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.

Family: Celastraceae
Genus: Maytenus
Species: krukovii
Synonyms: Maytenus ebenifolia, M. laevis, M. macrocarpa, M. multiflora, M. terapotensis, Celastrus macrocarpus, Haenkea macrocarpa, H. multiflora
Common Names: Chuchuhuasi, chucchu huashu, chuchuasi, chuchasha, chuchuhuasha
Parts Used: Bark, root, leaves

Phytoterapeutic properties:
Muscle relaxant, anti-inflammatory, analgesic (pain-reliever), menstrual stimulant, tonic (tones, balances, strengthens overall body functions), adrenal tonic (tones, balances, strengthens the adrenals), antidysenteric, antispasmodic, aphrodisiac, digestive stimulant, febrifuge (reduces fever), menstrual stimulant, tonic (tones, balances, strengthens overall body functions)

Botanical name: Chenopodium pallidicaule Heller

Family: Chenopodiaceae

Common names. English: canihua; Spanish: qaniwa, canihua (Peru), canahua (Bolivia)

The canihua, which originated in the Andes of southern Peru and Bolivia, was domesticated by the settlers of Tiahuanaco, who established themselves on the tableland of Collao.
No archaeological remains have been found connected with this plant, and the dehiscence which the seeds still display suggests that its domestication is not complete. It is important on the high plateau of Peru and Bolivia because it produces grains for human consumption at between 3 800 and 4 300 m, being very cold-resistant in its various phenological phases.
At present, its cultivation and utilization are maintained at subsistence levels in these regions. One of the causes of its marginalization is the large number of people required to harvest it and its small grain size, which makes handling difficult.
Use and nutritional value
This grain has a high protein content ( 15 to 19 percent) and, like quinoa and love-lies-bleeding (kiwicha), a high proportion of sulphur-containing amino acids. It has the advantage of not containing saponins, which facilitates its use.

The traditional and most frequent method of consumption is in the form of lightly roasted, ground grains which produce a pleasant flour called cañihuaco. This is consumed on its own, in cold or hot drinks, or in porridges.
Over 15 different ways of preparing the whole grain and cañihuaco are known (as entrees, soups, stews, desserts and drinks). In the bakery industry good results have been achieved by adding 20 percent of cañihuaco to wheat flour, which gives the product (bread, biscuits) a pleasant characteristic colour and flavour.

Cañihuaco also has medicinal uses: it counteracts altitude sickness and fights dysentery while the ashes of its stem can be used as a repellent against insect and spider bites.

Seed - cooked. It can be toasted and ground into a nutty tasting powder that can be used as a breakfast cereal.
It can also be used to make biscuits, mixed with flour it is used to make bread and a hot beverage similar to hot chocolate can also be made from it
Very small, about 1mm in diameter, but abundantly produced. The seed contains little or no saponins and so can be used without pre-treatment.
The seed is extremely nutritious, it contains about 16% of a high quality protein (it is notably rich in lysine, isoleucine and tryptophan), almost 60% carbohydrate and 8% fat.