CHUCHUHUASI
Chuchuhuasi is an enormous canopy tree of the Amazon rainforest that grows to 30 m high. It has large leaves (10-30 cm), small, white flowers, and extremely tough, heavy, reddish-brown bark. Several botanical names have been given to this species of tree. It is referenced as Maytenus krukovii, M. ebenifolia, M. laevis, and M. macrocarpa; all botanical names refer to the same tree. Chuchuhausi is indigenous to the tropical rainforests of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
TRIBAL AND HERBAL MEDICINE USES
Indigenous people of the Amazon rainforest have been using the bark of chuchuhuasi medicinally for centuries. Its Peruvian name, chuchuhuasi, means "trembling back," which refers to its long-standing use for arthritis, rheumatism, and back pain.
One local Indian remedy for arthritis and rheumatism calls for one cup of a bark decoction taken three times a day for more than a week.
Local people and villagers along the Amazon believe that chuchuhuasi is an aphrodisiac and tonic, and the bark soaked in the local sugarcane rum (aguardiente) is a popular jungle drink that is even served in bars and to tourists (its often called "go-juice" to relieve pain and muscle aches and to "keep going" during long treks in the rainforest).
Local healers and curanderos in the Amazon use chuchuhuasi as a general tonic, to speed healing and, when combined with other medicinal plants, as a synergist for many types of illnesses.
In Colombia, the Siona Indians boil a small piece of the bark (5 cm) in 2 liters of water until 1 liter remains, and drink it for arthritis and rheumatism.
In the Ecuadorian rainforest, the Quijos Quichua Indians prepare a bark decoction for general aches and pains, rheumatism, sore muscles, menstrual pain, and stomachaches.
In the Peruvian Amazon, chuchuhuasi is still considered the best remedy for arthritis among both city and forest dwellers. It is also used as a muscle relaxant, aphrodisiac, and pain-reliever, for adrenal support, as an immune stimulant, and for menstrual balance and regulation.
In Peruvian herbal medicine systems, chuchuhuasi alchohol extracts are used to treat osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, bronchitis, diarrhea, hemorrhoids, and menstrual irregularities and pain.
PLANT CHEMICALS
Chuchuhausi is a powerhouse of plant chemicals-mostly triterpenes, and sesquiterpene alkaloids. Two of the more well-known chemicals in chuchuhuasi are mayteine and maytansine - alkaloids long documented (since the 1960s) with antitumor activitity and which occur in other Maytenus plants as well.
The main plant chemicals found in chuchuhuasi include: agarofuran sesquiterpenes, canophyllol, catechin tannins, dammarane triterpenes, dulcitol, ebenifoline alkaloids, euojaponine alkaloids, friedelan triterpenes, krukovine triterpenes, laevisine alkaloids, macrocarpin triterpenes, maytansine, mayteine, maytenin, mebeverine, phenoldienones, pristimeran, proanthocyanidins, and tingenone (and its derivatives).
BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES AND CLINICAL RESEARCH
Chuchuhuasi's long history of use has fueled much clinical interest in the research community. In the 1960s, an American pharmaceutical company discovered potent immune-stimulating properties of a leaf extract and a bark extract, documenting that it increased phagocytosis (the ability of immune cells to attack bacteria and foreign cells) in mice.
Researchers in 1977 reported that alcohol extracts of the bark evidenced anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities in various studies with mice, which validated chuchuhuasi's traditional uses for arthritic pain. Its anti-inflammatory action again was reported in the 1980s by an Italian research group.
They reported that this activity (in addition to radiation protectant and antitumor properties) were at least partially linked to triterpenes and antioxidant chemicals isolated in the trunk bark.
In 1993, a Japanese research group isolated another group of novel alkaloids in chuchuhuasi that may be responsible for its effectiveness in treating arthritis and rheumatism.
In the United States, a pharmaceutical company studying chuchuhuasi's anti-inflammatory and anti-arthritic properties determined that these alkaloids can effectively inhibit enzyme production of protein kinase C (PKC).
PKC inhibitors have attracted much interest worldwide, as there is evidence that too much PKC enzyme is involved in a wide variety of disease processes (including arthritis, asthma, brain tumors, cancer, and cardiovascular disease).
A Spanish research team found more new phytochemicals in 1998, one of which was cited as having activity against aldose reductase. (This enzyme is implicated in nerve damage in diabetic patients.)
In the mid-1970s, Italian researchers tested a chuchuhuasi extract against skin cancers and identified its antitumorous properties. They attributed these effects to two chemicals in chuchuhuasi called tingenone and pristimerin.
Three groups found new and different sesquiterpene compounds in 1999, two of which showed marginal antitumor activity against four cell lines, and one of which was documented as effective against leishmaniasis (a tropical parasitic disease).
CURRENT PRACTICAL USES
If the constituents in chuchuhuasi responsible for inhibiting PKC can be synthesized, it is possible that a new arthritis drug will be developed.
In the meantime, the natural bark of this important Amazon rainforest tree will continue to be an effective natural herbal remedy for arthritis, for adrenal support and as an immune tonic as it has been for centuries.
It is best prepared as it has been traditionally: as an alcohol tincture or a decoction. It normally takes about 3-4 days of daily use to get a beneficial effect for arthritic pain, and up to a month or longer of daily use is necessary for adrenal support. |
