Annona Temporal range: Late Cretaceous – present
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Annona squamosa | |
Annona muricata | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Magnoliids |
Order: | Magnoliales |
Family: | Annonaceae |
Tribe: | Annoneae |
Genus: | Annona L.[1] |
Type species | |
Annona muricata | |
Species | |
Some 169 (see text) | |
Synonyms[2] | |
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Annona or Anona (from Taíno annon) is a genus of flowering plants in the pawpaw/sugar apple family, Annonaceae. It is the second largest genus in the family after Guatteria,[3] containing approximately 166[4] species of mostly Neotropical and Afrotropical trees and shrubs.[5]
The generic name derives from anón, a Hispaniolan Taíno word for the fruit.[6] Paleoethnobotanical studies have dated Annona exploitation and cultivation in the Yautepec River region of Medicoto to approximately 1000 BC.[7] Plants of the genus have several common names, including sugar-apple, soursop, anona, chrimoya and guanabana.
Currently, seven Annona species and one hybrid are grown for domestic or commercial use, mostly for the edible and nutritious fruits; several others also produce edible fruits.[8] Many of the species are used in traditional medicines for the treatment of a variety of diseases, though their efficacy has yet to be validated scientifically. Several annonaceous species have been found to contain acetogenins, a class of natural compounds with a wide variety of biological activities.[9][10] The first complete genome for a species in this genus (Annona muricata) was published in 2021.[11] The earliest fossils have been found in the Lance Formation dating to the Late Cretaceous.[12]
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