This study investigated the chemotaxonomic studies on
Schwenckia americana
Linn., a member of the family Solanaceae predominantly found mostly in low grass fields,
Nigeria. The habit is annual herbaceous weed with slender stem characterized with free
branching and growing up to 45cm in height.They are used mainly as medicine. The leaves are
simple, entire, elliptic to ovate in shape, smooth, variable, petiolate and larger at the lower
region of stem and narrowing to smaller almost sessile and oblanceolate towards the apical
regions which are alternately arranged and acrescently structured from the top to the base upto
3.7 ± 1.5cm long and 2.4±0.6cm wide. The inflorescence is a panicle of 15 or more flowers
occurring at stem terminal.The flowers are whitish tubular structures measuring up to 1.0±0.2cm
in length and 0.1cm in diameter. The petals are whitish up to 0.9 ±0.2cm in length and sepals
are greenish up to 0.1cm in length. The berry fruit is greenish when unripe and pale yellowish
when ripe up to 0.3±0.1cm in diameter. The seeds are blackish and spherical or triangular
shaped with rough edges measuring up to 0.1cm in diameter. The epidermal studies reveal
anomocytic stomata whereas the trichomes are simple uniseriate forms wth bulge heads. The
anatomy of mid-ribs and petioles showed bicollateral vascular systems. There are three vascular
traces and the node is unilacunar. The petioles have 2 rib traces at primary growth phase. At
secondary growth phase, the mid-rib and petiole revealed vascular arcs and the stem has a ring
of open vascular system. The cytological studies showed a diploid chromosome number of 2n =
24 and n = 12 for the haploids. Alkaloids, saponins, tannins, phlobatannins, flavonoids,
combined anthraquinones, free anthraquinones and cardiac glycosides are present.
