CELASTRACEAE - BITTERWEET FAMILY
Scientific Description:
Trees, shrubs (ours) or climbers. Leaves simple, alternate, opposite or in whorls, stipules very small or absent. Flowers often in cymes, hermaphrodite or unisexual, actinomorphic. Calyx 4−5-lobed. Petals 4−5. Disc present, often ± completely covering the ovary before fertilization. Stamens 4−5, inserted on or at the margins of the disc. Ovary superior, 1−5-locular. Styles short. Ovules usually 2 in each loculus. Fruit a fleshy capsule (In Türkiye), opening by 4−5 valves. Seeds with endosperm, conspicuously arillate.
Reference:
Davis PH (1967). Celastraceae, In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2: 548.
Public Description:
The “staff vine”, “staff-tree” or “bittersweet family” contains trees, shrubs or climbers. The great majority of the genera are tropical, with only the “staff vines (Celastrus L.)”, “the spindles (Euonymus L.)” and “May tree (Maytenus Molina)” widespread in temperate climates.The fruit of this family is generally more spectacular than the flowers. The leaves are leathery and the flowers are small. Some species (such as Euonymus species) are grown as ornamental plants. A toxic alkaloid "Maytansin" derived from Maytenus is a potential anticancer agent and has used in the treatment of colon cancer in some researches.
References:
Anonymous 1 (2016). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celastraceae/, Accessed date: 04.01.2016.
Anonymous 2 (2016). http://www.britannica.com/plant/Celastraceae/, Accessed date: 04.01.2016.
Anonymous 3 (2017). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3105156//, Accessed date: 24.11.2017.
