Abstract
A comparative investigation of the anatomical characters through a microscopical examination of the prepared transverse sections of the stem was carried out. Six plates with 32 photomicrographs were provided to convincingly show the considerable variations of anatomical characters within the nine examined species. The matrix of 18 anatomical characters which included nine quantitative and nine qualitative was applied for the clustering analysis (CA) followed by the principal component analysis (PCA) using the Multivariate Analysis of Ecological Data, PC-ORD. The results exhibited significant variations among the species resulting in the construction of an artificial key; this key accurately represents a sufficient tool to display the considerable variation among the recognized species prominently. The distinction between Terminalia L., 1767 species based on significant variations in the elements of stem anatomy; axial parenchyma and ray characteristics were considered as important parameters, while vessel diameter, fiber wall thickness, etc. were considered minor characters to differentiate between the studied species. The potential usefulness of the differentiation of these species properly maintains a profound efficiency in pharmaceutical and traditional medicine.
Highlights
Terminalia L., 1767 the second largest genus of Combretaceae, is derived from the Latin name (Terminus = end) which means the appearance of the leaves at the end of the shoots
The archaeological excavations at Quseir al-Qadim revealed the presence of two Terminalia species among the tropical species utilized in traditional medicine and cuisine
Referring to their economic importance in Egypt; the wood is used for house building, making furniture (T. chebula), and agricultural implements (T. arjuna); the bark is an essential source of tannins used for tanning and dyeing (T. arjuna) and the fruits are used to cure many ailments (T. bellirica and T. chebula)
Summary
Fifty species of this genus are native throughout eastern, southern, and western Africa (Lebrun and Stork, 1991) It is represented in Egypt by nine cultivated species. Terminalia arjuna (Roxb.) Wight and Arn., 1834, T. bellerica and T. catappa L., 1767 are planted in the Egyptian wooden forests irrigated with primary level treated sewage water (Imam, 1983). Referring to their economic importance in Egypt; the wood is used for house building, making furniture (T. chebula), and agricultural implements (T. arjuna); the bark is an essential source of tannins used for tanning and dyeing (T. arjuna) and the fruits are used to cure many ailments (T. bellirica and T. chebula). The taxonomic revision of genus Terminalia in Egypt revealed the presence of nine cultivated species (Sickenberger, 1901; Muschler, 1912, Hamdy et al, 2007; Hamdy, 2010; Youssef and Hamdy, 2013)
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