Clubmoss

Botanical Overview

Clubmoss (Lycopodium gnidioides) is a species in the Lycopodiaceae family. The clubmoss family (Lycopodiaceae) includes evergreen, moss-like plants with creeping stems and upright branches covered in small, scale-like leaves. These ancient plants reproduce by spores rather than seeds. Several species produce alkaloids used in traditional medicine and as sources of clubmoss powder. Phytochemical data for this species are limited at present.

Family Context

The Lycopodiaceae family is widely distributed. Notable medicinal members include:

Active Compounds

Phytochemical research has identified 1 compound in this species: selagine.

The identified compounds include the following categories:

  • Alkaloid: nitrogenous compounds with diverse pharmacological activities

Research Status

Although this species has documented phytochemical constituents, its ethnobotanical and clinical documentation remains incomplete. Additional phytochemical investigation could identify novel bioactive compounds in this plant.

ⓘ Information
Information on this page is compiled from Dr. Duke’s Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases (USDA ARS), a public domain resource. Consult a healthcare professional before using any herbal preparation.

Complete Chemical Inventory

CompoundFormulaMW
SELAGINEC₁₅H₁₈N₂O242.32 Da

Data from PubChem (NIH/NLM, public domain).


References & Further Reading

External Research Links

Data Sources