Vaccinium arctostaphylos

Vaccinium arctostaphylos or Caucasian whortleberry is a species of shrub with edible fruit of blue color. It is native to Western Asia (Iran and Turkey), the Caucasus (Armenia; Azerbaijan; Georgia; Russia), and Southeastern Europe (Bulgaria).^[1] Cytology is 2n = 48.^[2]

Vaccinium arctostaphylos plant

Vaccinium arctostaphylos
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Ericales
Family:	Ericaceae
Genus:	Vaccinium
Section:	Vaccinium sect. Hemimyrtillus
Species:	V. arctostaphylos
Binomial name
Vaccinium arctostaphylos L.

Medicinal effects

In a study on 50 hyperlipidaemic adult patients, an extract of the fruit of Vaccinium arctostaphylos was found to have beneficial effects on serum lipid profile and oxidative stress.^[3] Each medicinal capsule contained 45 ± 2 mg of anthocyanins. The authors suggest that the effects may be due to the anthocyanin content of the fruit.