Piperaceae

The Piperaceae (Template:IPAc-en), also known as the pepper family, are a large family of flowering plants. The group contains roughly 3,600 currently accepted species in five genera. The vast majority of species can be found within the two main genera: Piper (2,171 species) and Peperomia (over 1,000 species).<ref name="Stevens">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Members of the Piperaceae may be small trees, shrubs, or herbs. The distribution of this group is best described as pantropical.

The best-known species, Piper nigrum, yields most peppercorns that are used as spices, including black pepper, although its relatives in the family include many other spices.<ref name="Ravindran">Template:Cite book</ref> The family Piperaceae is unrelated to the family Solanaceae, which includes bell peppers and chili peppers, which are so named due to Europeans taking part in the Columbian exchange mistakenly believing the spicy fruits were a variety of the black pepper plant.<ref name="Britannica-2023">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Etymology

The name Piperaceae is derived from the Sanskrit term pippali, Template:Langx.Template:Citation needed

File:Piper-caninum-SF21234-01.jpg

Piper caninum

File:Peperomia perciliata.jpg

Peperomia perciliata

Taxonomy

The APG III system of 2009 recognizes this family, and assigns it to the order Piperales in the unranked clade magnoliids.<ref name=APGIII2009/> The family consists of five genera: Piper, Peperomia, Zippelia, Manekia, and Verhuellia. The previously recognised Pacific genus Macropiper, was recently merged into Piper.<ref name="Wanke et al. a">Wanke, S., Jaramillo, M. A., Borsch, T., Samain, M.-T., Quandt, D., and Neinhuis, C. (2007) "Evolution of Piperales—matK gene and trnK intron sequence data reveal lineage specific resolution contrast". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 42: 477–497.</ref> A tentative cladogram showing relationships based on Wanke et al. (2007)<ref name="Wanke et al. b">Wanke, S., Vanderschaeve, L., Mathieu, G., Neinhuis, C., Goetghebeur, P., and Samain, M.S. (2007) "From Forgotten Taxon to a Missing Link? The Position of the Genus Verhuellia (Piperaceae) Revealed by Molecules". Annals of Botany, 99: 1231–1238.</ref> is shown below. This phylogeny was based on 6,000 base pairs of chloroplast DNA. Only recently has it become clear that Verhuellia is sister to the other four genera in the family.<ref name="Samain et al.">Samain et al. (2010) "Verhuellia is a segregate lineage in Piperaceae: more evidence from flower, fruit and pollen morphology, anatomy and development". Annals of Botany, 105.</ref>

Characteristics

Members of pepper family are small trees, shrubs, or perennial or annual herbs.

Roots and stems

Plants are often rhizomatous, and can be terrestrial or epiphytic. The stems can be either simple or branched.

Leaves

Leaves are simple with entire margins, and are positioned at the base of the plant or along the stem, and can be alternate, opposite, or whorled in arrangement. Stipules are usually present, as are petioles. The leaves are often noticeably aromatic when crushed.

Flowers

Inflorescences (in the form of spikes) are terminal, opposite the leaves, or located in the axils. Flowers are bisexual, with no perianth, each flower is subtended by a peltate bract. Stamens are 2–6, and hypogynous, with 2-locular anthers. There are usually 3-4 stigmas attached to a single pistil per flower, which is 1 or 3-4 carpellate. The ovary is 1 locular, and superior.

Fruits and seeds

Fruits are drupelike, with a single seed per fruit. The seeds have a minute embryo, and mealy perisperm.<ref name="Boufford">Boufford, D.E. (1997)). Flora of North America - Piperaceae. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=10692l</ref>

Traditional medicinal uses

Numerous members of the Piperaceae family are used in the traditional medicinal systems of indigenous population for a wide variety of illnesses. Many studies have been undertaken to investigate these uses, with a large number of them focusing especially on the active ingredient Piperine and related compounds found in many members of this family, especially Black pepper, Long pepper and Betel,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Citation</ref> as well as kavalactones found in Kava.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

External links

• Plants of the World Online, Piperaceae
• Angiosperm Phylogeny Website
• Piperaceae at the DELTA Online Families of Flowering Plants
• Piperaceae at the online Flora of North America
• Piperaceae at the online Flora of China
• Piperaceae at the online Flora of Zimbabwe
• Piperaceae at the NCBI Taxonomy Browser
• Piperaceae at the online Piperaceae in Thailand