Quassia amara

Quassia alatifolia, Q. officinalis, Q. amargo, Simaroube officinale

Amargo, Bitter Ash, Bitterholz, Bitterwood, Bois amer, Bois de quassia, Crucete, Quassia, Cuassia, Cuachi, Fliegenholz, Guabo, Hombre grande, Jamaica bark, Kashshing, Marauba, Marupa, Palo muneco, Pau amarelo, Quassia amarga, Quassiawood, Ruda, Simaruba, Simarubabaum, Quassiaholz, Quassia de cayenne, Quassie, Quina, Simaba, Suriname wood[6]

The bitter principle found in the bark and wood is used as the basis of Angostura Bitters, which is used as a flavouring in longdrinks, soft drinks, digestive tonics and also in gin-based drinks. It can be used as a substitute for hops in beer manufacturing[4][3] or can be added to baked goods.[10][11][4][3]

Traditionally, Q. amara is used as a digestive, to treat fever, and against hair parasites (lice, fleas) and mosquito larvae in ponds (which has not proven harmful to fish populations).[11]

The component Simalikalactone D was identified as an antimalarial. The preparation of a tea out of young leaves is used traditionally in French Guiana. Experiments showed a high inhibition of Plasmodium yoelii yoelii and Plasmodium falciparum.[12]

A 2012 study found a topical gel with 4% Quassia extract to be a safe and effective treatment for rosacea.[13]

Quassia amara is part of the family of the Simaroubaceae, which contains quassinoids. Those are secondary metabolites that have a large range of biological activities.[14] The plant is known for the active principles that can be found in its bark. They have several different effects like increasing appetite, tonic, diuretic, febrifugal, anthelmintic and anti-leukemic.[15] It also leads to more activity from the gall bladder and has an effect against liver congestion. At external use, they act efficacy against parasites like pinworms.[16] It is also a tribal remedy used in South America against debility, liver problems, malaria, snakebite, and back spasms.[17] The Quassia amara is sold in the form of ground-up chips that are used to produce tonic or tinctures. Those are made by soaking the bark in the water for a long time.[18]

There are two varieties of Q. amara that can be used in medicine. It is the West Indian type and the South American variety. The West Indian is high, it can reach 30.5m, the South American is much smaller, with a heigh from 5.5m.

In 2011 Husein and Gulam Mohammed, found that Q. amara extract reduced the elevated fasting blood glucose in rats. It also shows that glucose tolerance is increased by the consumption of Q. amara.[19] According to Ferreira and al. 2013, the wood powder of Q. amara shows an anti-hyperglycemic effect, similar to the one from metformin. It could be helpful as an alternative therapy to the existing drugs that cause adverse health effects.[20]

Tea made with the leaves of the Q. amara, is used against malaria in the traditional medicine of French Guiana.[21] The leaves hexane from Q. amara was found to have high suppressive activity, at a concentration from 100 mg/kg body weight in mouse.[22] In 2006, a study found that Simalikalactone D should be responsible for the antimalarial activity.[21] In 2009, a new quassinoid was discovered, the simalikalactone E. This molecule inhibited the growth of P. falciparum in vitro by 50%. The effect was mostly found in the gametocyte, which is the stage that is fundamental for the transmission to mosquitoes.[14] The tea from Quassia amara has also an effect on the red blood cells counts, the packed cell count, the packed cell volume and hemoglobin concentration. It has an antianemic property.[23]

Quassia amara is used in folk medicine from Costa Rica.[24] Searchers from the University of Ibadan found a significant inhibition of the gastric ulceration induced by indomethacin. The amount of protection was between 77% and 85%. It also reduces the total gastric acidity.[25] It was related to an increase in gastric barrier mucus and non-protein sulfhydryl groups.[24]

The sap of Q. amara shows in vivo significant activity against lymphocytic leukemia in mice.[26]

The bitter substances from the Q. amara attack the chitin from the lice larvae and prevent the pupping of new larvae.[27] It also reduce dandruff when used as a hair rinse[18]

The Quassia amara bark extract has been shown to have a sedative and muscle relaxant effects.[28]

Quassia amara is also used it this traditional Indian medicine, the Ayurvedic medicine to treat rheumatism, alcoholism, dandruff, stomach problems, and worms. It is also used in the homeopatic medicine.[18]

Excessive use of this plant can cause vomiting. Long term use should be avoided, as it can lead to weakness of the vision, leading towards total blindness. It should also be avoided during pregnancy and menstruation, because it may cause uterine colic.[29] It has also shown to have negative effects on the fertility of rats, both male and females. It has been proven to reduce the weight of testis, epididymis and seminal vesicles of the rats. They also found a reduction of the epididymal sperm count, the level of testosterone, LH and FSH. These changes disappeared after some time.[30][31][32] In female rats, a decrease of weight from the ovary and uterus was seen. There was also a decrease in the estrogen level. The litter number and weight were also reduced.[33]

Insecticidal extracts of the bark were first used in the USA 1850 and 1880 in Europe.[3]

Extracts of Quassia wood or bark act as a natural insecticide. For organic farming this is of particular interest. A good protection was shown against different insect pests (e.g. aphids, Colorado potato beetle, Anthonomus pomorum, Rhagoletis cerasi, Caterpillars of Tortricidae).[34] Quassin extract works as a contact insecticide. Adverse effects on beneficial organisms were not found.[35]

Quassia amara extract can be obtained by boiling Q.amara chips in water and removing the wood chips afterwards.[36] The extract contains quassin and neoquassin, which have insecticidal properties.[37] The extract can be used to spray fruitlets, shortly after cease blooming.[38][39][36] Insecticidal effects are comparable to the insecticide diazinon. If the extract is sprayed before apple sawfly larvae hatched, Hoplocampa infestation can be reduced with an efficacy of 50%.[38] Q.amara extract in the dosage corresponding to 3-4.5 kg of Q. amara wood chips for 1/ha is optimal.[38] The bitter wood can be dried after boiling and be reused 2 to 3 times.[40][41] The extract of Q.amara can be storaged over half a year (e.g. spring till autumn).[40]

Q.amara is also used as a stomach or contact insecticide against various aphids and moths,[42][35] potato beetle,[43][39] apple blossom veevil[42] and thephtid fruit fly.[44] Q.amara extract possesses antiparasitic, antibacterial, amoebacidial, antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties.[45][46]

For Switzerland, a licensed formulation is available for organic farming.

Like any poorly studied alternative chemical applied to food crops, Quassia extract may have unknown health consequences. A study on rats in 1997 found that Quassia extract significantly reduced male rats' fertility, reducing testis size, sperm quality and serum testosterone.[47]

Around 200 grams (7.1 oz) of Quassia wood chips are put together with 2 litres (0.44 imp gal; 0.53 US gal) of water. It is allowed to stand for 24 hours and then it is cooked for 30 min. It is then diluted with 10 to 20 litres (2.2 to 4.4 imp gal; 2.6 to 5.3 US gal) of water and used as a spray[34] The use of approximately 3–4.5 kilograms (6.6–9.9 lb) wood extract per hectare seems to be optimal to minimize the damage of Hoplocampa testudinea on apple trees.[48]

The older the plant, the greater the accumulation of quassinoids in the xylem. Cultivation conditions, in the shade or in the sun, influences notably the amount of quassine accumulated by the plants.[9][5] This factor will have to be taken into account to achieve a good harvest. Controlled luminosity conditions favor plant growth and the concentration of quassinoids in the tissues, which increases the quality of the raw material.[9] Organic fertilizer such as deep or organic mulch can be used as nutritional compounds.[4]

In Costa Rica the flowering period of Q.amara arises between October and April, whereas in central Panama the flowering period occurs from October to January.[8][9] The fruits ripen after two months. In February and early March, there is a peak of fruit ripening. The drupes show different colors during the ripening process. They turn from reddish to green until the reach a black color. The best germination results were obtained with seeds from drupes that are just before becoming totally black. Not only the color but also the size of the fruits are indicators for the viability of a seed. Fruits with a size between 1 and 1.5 cm are suitable for reproduction and they can be easily detached from the receptacle.[9]

The treelet can be propagated sexual by seeds or asexual by vegetative cuttings of half-ripe wood.[4][9] The trees can be cultivated in tree nurseries. Therefore seeds can be sowed of substrat such as sawdust, sand or soil. The seedlings are grown up for eight months until they reach a height around 40 cm. The germination occurs within 10 weeks. During the germination period daily watering is important. A distance of 10 x 15 cm at a density of 35 plants per m is recommended in tree nurseries.[9]

Cutting insects were found in seedlings, but no critical damage was observed. The fungus Colletotrichum sp. caused anthracnosis in young plants, what leads to brown leaf changes surrounded by a yellowish halo, defoliation and suspension of plant growth. High soil moisture, inadequate soil drainage, high sowing density and bad weed control management are factors that enhances this fungal disease. It can be controlled with specific funigcides. Bacteria infection is scarce, but has to be taken into account during the transplantation.[9]