Botanical name: Hoodia gordonii (Masson) Sweet ex Decne
Main synonyms: Hoodia bainii Thistleton-Dyer; Stapelia gordonii Masson
Family: Apocynaceae (subfamily Asclepiadoideae)
Vernacular names: Hoodia (English); ghaap, bitterghaap (Afrikaans, Khoi); hoodia (French); Hoodia (German); hoodia (Italian)
Hoodia gordonii is an erect, branched-stem succulent with greyish-green stems covered in short, single, bulbous-based spines. The flowers are large and flesh-coloured. Hoodia gordonii may be confused (in Namibia and Botswana) with H. currorii. It occurs mainly in the dry western parts of South Africa and Namibia, but not in Botswana. Listed on CITES Appendix II.
The active compound is a triglycoside of 12beta-trigloyloxy-14beta-hydroxypregn-5-en-20-one (commonly known as P57). Hoodia is traditionally used as a functional food to suppress hunger and thirst.