Page 57 - Pharmacognosy 2 PG303

Pharmacognosy-2 (PG303) Level 2 Clinical Pharmacy-Pharm D

brown, or greyish, 2 to 12 mm long and 3 to 6 mm broad and crowned by a short
bifurcate stylopod. The outer surface is rather rough to touch due to the presence
of numerous very short, stiff hairs and shows 5 very slightly raised pale brown
primary ridges. The transverse section shows a pericarp with 20 to 40 vittae on the
dorsal surface due to the branching of the original 4 vittae and two sometimes 3 to
4 vittae on the commissural surface. The endosperm is orthospermous and
not deeply grooved. Anise has strong characteristic aromatic agreeable odor
and sweet strongly aromatic taste.

Microscopical Characters
1. Pericarp:
The epicarp is formed of polygonal cells with striated cuticle, many of which
project into short. conical, curved thick-walled unicellular occasionally bicellular
covering trichomes with bluntly pointed apex and finely warty cuticle.
The mesocarp consists of parenchyma traversed by numerous schizogenous
vittae with brown epithelial cells and in each primary ridge by a small vascular
bundle. A few porous cells are present only in the middle of the commissural side.

The endocarp is composed of narrow tangentially elongated thin-walled cells
except when adjacent to porous cells where it consists of porous lignified and
reticulately thickened cells.

2. Seed
The seedcoat is formed of an epidermis of polygonal brown cells with
collapsed layer underneath Endosperm is composed of thick-walled cellulosic cells
containing fixed oil and aleurone grains of the Umbelliferous type.

3. Carpophore
Split, passing at the apex into the raphe of each mericarp and is traversed by
a vascular strand of fibers and spiral vessels.

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