Crassocephalum vitellinum

Common Names

Isununu

Summary

An herb in the Asteraceae native to the Afrotropics with broad distribution from Nigeria to South Sudan and Zambia, including Rwanda, Burundi, Cameroon, Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zaïre, it is herbaceous in growth, with leaves used as nutriment and in traditional medicine, and leaf extracts showing a hepatoprotective effect, enabling 78% recovery of barbiturate sleep duration. Essential oil extracted from leaves comprises 36 identified components, with major constituents including limonene (34–35%), (E)-β-ocimene (21–22%), β-pinene (8–9%), α-pinene (6–7%), and myrcene (6%), and major compounds account for much of the antioxidant effects, with limonene likely contributing to hepatoprotective effects along with minor constituents and possible synergy. Uses and practical considerations include traditional nutriment and medicinal applications, the plant’s essential oil composition and associated antioxidant and hepatoprotective effects, pollinators Axestotrigona ferruginea and Lasioglossum hypoleucum visiting its flowers, indicating ecological interactions, a wide Afrotropical distribution with regional variation in essential oil profiles, and Rwanda-specific essential oil studies are limited, with cross-country differences noted in essential oil profiles versus Rwanda samples

Attracts Wildlife

Attracts bees