Miski Mahmut
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Istanbul University, Istanbul 34116, Turkey.
Plants (Basel). 2021 Jan 6;10(1):102. doi: 10.3390/plants10010102.
Silphion was an ancient medicinal gum-resin; most likely obtained from a species growing in the Cyrene region of Libya ca. 2500 years ago. Due to its therapeutic properties and culinary value, silphion became the main economic commodity of the Cyrene region. It is generally believed that the source of silphion became extinct in the first century AD. However, there are a few references in the literature about the cultivated silphion plant and its existence up to the fifth century. Recently, a rare and endemic species that produces a pleasant-smelling gum-resin was found in three locations near formerly Greek villages in Anatolia. Morphologic features of this species closely resemble silphion, as it appears in the numismatic figures of antique Cyrenaic coins, and conform to descriptions by ancient authors. Initial chemical and pharmacological investigations of this species have confirmed the medicinal and spice-like quality of its gum-resin supporting a connection with the long-lost silphion. A preliminary conservation study has been initiated at the growth site of this rare endemic species. The results of this study and their implications on the regional extinction event, and future development of this species will be discussed.
昔勒尼树脂是一种古代药用树胶脂；很可能是约2500年前从生长在利比亚昔兰尼地区的一种植物中获取的。由于其治疗特性和烹饪价值，昔勒尼树脂成为昔兰尼地区的主要经济商品。人们普遍认为昔勒尼树脂的来源在公元一世纪灭绝。然而，文献中有一些关于人工种植的昔勒尼植物及其一直存在到五世纪的记载。最近，在安纳托利亚以前希腊村庄附近的三个地点发现了一种稀有的特有物种，该物种能产生一种气味宜人的树胶脂。这种物种的形态特征与昔勒尼树脂非常相似，就像它出现在古代昔兰尼硬币的钱币图案中一样，并且符合古代作者的描述。对该物种的初步化学和药理学研究证实了其树胶脂具有药用和类似香料的特性，这支持了它与早已失传的昔勒尼树脂之间的联系。已经在这种稀有特有物种的生长地启动了一项初步的保护研究。将讨论这项研究的结果及其对区域灭绝事件的影响，以及该物种的未来发展。
