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Infeksi pada rongga mulut terutama di saluran akar gigi sering dialami oleh orang Indonesia, dan salah satu penyebabnya adalah bakteri Enterococcus faecalis. Tanaman yang potensial sebagai anti bakteri adalah dari dua species Macaranga yaitu merkubung (Macaranga gigantea) dan mangpurang (Macaranga triloba). Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis kandungan metabolit sekunder ekstrak kulit kayu dari dua species Macaranga dan kemampuannya dalam menghambat pertumbuhan bakteri faecalis. Metode penelitian yang dilakukan adalah pembuatan serbuk, pengukuran kadar air serbuk, penghitungan rendemen ekstrak, uji fitokimia dan pengujian aktivitas anti bakteri E. faecalis. Rendemen ekstrak etanol kulit kayu M. gigantea adalah 9,18% (KA 9,15%) dan M. triloba sebesar 9,70% (KA 8,56%). Ekstrak positif mengandung fenolik, tanin, saponin, terpenoid, flavonoid dan alkaloid. Level konsentrasi 100 mg/mL merupakan konsentrasi terbaik dari kedua jenis ekstrak untuk menghambat pertumbuhan bakteri E. faecalis, namun diantara kedua jenis ekstrak tersebut yang terbaik dalam menghambat pertumbuhan E. faecalis adalah M. gigantea.

The genus of Macaranga (Euphorbiacaceae) has 250 species of which 160 species are endemic in Kalimantan and New Guinea. They grow as pioneer trees and are used as traditional medicines in the Asian regions. This experiment concerns cytotoxicity in both cancer and normal cells of their methanol extracts from wood, bark and leaf parts. Some of them have not yet reported its cytotoxic activity in those cell lines. The 21 methanol extracts were prepared from seven Macaranga tree species (Macaranga bancana, Macaranga gigantea, Macaranga hullettii, Macaranga pruinosa, Macaranga tanarius, Macaranga trichocarpa and Macaranga triloba). The MTT assay was used to evaluate cytotoxic activity of extracts in cancer cell lines [human breast cancer (MCF-7), mouse melanoma (B16 melanoma), human colon cancer (HCT116), human cervical adenocarcinoma (HeLa)] and normal cell lines [human normal fibroblast (TIG-1) and normal human dermal fibroblast (NHDF)]. The leaf extracts of M. pruinosa, M. tanarius, M. trichocarpa showed more cytotoxicity than wood and bark in all cancer cell lines. In addition, the 5-fluorouracil was used as a positive control. These findings indicated the extracts from leaves of M. pruinosa, M. tanarius and M. trichocarpa had more potential than wood and bark parts to be developed as anti-cancer agents.

Elucidating the invasion history of non-native species has been dependent on coarse-grain and expensive methods or long-term monitoring during which the spread may have proceeded beyond feasible control. We used the case of a relatively recent introduction and spread of the neotropical Cecropia pachystachya in Singapore to develop a method for reconstructing spatio-temporal patterns of spread through a low-cost, cross-sectional study. Size and growth rates were measured for C. pachystachya trees as well as the native Macaranga gigantea. A power-expansion exponential-decline function was a better fit than the probability density function of the log-normal distribution in describing the growth-rate to size relationship for both species. C. pachystachya trees generally grew faster (up to 5.4 ± 0.1 cm per year at 12.2 ± 0.2 cm DBH) than M. gigantea trees (up to 3.8 ± 0.2 cm per year at 11.5 ± 0.3 cm DBH). We demonstrated that the integral of the reciprocal of these growth equations provides an estimate of the age of the individuals from their size. Using the size and geographic coordinates of C. pachystachya trees from an island-wide search, we estimate that the invasion front of reproductive trees (>5 cm DBH) showed at least a 20-year lag phase from the time of initial establishment to the year 2005, before advancing exponentially at median rates between 5 and 466 m year−1 with maximum rates of several km year−1. The extent of occurrence expanded by nearly tenfold from 2004 to 2012. Consequently, the spatial dynamics of trees can be reproduced using ontogenetic growth functions.

Cecropia is a pioneer genus from the Neotropics, whilst Macaranga is an ecological analog with a center of distribution in Southeast Asia. In the past few decades, introduced populations of Cecropia spp. have spread rapidly in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. In Singapore, Cecropia pachystachya now occupies habitats that would have been expected to be occupied by Macaranga gigantea. We conducted germination experiments under 0, 20, 50, and 70 % shading and measured the survival rates and functional traits of the seedlings of these two species from material collected in Singapore. Seeds of C. pachystachya germinated in 3–12 days, whereas seeds of M. gigantea germinated from day 13 onwards. Germination success for C. pachystachya was between 90.3 % under full-light conditions and 55.8 % under 50 % shading, while for M. gigantea only 69.1 % of seed germinated under full-light conditions and germination completely failed when seeds were shaded by 20 % or more. The seedlings of C. pachystachya also had higher survival rates, faster shoot and root biomass accumulation, larger leaves, and lower total water content than those of M. gigantea. Thus overall, C. pachystachya possesses traits that may provide a competitive edge over the native M. gigantea and will be advantageous for its spread given the increasing proliferation of disturbed landscapes in tropical Southeast Asia.

Siregar M. 2017. Spatial distribution of abundant tree species at a mixed dipterocarps forest in Bukit Bangkirai, East Kalimantan, three years after long drought and forest fire. Pros. Sem Nas Masy Biodiv Indon 3: 246-251. This study aims to determine the distribution of abundant tree species that survive or grow three years after long drought and forest fires. The tree distribution data were extracted from the database of three permanent plots at Bukit Bangkirai, namely: 1.0 ha plot at heavily damaged forest due to forest fires (HD-plot), 0.3 ha at lightly damaged forest due to forest fires (LD-plot) and 1.0 ha plot in a natural unburnt forest (K-plot). The distribution pattern was analyzed by using Morisita's indices of dispersion and Jaccard's indices of species association. Correlation of tree density with height and slope of land were also analyzed in each plot.The results showed that the most of the abundant tree species were clumped at small scales, and the clumps were randomly distributed (inter-clump distribution is random). An exception was found for Macaranga glaberrimus at K-plot and Madhuca kingiana at LD-plot which have random distribution both on small and large plots. Individuals of M. kingiana in K-plot were clumped at larger scales, and they were distributed uniformly within the clumps (intraclump distribution is uniform), which were distributed in the valley and steep slope. Inversely, Shorea laevis is rarely found in valleys and steep slopes. In HD-plot, distributions of Macaranga gigantea, Homalanthus populneus and Mallotus paniculatus were concentrated in the valley and in the lower parts of the slopes which have water availability. It can be concluded that the distribution of secondary species in HD-plot is much influenced by water availability, whereas in LD-plot and K-plot more affected by light availability

In our effort to find materials for drugs and cosmetics from tropical natural resources, we screened 21 methanol extracts from 7 Macaranga trees species ( Macaranga bancana, Macaranga gigantea, Macaranga hulle ttii, Macaranga pruinosa, Macaranga tanarius, Macaranga trichocarpa, and Macaranga triloba) for antioxidant and antimelanogenesis. The antioxidant and melanogenesis (tyrosinase enzyme assay and melanin inhibitor in B16 melanoma) assays were used to determine the activities. The fractionation and the isolation of active compound were done by various chomatographic methods and the structure was determined by spectroscopic analysis data. We isolated a prenylated flavonoid, named Glyasperin A, from M. pruinosa leaf. This compound showed a potency as antioxidant and inhibited melanin in B16 melanoma but not tyrosinase activity. These results showed that the methanol leaf extracts of M. pruinosa could be developed for cosmetic applications especially as a skin whitening agent.

Sprouting ability is highly variable among different tree species. In many cases, there are trade-offs in carbon allocations between growth and storage in seedlings. However, this trade-off is likely to change with growth stages from seedling to mature plant because carbon investments in reproductive activities and/or risk of disturbance also change by species and growth stage. To examine how sprouting ability and carbohydrate storage change with growth stage, we compared two tropical secondary-forest trees, Macaranga bancana and M. gigantea, which have different ecological traits. Maximum tree size and growth rate are higher in M. gigantea. We monitored sprout growth and stored resources, including total non-structural carbohydrate (TNC) and nitrogen in the root, among different tree sizes for 12 months following stem-cutting treatment. Sprouting ability (total sprout mass) and TNC concentrations were significantly higher in small individuals than in larger specimens in both species. TNC concentration decreased in all size classes after stem cutting. Macaranga bancana had greater sprout survivorship than M. gigantea, which had higher sprouting ability in larger tree-size classes. Thus, sprouting ability likely depends on root TNC concentration and tree-size class in both Macaranga species. Higher TNC concentration and sprout survival rates in M. bancana may be related to greater carbon allocation in survival than in growth. This hypothesis is consistent with the ecological traits of M. bancana, such as its growth rate, which was lower than that of M. gigantea.

The methanolic fresh leaf extracts of Macaranga gigantea, Macaranga pruinosa, Macaranga tanarius and Macaranga triloba were screened for their antioxidant properties (AOP), tyrosinase inhibition and antibacterial activities. Total phenolic content (TPC), 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging, ferric-ion reducing power (FRAP), ferrous-ion chelating (FIC) and lipid peroxidation inhibition (LPI) activities were used to evaluate the AOP. Modified 3,4-dihydroxy- L -phenylalanine ( L -DOPA) method was used to determine tyrosinase inhibition activity, whereas antibacterial activity was determined using the disc-diffusion technique. TPC screening of the same species from different collection sites showed no significant difference between sites. M. triloba showed the highest ascorbic acid equivalent antioxidant activity (AEAC), FRAP and LPI values. M. tanarius, which showed the lowest TPC, AEAC, FRAP and LPI activities, exhibited the best FIC activity. M. pruinosa showed the best tyrosinase inhibition activity, whereas M. triloba showed the best antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria species, with minimal inhibition dosage (MID) values as low as 10 μg/disc.

Between 1988 and 2000, changes in the above-ground biomass (AGB) of trees in an East Kalimantan lowland forest, damaged by fires in 1982–83 and 1998, were estimated using allometric functions and an annual inventory of stem diameter. The original vegetation of the study site was lowland dipterocarp forest which has since been affected by selective logging and wild fires. The 1982–83 fire killed large trees of primary species and the opened sites became dominated by a few pioneer species. Between 1988 and 1997, a few pioneer tree species, namely Macaranga spp., dominated a heavily disturbed stand (HDS). Primary tree species that survived the 1982–83 fire dominated a lightly disturbed stand (LDS). A moderately disturbed stand (MDS) contained vegetation intermediate between the HDS and the LDS. In 1997, there were 553, 499 and 356 trees ha-1 in the HDS, MDS and LDS, respectively. Macaranga trees accounted for 70, 40 and 11 of the total number of trees in the HDS, MDS, and LDS, respectively. In 1997, the AGB of trees in the HDS, MDS, and LDS was 117, 280, and 315 Mg ha-1, respectively. The proportion of biomass accounted for by Macaranga trees for the HDS, MDS, and LDS was 34, 8 and 1, respectively. The pioneer trees did not compensate for the loss of aboveground biomass resulting from the death of large primary trees. The fire in 1998 again decreased AGB of the stands. In 2000, the AGB of trees in the HDS, MDS, and LDS was 27, 106, and 219 Mg ha-1, respectively. The sites opened up by the 1998 fire were covered with the pioneer seedlings and seemingly dominated by the pioneer trees with a larger number of stems per ha, but lower biomass as compared to the original forest (> 400 Mg ha-1).

Four common fallow tree species were tested for a response to nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization. Seedlings or cuttings of Melicope glabra (Rutaceae), Macaranga gigantea (Euphorbiaceae), Persea romosa (Laureaceae), Peronema canescens (Verbenaceae) were grown in pots of a 50:50 mix of native soil and sand under 18% full sun for 18 weeks. Every 2 weeks, plants received either added N, added P, added N+P, or no added nutrients (control). Persea, a shade-tolerant species, and Macaranga, a light-demanding pioneer, improved relative growth rate with the addition of both N and P. Neither responded to N or P alone. Peronema and Melicope demonstrated luxury consumption of both N and P but did not show enhanced growth. Two of the four species tested (Persea and Melicope) were more limited by P than N. Macaranga was equally limited by both and Peronema was more limited by N. Along with previous studies, evidence for positive growth response and luxury consumption among light-demanding species suggests that P, rather than N, should limit seedling performance and may ultimately influence tree diversity in young secondary tropical forests.

Macaranga (Euphorbiaceae) has received much ecological and evolutionary research attention as a genus that includes some of the most conspicuous pioneer trees of Southeast Asian tropical rainforests and because of its manifold associations with ants, including about 30 species that are obligate ant-plants (myrmecophytes). We used sequence data from three chloroplast DNA loci (ccmp5, ccmp6, atpB-rbcL) to assess phylogeographical patterns in species of Macaranga, section Pruinosae, sampled from various regions of Borneo and the Malay Peninsula. Forty-nine chloroplast DNA haplotypes (HT) were identified among 768 specimens from five species, Macaranga gigantea (N = 329; 23 HT), Macaranga pearsonii (N = 347; 21 HT), Macaranga puberula (N = 24; 4 HT), Macaranga hosei (N = 48; 6 HT), and Macaranga pruinosa (N = 20; 5 HT). Forty-one haplotypes were species-specific, whereas eight haplotypes were shared by two, three, or four species and occupied internal positions in a parsimony network. Population genetic parameters based on haplotype frequencies proved to be in a similar range in the non-myrmecophytic M. gigantea and in the ant-associated M. pearsonii, which have overlapping distributions in northern and eastern Borneo. A comparison of GST and NST values revealed a strong phylogeographic structure in both species, whereas colonization pathways suggested by the network topology were different. Both species exhibited similar levels of haplotypic diversity and moderate to high levels of population differentiation. There were no obvious indications for an influence of the symbiotic ant partners on the population structure of their host plants.

Becerra and Venable (1989) proposed that the function of extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) may not exclusively be to attract ants which defend plants against herbivores. They questioned the protection hypothesis and proposed that EFNs may also function to defend plants from ant-Homoptera mutualisms. Arguments for their hypothesis were e.g. the lacking universality of ant protection for plants and the negative impact of ant-tended homopterans on their host plants. In general, effects of homopterans on plants are negative but the damages of ant-homopteran associations are difficult to assess. Becerra and Venable cited a few examples of beneficial by-products of these associations in form of protection for the plants by the visiting ants. However, they considered only facultative interactions. In most of the highly developed ant-plant mutualisms ants cultivate homopterans while EFNs are absent. Among plant species of 36 genera, for example, which possess permanent domatia formed by hollow stems, only four have EFNs, but in 18 of them ants were recorded to keep homopterans (Huxley 1986). In the eight best-studied obligate myrmecophytic associations (Table 1) most plant partners offer nesting space but no food in form of nectar. The only two exceptions are Acacia spp. and Leonardoxa africana. In this respect the genus Macaranga (Euphorbiaceae) is especially interesting. In SE Asia it comprises the full range of species which are obligatorily inhabited by ants to those which have only weak and unspecific associations with ants (Fiala et al. 1989, 1990). Most of the facultatively associated Macaranga species possess EFNs on the leaf margins and in addition on the lamina. Obligate myrmecophytes in this genus do not secrete sugar-containing fluids (Fiala and Maschwitz, in press) and colonizing ants keep scale insects inside the hollow stems of their Macaranga host plants. Contrary to Becerra's and Venable's hypothesis in this case a reduction of nectary production appears to be favoured. The hypothesis of superiority of extrafloral nectar to honeydew remains to be tested in facultative associations, but my preliminary observations in Malaysia do not support this view. Becerra and Venable list a number of questions which should be addressed experimentally. I will briefly comment here on the first one: Is it generally true that ants neglect Homoptera when an alternative sugar source is available? During studies on the tree genus Macaranga in Peninsular Malaysia I looked for plants with EFNs and the occurrence of homopterans on these plants. The main study sites were secondary forests and disturbed habitat which were rich in light-demanding, fast growing plants. Six common species which possess EFNs were studied: Macaranga gigantea, M. tanarius, Mallotus paniculatus, M. macrostachys, Endospermum diadenum and Croton argyratus (all Euphorbiaceae). I checked 10 specimens each for occurrence of homopterans. Two to five plants of each species were infested by Homoptera (mostly scales and membracids) despite the presence of EFNs. Other plant species without EFNs in the vicinity were not found with homopterans more often than the above mentioned species (random samples of up to five nearest neighbouring plants; giving a total of over 200 controls). All homopterans on leaves and stems of the plants were visited by various ant species (Anaplolepis longipes and three Crematogaster spp. were dominant). The ants also visited the extrafloral nectaries on these plants. However, often the ants seemed to prefer honeydew from the homopterans. On a leaf of Croton argyratus, for example, almost 2/3 of all ants visited the scale insects on the leaf lamina and only few took notice of the secreted extrafloral nectar. On Mallotus ants generally favoured membracids despite

In the year 2015, the plants that initially grow a lot of wild is increasing in popularity because many contested by the citizens. The reason is because the plant has an economic value. Based on the literature review it is known that apigenin, a flavonoid compound has been isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction of methanolic extract of Macaranga gigantia leaf. Compounds that have potential as antioxidants are generally compounds of flavonoids, phenolics, and alkaloids. Flavonoid and polyphenolic compounds are antioxidant, antidiabetic, anticancer, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory, while alkaloids have antineoplastic properties that also inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Phenol content, antioxidant activity and antibacterial activity were also found in Macaranga gigantea, M. hosei, M. hypoleuca, M. kingii, M. pruinosa and M. triloba (Lim et.al., 2014). This leads to the notion that mahang leaves were obtained and collected from the Central Kalimantan region where this study carried out also contained similar content and activity. Determination of the value of antioxidant activity in this study using DPPH method performed on n-hexane extract ofmahang leaf obtained by maceration. N-hexane extract of mahang leaf have antioxidant activity, this can be seen from the preliminary TLC test results where the spots produced when sprayed with DPPH fluoresce when viewed at 366 nm uv. The average value of IC50n-hexane extract of mahang leaves was 141.3 ppm.