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Morinda citrifolia

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"Noni" redirects here. For other uses, see Noni (disambiguation).

Morinda citrifolia
Leaves and noni fruit
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Rubiaceae
Genus: Morinda
Species:
M. citrifolia
Binomial name
Morinda citrifolia

Morinda citrifolia is a fruit-bearing tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. Its native range extends across Southeast Asia and Australasia, and was spread across the Pacific by Polynesian sailors.[1] The species is now cultivated throughout the tropics and widely naturalized.[2] Among some 100 names for the fruit across different regions are the more common English names of great morinda, Indian mulberry, noni, beach mulberry, and cheese fruit.[3]

The fresh fruit's strong, vomit-like odor has made it a famine food in most regions, but it remains a staple food among some cultures, and has been used in traditional medicine. In the consumer market, it has been introduced as a supplement in various formats, such as capsules, skin products, and juices.

Noni in cross-section

Growing habitats

Morinda citrifolia grows in shady forests, as well as on open rocky or sandy shores.[4] It reaches maturity in about 18 months, then yields between 4 and 8 kg (8.8 and 17.6 lb) of fruit every month throughout the year. It is tolerant of saline soils, drought conditions, and secondary soils. It is therefore found in a wide variety of habitats: volcanic terrains, lava-strewn coasts, and clearings or limestone outcrops, as well as in coralline atolls.[4] It can grow up to 9 m (30 ft) tall, and has large, simple, dark green, shiny and deeply veined leaves.

The plant bears flowers and fruits all year round. The fruit is a multiple fruit that has a pungent odour when ripening, and is hence also known as cheese fruit or even vomit fruit. It is oval in shape and reaches 10–18 centimetres (3.9–7.1 in) size. At first green, the fruit turns yellow then almost white as it ripens. It contains many seeds.[4]

Morinda citrifolia is especially attractive to weaver ants, which make nests from the leaves of the tree.[4] These ants protect the plant from some plant-parasitic insects. The smell of the fruit also attracts fruit bats, which aid in dispersing the seeds. A type of fruit fly, Drosophila sechellia, feeds exclusively on these fruits.[5]

Uses

Noni fruit

A variety of beverages (juice drinks), powders (from dried ripe or unripe fruits), cosmetic products (lotions, soaps), oil (from seeds), leaf powders (for encapsulation or pills) have been introduced into the consumer market.[6]

Food

Noni is sometimes called a "starvation fruit", implying that it was used by indigenous peoples as emergency food during times of famine.[6] Despite its strong smell and bitter taste, the fruit was nevertheless eaten as a famine food,[7] and, in some Pacific Islands, even as a staple food, either raw or cooked.[8] Southeast Asians and Australian Aborigines consume the fruit raw with salt or cook it with curry.[9] The seeds are edible when roasted. In Thai cuisine, the leaves (known as bai-yo) are used as a green vegetable and are the main ingredient of kaeng bai-yo, cooked with coconut milk. The fruit (luk-yo) is added as a salad ingredient to some versions of somtam.

Traditional medicine

Green fruit, leaves, and root or rhizomes might have been used in Polynesian cultures as a general tonic, in addition to its traditional place in Polynesian culture as a famine food.[6] Although Morinda is considered to have biological properties in traditional medicine, there is no confirmed evidence of clinical efficacy for any intended use.[10] In 2018, a Hawaiian manufacturer of noni food and skincare products was issued an FDA warning letter for marketing unapproved drugs and making false health claims in violation of the US Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.[11]

Dyes

Among Austronesian peoples, noni was traditionally used primarily for the production of dyes. It was carried into the Pacific Islands as canoe plants by Austronesian voyagers. Morinda bark produces a brownish-purplish dye that may be used for making batik. In Hawaii, yellowish dye is extracted from its roots to dye cloth.[12][13]

Nutrients and phytochemicals

Morinda citrifolia fruit powder contains carbohydrates and dietary fibre in moderate amounts.[14] These macronutrients evidently reside in the fruit pulp, as M. citrifolia juice has sparse nutrient content.[15] The main micronutrients of M. citrifolia pulp powder include vitamin C, niacin (vitamin B3), iron and potassium.[14] Vitamin A, calcium and sodium are present in moderate amounts. When M. citrifolia juice alone is analyzed and compared to pulp powder, only vitamin C is retained[15] in an amount (34 mg per 100 gram juice) that is 64% of the content of a raw navel orange (53 mg per 100 g or 89% of the Daily Value).[16] Sodium levels in M. citrifolia juice (about 3% of Dietary Reference Intake, DRI)[14] are high compared to an orange, and potassium content is moderate.[16]

Morinda citrifolia fruit contains a number of phytochemicals, including lignans, oligo- and polysaccharides, flavonoids, iridoids, fatty acids, scopoletin, catechin, beta-sitosterol, damnacanthal, and alkaloids.[17] Although these substances have been studied for bioactivity, research is insufficient to conclude anything about their effects on human health.[2]

  • M. citrifolia flower
    M. citrifolia flower
  • Young noni growing on Oahu, Hawaii
    Young noni growing on Oahu, Hawaii

See also

References

  1. ^ Pieroni, Andrea (2005). Prance, Ghillean; Nesbitt, Mark (eds.). The Cultural History of Plants. Routledge. p. 36. ISBN 0415927463.
  2. ^ a b Nelson, SC (2006-04-01). "Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry: Morinda citrifolia (noni)". Traditional Tree Initiative.
  3. ^ "Some worldwide names for Morinda citrifolia L." The noni website, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. 2006. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d Nelson, Scot C (March 2001). "Noni cultivation in Hawaii" (PDF). The noni website, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  5. ^ Jones, C.D. (1998). "The Genetic Basis of Drosophila sechellia‍'s Resistance to a Host Plant Toxin". Genetics. 149 (4): 1899–1908. PMC 1460277. PMID 9691045.
  6. ^ a b c Nelson, Scot C (8 October 2003). "Morinda citrifolia L." (PDF). Permanent Agriculture Resources, University of Hawaii. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  7. ^ Krauss, BH (December 1993). Plants in Hawaiian Culture. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. p. 272. ISBN 978-0-8248-1225-6.
  8. ^ Morton, Julia F. (1992). "The ocean-going noni, or Indian Mulberry (Morinda citrifolia, Rubiaceae) and some of its "colorful" relatives". Economic Botany. 46 (3): 241–56. doi:10.1007/BF02866623. S2CID 41054660.
  9. ^ Cribb, A.B. & Cribb, J.W. (1975) Wild Food in Australia. Sydney: Collins.[page needed]
  10. ^ Potterat O, Hamburger M (2007). "Morinda citrifolia (Noni) fruit--phytochemistry, pharmacology, safety". Planta Medica. 73 (3): 191–9. doi:10.1055/s-2007-967115. PMID 17286240.
  11. ^ Darla Bracy, Division Director (18 July 2018). "Warning letter: Hawaiian Organic Noni, LLC". Inspections, Compliance, Enforcement, and Criminal Investigations, US Food and Drug Administration. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  12. ^ Thompson, RH (1971). Naturally Occurring Anthraquinones. New York: Academic Press.[page needed]
  13. ^ Nelson, Scot C. (2006). "Pandanus tectorius (pandanus)". In Elevitch, Craig R. (ed.). Species Profiles for Pacific Island Agroforestry (PDF). Permanent Agriculture Resources (PAR).
  14. ^ a b c Nelson, Scot C. (2006) "Nutritional Analysis of Hawaiian Noni (Noni Fruit Powder)" The Noni Website. Retrieved 15-06-2009.
  15. ^ a b Nelson, Scot C. (2006) "Nutritional Analysis of Hawaiian Noni (Pure Noni Fruit Juice)" The Noni Website. Retrieved 15-06-2009.
  16. ^ a b "Nutrition data for raw oranges, all commercial varieties, per 100 gram amount". Nutritiondata.com. Conde Nast for the USDA National Nutrient Database, Release SR-21. 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  17. ^ Levand, Oscar; Larson, Harold (2009). "Some Chemical Constituents of Morinda citrifolia". Planta Medica. 36 (6): 186–7. doi:10.1055/s-0028-1097264. PMID 461575.
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