Gen info
- Fatoua is a genus of flowering plants in the mulberry family, Moraceae. It includes only 3 species of herbs: Fatoua madagascariensis, F. pilosa, and F. villosa. (9)
- Etymology: The genus Fatoua was published in 1830 by French pharmacist and botanist Gaudichaud-Beaupre (1789-1854). No explanation was given as to the meaning of the name. In 1999, CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names suggested that Fatoua refers to one of the southwest Pacific languages. Alternatively Gaudichaud-Beaupré, a pharmacist in the French navy, might have named Fatoua after Jean Baptiste Ambroise Fatou (1786-1858), another pharmacist in the French Navy. (5)

Botany
• Herbs, annual, 30-80 cm tall. Stem erect, few branched or unbranched, green when young, dark with age, puberulous. Petiole puberulous; leaf blade ovate to broadly ovate, 5-10 × 3-5 cm, membranous, appressed hirsute, base cordate to truncate and decurrent on petiole, margin crenate-toothed, apex acute; secondary veins 3 or 4 on each side of midvein. Inflorescences bisexual, cymose, ca. 5 mm wide. Male flowers: calyx lobes ca. 1 mm; stamens exserted. Female flowers: ovary ± depressed globose; style filiform, 1-1.5 mm, 2 × as long as ovary. Achenes ovoid, 3-angled, ca. 1 mm.                   (Flora of China)

• F. villosa is an annual herb, and sometimes perennial herb in the deep south of the US. The entire plant is covered in both glandular and recurved hairs giving the plant a sticky feeling to the touch. The leaves resemble the leaves of mulberry giving rise to the common name of mulberry-weed. Leaves are heart shaped and up to 10 cm long with a crenate leaf margin. At the base of each leaf is a pair of stipules. It is a monoecious plant meaning that it has separate male and female flowers on the same plant. The male and female flowers are aggregated into axillary clusters. Fruit is single seeded and explosively shoots the seed up to several meters. (3)

Distribution
- Native to the Philippines. (1) (2)
- In Bohol, Cebu; in Luzon: Batangas, Camarines Norte, Cavite, Ilocos Sur, Laguna, NCR, Rizal; in Mindanao: Bukidnon, Davao, Davao Oriental, Davao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Norte, Misamis Oriental, Zamboanga, Zamboanga del Sur; Mindoro. (1)
- Low elevation, in dry thickets, on walls, cliffs, etc.
- Also native to Bismarck Archipelago, China South-Central, China Southeast, Hainan, Japan, Jawa, Korea, Lesser Sunda Is., Maluku, Nansei-shoto, New Guinea, Northern Territory, Queensland, Solomon Is., Sulawesi, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Western Australia. (2)
- It has escaped from cultivation and naturalized in the United States, and has become invasive where it grows in disturbed areas like flowerbeds, greenhouses, and agricultural fields.

Constituents
- Study of F. villosa isolated three new alkylated chalcones, villosins A-C (1-3), five known analogues, together with ten known coumarins. (see study below) (6)
- Study of whole plant isolated six new prenylcoumarins, (+)-fatouain A (1), (−)-fatouain B (2), (+)-fatouain C (3), (−)-fatouain D (4), (+)-fatouain E (5), and (−)-fatouain F (6), along with two new bis-prenylcoumarins, (+)-fatouain G (7) and (+)-fatouain H (8). (10)

Properties
- Considered by some as a weed nightmare.
- Poses no toxic threat to cats and dogs.
- Studies have suggested cytotoxicity, acetylcholinesterase inhibitory properties.

Parts used
Roots, leaves.

Uses
Edibility
- Reported as inedible here and there, it is reported as a food source in some parts of Asia, particularly in Taiwan, where young shoots and leaves are used in salads or stir-fry vegetable. (9)
- Leaves chewed for stomachaches. Infusion or decoction of roots used medicinally.
Folkloric
- In the Philippines, decoction of roots given for fevers, and as gargle for swollen gums. Infusion of roots used for irregular menstruation and as diuretic. (4)
- In Indonesia, ground yellow roots, known as 'greges otot', are smeared on legs of children with weak legs. (4)
- In Taiwan, leaves are chewed for relief of stomachaches. In Indo-China, crushed and roasted roots are used as depurative medicine by women after childbirth. (4)
- In traditional Chinese medicine, used to relieve itching, treat dysentery and diarrhea, and promote diuresis. (9)
Others
- Agroforestry: Plant has been used as green manure and cover crop in agriculture due to ability to fix nitrogen and improve soil quality. (3)

Studies
• Akylated Chalcones / Cytotoxicity Against Human Tumor Cell Lines: Study of F. villosa isolated three new alkylated chalcones, villosins A-C (1-3), five known analogues, together with ten known coumarins. Compounds 1-3 showed cytotoxicity against five kinds of human tumor cell lines (NB4, A549, SHSY5Y, PC3, and MCF7) with IC50s ranging from 1.4 to 5.7 µM. (6)
• Zeatin / Inhibitory Effect on Acetylcholinesterase Activity: Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors, which enhance cholinergic transmission by reducing enzymatic degradaion of acetylcholine, are a source of the compound currently approved for treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The methanol extract from Fatoua villosa of 100 traditional edible plants tested showed most potent inhibitory effect (51%) on acetylcholinesterase in vitro. From the highest inhibitory fraction, the chloroform fraction (75%) on AChE, zeatin [2-methyl-4-(1H-purine-6-ylamino)-2-buten-1-ol], one of the derivatives of purine adenine was purified. The concentration require for 50% enzyme inhibition (IC50) was 1.09 M. Results suggest zeatin as the most potent AChE inhibitor in AD. (9)

Availability
- Wild-crafted.
- Seeds in the cybermarket.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Moraceae: Fatoua villosa / Co's Digital Flora of the Philippines
(2)
Fatoua villosa / KEW: Plants of the World Online
(3)
Fatoua villosa / Wikipedia
(4)
Fatoua villosa / LS de Padua, N Bunyapraphatsara, RHMJ Lemmens / PROSEA
(5)
Mulberry Weed: Fatoua villosa / Arthur Lee Jacobson / Plant of the Month, February 2014
(6)
New Cytotoxic Alkylated Chalcones from Fatoua villosa / Shi-Yun Su, Jing-Jing Xue, Guang-Yu Yang, Chen Lei, Ao-Jun Hou / CHEMISTRY & BIODIVERSITY, 2017; 14(6): E1700076 /
DOI: 10.1002/CBDV.201700076
(7)
Inhibitory Effect of Zeatin, Isolated from Fiatoua villosa, on Acetylcholinesterase Activity from PC12 Cells / Ho-Jin Heo, Seong-Chan Hong, Dong-Hoon Shin et al / Molecules and Cells, 2002; 13(1): pp 113-117 /
DOI: 10.1016/S1016-8478(23)15011-4
(8)
Suggested reading: Hairy crabweed is one bad weed! / Elizabeth Wahle / Welcome to My Jungle
(9)
Fatoua villosa / BOTANIKKS
(10)
Prenyl Coumarins from Fatoua pilosa / Chun-Ching Chiang, Ming-Jen Cheng, Ih-Sheng Chen et al / Journal of Natural Products, 2010; 73(10): pp 1718-1722 / DOI: 10.1021/np100354c

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)