About

Mandragora turcomanica, the Turkmenian mandrake, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Solanaceae, native to the Köpet Dag mountains in Turkmenistan and one location in neighbouring Iran. It differs from the mandrakes found around the Mediterranean (Mandragora autumnalis and/or Mandragora officinarum) chiefly by being larger.

Safety

All the species of Mandragora are described as toxic and to have had traditional medicinal uses. Mizgireva is reported to have said in 1942 that it was used by the local people in Turkmenistan as a medicinal plant. In Iran, the discoverers of M. turcomanica described it as an "old medicinal and mythically important plant" but said that they were unable to discover earlier local uses.

At the beginning of the growth cycle, the leaves of M. turcomanica contained 0.3% of alkaloids; later the roots contained 0.2%. By contrast the unripe fruits contained only 0.07% and the ripe seeds only 0.03%. The main alkaloids were the tropane alkaloids scopolamine (hyoscine), apohyoscine and hyoscyamine; others detected included belladonnine, norhyoscyamine, apoatropine, 3α-trigloyloxytropan-6β-ol and tigloidine. Tropane alkaloids are potentially highly toxic. A wide range of lipids and lipid-like compounds were also identified.

Where it grows

Mandragora turcomanica was first discovered in the south-western Kopet Dag mountains in Turkmenistan. Ungricht et al. queried whether it might also occur in the same mountain chain across the border in Iran. It was reported in Iran in 2003, near the village of Dahaneh close to the Golestan National Park. It was growing in gardens, where it had been transplanted from wild sources. In Turkmenistan, the species grows in shrubland, in ravines and on stony mountain slopes, especially among Paliurus spina-christi, at altitudes of 500–700 m (1,600–2,300 ft).

Other Mandragora plants

Mandrake · Himalayan Mandrake · Mandrake · Mandrake