Onions of the Allium Subgenus Melanocrommyum – the Better Garlic?

About 200 Allium species occur in the mountainous regions of Central and South-West Asia [1]. The use of especially tasteful and curative members of this family has a long tradition with apparently deep historical roots in several Asian countries. Besides cultivated onion and garlic, also a number of wild species are collected and eaten by local populations of the above mentioned regions. In this area, especially members of the subgenus Melanocrommyum are widely distributed and highly estimated as vegetable and medicinal plant. In Tajikistan and in some parts of neighbouring countries where related tribes settled, leaves of A. rosenbachianum auct. – this name is used in some scientific literature for A. rosenbachianum Regel in a strict sense as well as for A. rosenorum R.M. Fritsch – are extensively used. Leaves are often collected and eaten in form of traditional dishes because consumption “refreshes the body after the winter period“ [2]. Allium komarowii Lipsky owns obviously a rather strong medical activity, because it is used as anabolic drug for horses [2]. Also this kind of activity could not be correlated to high cysteine sulphoxide contents, but these species contain a conspicuous red dye, which is chemically a sulphurpyrrol. Allium motor Kamelin et Levichev is often used in a similar manner as A. rosenbachianum in parts of Uzbekistan. The term ‘motor' means ‘health', but application may cause problems for people suffering from high blood pressure [29.

The above mentioned examples demonstrate that members of the subgenus Melanocrommyum are used as medicinal plants with huge variety of applications and are even higher estimated as garlic. However, the active principle of these plants is still unknown and needs further investigation.

Acknowledgements: Research was supported by the German VolkswagenStiftung as part of the “PharmAll“-project.

References: 1. Khassanov, F.O. (1996), Plant life in Southwest and Central Asia, EGE University Press. Izmir.141–159. 2. Keusgen, M., Fritsch, R.M. et al. (2006), J. Ethnobiol. Ethnomed. 2: 18.