Lecto- and epitypification of Stephania rotunda (Menispermaceae)

The plant genus Stephania Loureiro (1790: 608–609) (Menispermaceae) comprises about 60 species distributed in tropical and subtropical Asia, tropical Africa, and Oceania (Lo et al. 2008). Species of this genus are commonly used in folk medicine for the treatment of asthma, tuberculosis, dysentery, hyperglycemia, cancer, fever, and malaria (Semwal et al. 2010). Currently, active pharmacological research is being conducted on S. rotunda Loureiro (1790: 608), and particularly on its tubers. This species shows in addition to antioxidant and cytotoxic activities, a significant antiplasmodial activity (Bun et al. 2009, Baghdikian et al. 2013).