the science says". NCCIH Clinical Digest for Health Professionals, National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, US National Institutes of Health. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  7. Tacklind, James; MacDonald, Roderick; Rutks, Indy; Stanke, Judith U.; Wilt, Timothy J. (2012). "Serenoa repens for benign prostatic hyperplasia". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 12: CD001423. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD001423.pub3. PMC 7084061. PMID 23235581.
  8. Novara, Giacomo; Giannarini, Gianluca; Alcaraz, Antonio; Cózar-Olmo, José-M.; Descazeaud, Aurelien; Montorsi, Francesco; Ficarra, Vincenzo (2016). "Efficacy and safety of hexanic lipidosterolic extract of Serenoa repens (Permixon) in the treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic hyperplasia: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials". European Urology Focus. 2 (5): 553–561. doi:10.1016/j.euf.2016.04.002. PMID 28723522.
  9. Austin, DF (2004). Florida Ethnobotany. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-2332-4.
  10. Whitford AC (1941). "Textile fibers used in eastern aboriginal North America". Anthropological Papers of the American Museum of Natural History. 38: 5–22. hdl:2246/92.
  11. Simpson, JC (1956). A Provisional Gazetteer of Florida Place-Names of Indian Derivation. Tallahassee: Florida Geological Survey. OCLC 1099766.
  12. Sturtevant, WC (1955). The Mikasuki Seminole: Medical Beliefs and Practices. Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms.

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