The chemotaxonomic value of two cinnamoyl chromones, aloeresin E and F, in Aloe (Aloaceae)

Summary Viljoen, A. M. & Van Wyk, B.‐E.: The chemotaxonomic value of two cinnamoyl chromones, aloeresins E and F, in Aloe (Aloaceae). ‐ ‐ Taxon 48: 747‐754. 1999. – ISSN 0040‐0262. A chemotaxonomic study of the genus Aloe indicates a remarkable quantitative and qualitative similarity in leaf exudate composition between 12 species. The diagnostic leaf exudate profile found in all representatives of this group – a combination of homonataloin A and B with either or both of two recently described cinnamoyl chromones, aloeresin E and F, together with various coumaroyl chromones – may serve as a “fingerprint”. Taxonomic assessment and cladistic analysis of both morphological and chemical data support the transfer of A. pearsonii, previously misplaced in A. ser. Macrifoliae, to A. ser. Mitriformes, and are consistent with the broadening of the circumscription of the latter to include 5 anomalous species: A. angelica, A. yavellana, A. peglerae, A. melanacantha, and A. erinacea.