Gen info
- Fagraea is a genus of plants in the family Gentianaceae, which includes trees, shrubs, lianas, and epiphytes. The fruits are edible for many animals, including cassowaries, flying foxes, and civets. Many species play a roles in various mythologies. Many find uses as ornamentals, traditional medicine, perfumery, or in aromatherapy.  (5)
- Fagraea ceilanica is a species of small tree in the family Gentianaceae. It is a seasonal tropical forest tree, but also grown as an ornamental in India, Indo-China and Malesia. (4)
- Etymology:  The genus name Fagraea was coined by Carl Peter Thunberg in honor of botanist and physician Jon a Theodor Fagraeus. The species epithet ceilanica refers to 'Ceylon', currently Sri Lanka.

Botany
• Shrubs, scandent epiphytes, or trees to 15 m tall. Branchlets stout, with prominent leaf scars. Stipules scalelike, ca. 1 X 4 mm. Petiole 1--5 cm; leaf blade elliptic, ovate, obovate, or narrowly obovate, 5--25 X 2--10 cm, fleshy to leathery, glabrous, margin entire, lateral veins 4--10 inconspicuous pairs. Flowers terminal, solitary or in dichasial cymes. Calyx broadly campanulate; lobes ovate to rounded, ca. 1 cm. Corolla white, funnelform, tube 3--3.5 cm; lobes obovate, 2.5--3 X ca. 2 cm. Stamens included; anthers oblong to narrowly ovate, 5--7 mm. Ovary ellipsoid to ovoid, glabrous, 2-locular. Style filiform; stigma obconical, slightly cup-shaped to peltate. Berries ovoid, ellipsoid, or subglobose, 3--5 X 2--4 cm, apex slightly to strongly beaked. (Flora of China)

• Epiphytic climber which turns into an understorey tree up to 17 m tall and 20 cm dbh when mature. Stipules surrounding the twigs. Leaves opposite, simple, penni-veined, glabrous, leathery. Flowers ca. 60 mm diameter, whitish to orange, placed in branched inflorescences. Fruits ca. 40 mm long, green-yellowish-whitish, berries. (3)

• Growth form: Large shrub or small tree usually up to 10 m tall. Foliage: Smooth, glossy leaves are fleshy and thick. Flowers: Large, trumpet-shaped flowers are strongly fragrant. They open white, turn yellow by the next day and quickly fade after that. Fruit: Jade green, glossy fruit is round with a pronounced beak. (5)

Distribution
- Native to the Philippines. (1)
- High-climbing woody hemi-epiphyte in forests, up to 2100 m. (1)
- Also native to Assam, Bangladesh, Borneo, Cambodia, China South-Central, China Southeast, East Himalaya, Hainan, India, Jawa, Laos, Lesser Sunda Is., Malaya, Maluku, Myanmar, New Guinea, Solomon Is., Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Taiwan, Thailand, Vanuatu, Vietnam. (2)
- Ornamental cultivation for large, fragrant flowers.

Constituents
- Study for total phenolic content yielded 55.0 mg GAE/g. Phytochemical analysis of dried plant materials yielded saponins, flavonoids, and cardiac glycosides, with absence of tannins, phlobatannins, and terpenoids. (see study below) (6)

Properties
- No reports of toxicity to humans.
- Studies suggested antibacterial, antioxidant properties.

Parts used
Leaves, roots, bark.

Uses
Edibility
- Fruits are edible; processed into jams. (10)
- Fruits are reportedly happily devoured by lots of animals, including cassowaries, flying foxes, and civets.
Folkloric
- No reported folkloric medicinal use in the Philippines.
- In Sri Lanka, used externally for snake bites.
- In India, leaf juice drunk for treatment of dysentery and diarrhea. (6)
- In Thailand, decoction of roots used for treatment of diabetes. (9)
- In Indonesia, decoction of roots, bark, twigs, leaves, and flower used for treatment of malaria and dysentery.   (10)
Others
- Wood: Timber with strength and durability for heave construction. Used for house posts, bridges, boats, railway sleepers, piles, poles, fence posts, door and window sills, flooring, barrels, chopping blocks, coffins, cabinetry and furniture making. Considered a first-class turnery material. (10)
- Fuel: Wood yields high quality firewood and charcoal.
- Fly trap: Latex under the epidermis of fruits used as glue for fly traps. (10)
- Fodder: Leaves can be used as forage for livestock. (10)

Studies
• Antibacterial / Antioxidant: Antibacterial study by disc diffusion assay using methanol and diethyl extracts of dried plant materials revealed zones of inhibition of 15 mm and 10mm against  Escherchia coli, and 8 mm and 14 mm against Staphylococcus aureus. IC50 value on DPPH radical scavenging assay was 58 µg/ml. (see constituents above) (6)
• Scopoletin / Weak Antioxidant Activity / Bark: Study isolated scopoletin from bark of Fagraea ceilanica by maceration method using n-hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts. The compound showed weak antioxidant activity with IC50 =358 mg/L by DPPH assay. (7)
• Biosynthesis of Scopoletin: Scopoletin is a coumarin, which can be produced by plants. It is a precursor for pharmaceutical and healthcare product with various biological properties i.e., antibacterial, antihypertensive, antitubercular, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, anti-hyperuricemic. Review reports  on the progress of scopoletin biosynthesis in artificial cell factories, summarizing the two main pathways of biosynthesis, emerging techniques in synthetic biology and metabolic engineerings. The review showcases the potential of biosynthesis of scopoletin in artificial microbial cell factories. (8)

Availability
Wild-crafted.
Live plants in the cybermarket.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Fagraea ceilanica Thunb. / Co's Digital Flora of the Philippines
(2)
Fagraea ceilanica / KEW: Plants of the World Online
(3)
Fagraea ceilanica / AsianPlantNet
(4)
Fagraea ceilanica / Wikipedia
(5)
Fagraea ceilanica / National Parks: FLORA & FAUNA WEB
(6)
Preliminary phytochemical screening and bioactivity of selected Indian medicinal plants / AG Devi Prasad, Komal K Kumar, Shubha Gopal, TB Shyma, Deepa Shree / International Journall of Phytomedicine, 2013; 5: pp0 1-6 / DOI: 10.5138/ijpmv5i1.789
(7)
Diversity and traditional knowledge of wild fruit used by Muthuvan tribes of Wayanad district, Kerala, India / Venkatesan Krishnamoorthi, Murugeswaran Rajendran et al / International Journal of Botany Studies, 2018; 3(6): pp 19-24 / ISSN: 2455-541X
(8)
Advances in biosynthesis of scopoletin / B0-Tao He, Zhi-Hua Liu, Bing-Zhi Li, Ying-Jin  Yuan / Microbial Cell Factories, 2022; 21: 152 / DOI: 10.1186/s12934-022-01865-7
(9)
Thai Ethnomedicinal Plants Used for Diabetes Treatment / Methee Phumthum, Henrik Balslev / OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine, 2018; 3(3) / DOI: 10.21926/obm.icm.1803020
(10)
Species richness, conservation status, and potential uses of plants in Segara Anakan Area of Sempu Island, East Java, Indonesia / Siti Nurfadilah, Lia Hapsari, Ilham Kurnia Abywijaya / BIODIVERSITAS, 2017; 18(4): pp 1568-1588 / DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d180436 / ISSN: 1412-033X / eISSN: 2085-4722

DOI: It is not uncommon for links on studies/sources to change. Copying and pasting the information on the search window or using the DOI (if available) will often redirect to the new link page. (Citing and Using a (DOI) Digital Object Identifier)