Kingdom Plantae Family Violaceae Scientific name Viola arvensis Rank Species | Order Malpighiales Genus Viola Higher classification Violet | |
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Similar Thlaspi arvense, Cleavers, Violet, Myosotis arvensis, Sinapis arvensis | ||
Field pansy viola arvensis 2012 06 02
Viola arvensis is a species of violet known by the common name field pansy. It is native to Europe, western Asia, and North Africa, and it is known on other continents as an introduced species and a weed of disturbed and cultivated areas.
Contents
Viola arvensis was shown to contain cyclotides, a class of peptides found in plants. The peptide cycloviolacin O2 in particular has shown to possess cytotoxic activity against human cancer cells and is therefore looked at as a potential drug lead.
Description
It is an herbaceous annual plant with serrated leaves, and usually flowers with white all over, except the bottom petal (Although there are actually flowers with a tinge of purple at the top) and dehiscent capsules. It reproduces by seed. It grows 20 centimeters tall.
