DIVERSIDAD GENÉTICA Y MEJORAMIENTO DE PLANTAS MEDICINALES= Medicinal plants and improvement of medicinal herbs:

Species-specific PCR primers were developed from intergenic spacer regions of 5S rRNA genes and used successfully in the detection of adulteration of cashew husk in tea samples. This is the 1st report of detecting adulteration in tea using mol. tools. Application of this approach in detecting adulteration of other biol. materials in tea, medicinal herbs and the compn. of admixes. of ayurvedic herbs has been discussed. 

ÚLTIMOS AVANCES EN LA QUÍMICA Y ACTIVIDADES BACTERIOLÓGICAS EN LAS PLANTAS MEDICINALES= Medicinal plants, last advances on chemistry and bacteria activities on the medicinal herbs

1) This study describes the extn. and characterization of cashew apple polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and the effect of wounding on cashew apple phenolic acid compn., PPO activity and fruit browning.  Purifn. factor was 59 at 95% (NH4)2SO4 satn.  For PPO activity, the optimal substrate was catechol and the optimum pH was 6.5.  PPO K m and V max values were 18.8 mM and 13.6 U min-1 ml-1, resp.  Ascorbic acid, citric acid, sodium sulphite and sodium metabisulphite decreased PPO activity, while sodium chloride increased PPO activity.  Wounding at 2 °C and 27 °C for 24 h increased PPO activity but storage at 40 °C reduced PPO activity.  Gallic acid, protocatechuic acid and cinnamic acid (free and conjugate) were identified in cashew apple juice.  Cutting and subsequent storage at 40 °C hydrolyzed cinnamic acid. 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural content in cashew apple juice increased after injury and storage at higher temps., indicating non-enzymic browning.

2) In the present study, the effects of various conventional shelling methods (oil-bath roasting, direct steam roasting, drying, and open pan roasting) as well as a novel "Flores" hand-cracking method on the levels of bioactive compds. of cashew nut kernels were investigated.  The raw cashew nut kernels were found to possess appreciable levels of certain bioactive compds. such as beta-carotene (9.57 mg/100 g of DM), lutein (30.29 mg/100 g of DM), zeaxanthin (0.56 mg/100 g of DM), alpha-tocopherol (0.29 mg/100 g of DM), gamma-tocopherol (1.10 mg/100 g of DM), thiamin (1.08 mg/100 g of DM), stearic acid (4.96 g/100 g of DM), oleic acid (21.87 g/100 g of DM), and linoleic acid (5.55 g/100 g of DM).  All of the conventional shelling methods including oil-bath roasting, steam roasting, drying, and open pan roasting revealed a significant redn., whereas the Flores hand-cracking method exhibited similar levels of carotenoids, thiamin, and unsatd. fatty acids in cashew nuts when compared to raw unprocessed samples.

3) Cashew nut (Anarcadium occidentale) was roasted, defatted and processed into flour.  The flour was evaluated for its physicochem. characteristics (Proximate and Minerals).  The proximate compn. (%) was as follows: moisture (5.52 ± 0.2) ash (4.41 ± 0.1), crude fat (34.95 ± 0.2), crude protein (27.31 ± 0.0) crude fiber (1.42 ± 0.2) carbohydrate (by difference) 25.39 and energy (Kcal) (534.35).  The result of the mineral compn. (mg/100 g) showed that roasted and defatted cashew nut flour contains calcium (21.4 ± 0.23) potassium (38.5 ± 0.1) magnesium (36.4 ± 0.3) Iron (0.8 ± 0.1) Zinc (0.9 ± 0.1), Sodium (22.6 ± 0.2) Copper (0.4 ± 0.1).  It is obvious that the flour is a good source of energy, protein and minerals.

PARTE UTILIZADA=Used part: Parte interna de la corteza, corteza, extracto de cáscara de la nuez, y otras partes del árbol. 

ACCIÓN FARMACOLÓGICA= Pharmacological action: Actividad anti-filarial, actividad anti-hipertensiva, actividad anti-inflamatoria, actividad hipoglicémica, actividad anti-microbiana en el aceite esencial, anti-tumor, actividad analgésica, actividad antimicótica y moluscicida. 

COMPOSICIÓN QUÍMICA= Chemical composition: Anacardium contains cardol, a yellowish or reddish, oily, vesicating subtance, becoming darker on exposure to the air, insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, ether, chloroform, solutions of the alkalis and sulfuric acid, the latter solution becoming colored red; also anacardic acid, and tannic acid. The seeds contain from 40 to 50 per cent of a fixed oil, consisting mostly of glycerides of oleic acidwith some stearic acid and cholesterin. 

ZONA GEOGRÁFICA= Geografical zone: Chile. 

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Árbol, Amazónico, Andino

Uso: Cicatrices, Lunares, Quistes, Manchas en la piel / Semillas, fresco / Tópico / Machucar Semillas y colectar “sangre.” Aplicar a área afectada.

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Origen: Se distribuye en Belice, Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Panamá, Bolivia, Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, Las Guayanas, Perú, Surinam, Puerto Rico. En África en Gabón, Madagascar y Tanzania.

Usos etnomédicos y modo de empleo:
En Panamá, los indígenas Kunas preparan un té de la corteza de este árbol, que se toma después de endulzarlo y lo usan para asma, resfriados y congestiones (DUKE, 1972). El aceite de las semillas sirve como repelente contra insectos (ESCOBAR, 1972).  GUPTA, et al, (1979) informaron que en Panamá la corteza se usa para tratar las inflamaciones en las extremidades y para tratar la diarrea. Además, reportaron que un vaso de decocción de la planta entera se usa para la hipertensión y como diurético.
Toxicidad:
Algunas especies de Anacardium son ictiotóxicas (DUKE, 1972). 

Por mas propiedades consultar el libro que se puede descargar de internet.
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Distribución
Cultivada. Cuzco, Huánuco, Junín, Loreto, Pasco, San Martín, Ucayali.

Usos

Corteza
Antiséptico vaginal: el cocimiento de 100 gramos de corteza, tibio; en lavados vaginales, por las noches.

Hojas tiernas
Antidiarreico: se bebe la infusión de los brotes, así como el jugo del fruto. Para preparar la infusión se toman cuatro cogollos (ramita terminal) de casho; se trituran, junto con otros tantos de guayaba y se ponen a hervir durante 10 minutos en un litro de agua. Se toma tibio. Se recomienda administrar a los niños una cucharadita tres veces al día y una cucharada para los adultos.

Semillas
Infecciones de la piel: se trituran las semillas y se hace una masa, que se aplica en la zona afectada.

Toxicidad:
El aceite del fruto es caústico.

Origin

The species is probably native of the semi-arid coasts of the Caribean islands, Central America, and of Venezuela and Brazil, where many biotypes in the wild state can still be found (BRikHER 1989).

Occurrence

Tropical America. The species is common in the savannas of the 'Llanos' and in forests with a hot and humid climate of the north and south of Venezuela. The plant is now cultivated all over the tropical world.

Historical background

The Tupi Indians from Brazil call the fruit ' acaju', a name which still exists in our modern languages as cashew nut. The first description of the plant was made by THEVET in 1558 who presented illustrations of the cashew tree (BRUCHER 1989).

Medical use
All parts of the plant have hundreds of applications in popular medicine, the name of the drug is therefore Anacardium occidentale L., plantae. All descriptions and recipes have to be treated with great caution and in a very critical way, because great confusion exists between true fruit and pedicel, and even between bark and seed coat or pericarp.
Furthermore, the plant is toxic and first of all, the caustic oil has to be applied with much care. Sensitive persons should probably not use it on
their skin.

Leaf. The leaf is applied medicinally in different ways. When fresh leaves are frequently masticated, one's teeth can be conserved up to a great age. In a decoction and at a very low dose (because they intoxicate) the leaves are recommended for the treatment of scorbut (high vitamin C content) and to cure aphthae and ulcers in the mouth and a sore
throat. The leaves are furthermore used as a diuretic, against gastric ulcers and for diarrhoea. A cup of tea, prepared with 2-3leaves in a cup of water, and taken 3 times a day, is used against hypertension and diarrhoea.

Bark. An extract of the very astringent bark orally taken, lowers the blood pressure and has a hypoglycaemic effect. The Cuna Indians prepare a tea from the bark which they use against asthma, congestions and colds. The macerated bark, soaked in water for 24 hours until it turns yellow, supplies a drink which cures diabetes. An alcoholic extract
of the bark helps against malaria and fever. Bark macerated in cold water cures diabetes, when a cup of it is taken 3 times a day. The same remedy is also used against dermatitis, inflammations, aphthae and furs of the throat. A decoction of the dry bark for 15 minutes and in a dose of 20 g per liter of water, stops diarrhoea. A double dose used as a bath
reduces the swelling of the feet (JUSCAFRESCA 1975). The bark as well as the fruit are applied to combat cancer and as a remedy for coughs. Finally, a tea of the bark, which is rich in tannins, is also utilized as a remedy against swelling of the articulations caused by syphilis. Taken each month during menstruation, a bark decoction is believed to be contraceptive
(SCHULTES & RAFFAUF 1990).

Flower. The flowers, which are much visited by bees, supply a good honey. In the form of an infusion, the flowers are used as an astringent and a tonic, due to their tannin content, and as an aphrodisiac and stimulant on the basis of anacardein
(CORREA & BERNAL 1989; GUPTA 1995).

Fruit. The oil of the fruit is taken as an antidote against irritating toxicants; in the form of an emulsion it is applied as a demulcent. In tropical medicine, the oil applied externally serves as a rubefacient and vesicant in the treatment of leprosy, elefantiasis, psoriasis, acne, warts, callus and scorchings on the feet. It is furthermore a help to burn
pimples and ulcers. It is also applied as a cosmetic to peel off the skin of the face so that a new one with a better texture can develop beneath. Women of the West-Indies use it for simple vanity. In WestAfrica, the oil is utilized for decorative tattooing and to cover the holes of the teeth. In Cuba, the resin of the fruit is applied for the treatment of cold. In Costa Rica, the juice of the fruit is used to cure bleeding from the nose. Cardol, one of the active principles of the oil in the nut, is applied diluted and in small quantities as a vermifuge. The fruit pericarp contains a violet sap which turns black when oxidized and supplies an indelible dye. Curiously, it is also said that the sap may be used as a vesicant to extract carious teeth. A wine prepared from the fruit is one of the best antidysenteric remedies.
According to GIRAULT(l987), the fresh fruit cut into 2 halves is used as a liniment against warts. The powder in decoction is applied internally to combat intestinal parasites (e.g. Ascaris). Fresh fruits cut into small pieces and macerated in water for several days serve against stomach aches. Fresh and cut into small pieces and macerated in aquavit,
the fruits fortify the memory and the cerebral functions in general and are therefore applied as a stimulant in the treatment of impotence and debility. The fruits are also used to fight cancer and serve as a remedy against coughs. To cure inflammations of the throat, a fruit is eaten on an empty stomach. In the form of a syrup, the fruits serve as laxatives, expectorants, anticatarrhal, antidysenteric and to provoke abortion.

Peduncle. The sap of the green peduncle destroys warts. A wine is prepared from the sap of the ripe peduncle which has antidysenteric properties. Additionally, laxative properties are ascribed to the peduncle; it is also used as an expectorant and anticatarrhal.
Seed. The seed is mainly used for culinary purposes, but it also contains oil and proteins. It may therefore also have some healing properties.

Healing properties and chemical contents

The fruit pericarp is richest in the caustic oil which mainly consists of cardol and anacardic acid. This becomes quite clear from the anatomical data, as the enormous secretory cavities almost fill the entire space of the pericarp being only separtated by small parenchymatous bridges (Fig. 12 d). Resinous secretory canals are however also present in the fruit pedicel and in the cotyledons, as well as in the leaves and the bark. All these organs also have healing properties. Besides the oil, the plant contains large quantities of tannins located in so-called tanning sacs (METCALFE & CHALK) which correspond to elongated individual cells. Such cells are present in the bark, in the leaves, in the pericarp and the seed coat. The great confusion arises through the fact that the fruit pedicel is sometimes considered a true fruit. The fruit pericarp is possibly regarded as a seed coat, the entire nut is called a seed by some authors, so that it becomes quite obvious: the knowledge of plant anatomy is not an unnecessary requisite, as is generally accepted in our modern days. Furthermore, such an anatomomorphological mistake can have deadly consequences! The resinous contents of the plant are suitable to prepare fire retardants and insecticides. Furthermore, varnish, resin and surface coating materials are           manufactured with them. The use of these substances as plasticizers for polymerization is limited because of the colour resulting from quinone formation. Several drug analogs could be prepared from the phenolic constituents of the pericarp liquid (GULATI & SUBBA 1964). In the distinct parts of the plant, the following curative properties could be tested: antifilarial
(cardol), antihypertensive (bark), antiinflammatory, antimicrobial (essential oil), antitumoral,
antimycotic, ichthyotoxic, molluscocidic (anacardic acid), as well as hypoglycaemic and analgesic. The hypoglycaemic effect of a decoction of the inner bark part (bast) was studied by COSTA & CAVALCANTI (1958). THUILLER & GIONO-BARBER (1971) observed
an antihypertensive effect in a bark extract, obtained by maceration at -5 oc, kept in the dark. An extract of the pericarp was shown to be effective as a molluscicide. Higher concentrations were toxic for certain fish. The antiinflammatory activity of (-) epicatechin, a bioflavonoid, in Anacardium was proved by SWARNALAKSHMI et al. (1981). The epicatechin significantly reduces oedema. The salt of anacardic acid, sodium anacardat,
destroys in vitro the toxic substances produced by Crotalus and Bothrops atrox, as well as the tetanic and diphteric toxins (HNO. DANIEL 1984).

Toxicity

Caution is recommended in the utilization of this species, because it is toxic (HEGNAUER 1964). The pericarp ist the most toxic part due to the high content of a caustic oil. Internally applied, this oil can cause gastroenteritis, loss of the muscular control and apnoea (MORTON 1961). The caustic oil contains irritating substances which cause dermatitis. The fruit is therefore vesicant on the skin when raw and untoasted.

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Bark: Bark is scraped, soaked overnight in water, or boiled, and drunk as an antidiarrheal, by the Guyana Patamona. Bark is boiled with water and drunk as a medication for influenza, by the Guyana Patamona. Juice from macerated inner bark is used as an anti-fungal agent or for treating sores, by the Guyana Patamona.

Bark and Leaf: Juice from macerated bark and leaves is used for dermatoses, by the Guyana Patamona. Bark decoction for diarrhoea, infant's thrush, and sores; bark infusion used for a mouthwash to treat oral ulcers, and drunk for treating sore throat, diarrhoea and dysentery; bark-latex is applied to mouth sores; bark decoction used as a contraceptive during menstruation. Bark used in a tea which is drunk for an emetic while remedying chest colds. Used for diarrhoea and thrush in NW Guyana.

Stem: Mixed with the barks of Coccoloba uvifera, Mangifera indica and Cocos nucifera for curing dysentery.

Leaves are boiled, and the water drunk as an anti-pyretic or as a treatment for aches and pains, by the Guyana Patamona. Used for diarrhoea in NW Guyana.

Seed: Seed is ground into a powder, and used as a poultice for treating snakebite (anti-venom), by the Guyana Patamona.

Fruit: Juice employed as a larvicide, wart remover, to cauterize cuts; astringent taste, for sore throat. Bruised fruit makes a refreshing drink used to cool the blood of feverish persons. Immature fruit is macerated and used as an antiseptic for baby’s sore mouth or applied to rashes for healing, by the Guyana Patamona. Oil from the nut is used as an anti-fungal agent or applied to cracked heels for healing, by the Guyana Patamona. Used for diarrhoea in NW Guyana.

Toxicity: abortive, Leaf: Intoxicant; in Guyana it is said that a few leaves crushed and rubbed around the rim of a glass of alcoholic spirits will serve to greatly accelerate the desired state of inebriation.For lotions, astringent gargles, grippe.
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Range. Tropical America. Probably originating in Brazil. Cultivated in Myanmar.

Uses
Bark: A restorative

Bark, Leaf, Fruit: Used as an anthelmintic, also for leucoder­ma and other skin diseases as well as for diabetes

Fruit: The kernel (nut) is a pain reliever.
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Origin:
Native to tropical America, from Mexico to Peru and Brazil. Cultivated largely in Malabar, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, and to some extent in Maharashtra, Goa, Orissa and West Bengal.

Action:
Leaves and bark—fungicidal, vermicidal, protozoicidal, antimicrobial (used for toothache, sore gums).
Karnel—eaten for its high protein content.
Cashew apple—antiscorbutic.
Resinous juice contained in the seeds—used in cases of mental derangement, memory disturbances, palpitation of heart, rheumatic pericarditis, sexual debility.
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Origin

Abeokuta, Nigeria

Action:

Bark

For oral infection

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Origin

Jamaica

Folk medicinal uses

Beckwith reports the use of cashew leaves in combination with Dryopteris sp.. rat ears (Peperomia pellucida, Kth.) and maidenhair fern in the treatment of colds and 'any sickness at all'. A plant of each of the last three is wrapped in a wad with three cashew leaves and boiled in water. Cashew leaves are sometimes used in bush baths for fever, Barham recommended the use of a leaf decoction to bathe ulcers, and in some parts of Africa young leaves are used in the treatment of dysentery, diarrhoea and piles, while infusions of the leaves and bark are used for dysentery, toothache and sore gums. Such infusions are astringent. The bark contains tannin. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the astringent cashew apple or the expressed juice (fermented or in wine) were considered valuable in treatment of gastric or uterine disorders and dropsy. The ripe fruit is said to be diuretic and antiscorbutic, while some consider that punch prepared from it is an aphrodisiac.

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Origin:

Nigeria

Part used

bark,leaf,fruits

Medicinal uses

malaria,elephantiasis,leprosy,ringworms

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2) DHIMAN, Bandana; SINGH, Mahipal. Molecular detection of cashew husk ((Anacardium occidentale ) adulteration in market samples of dry tea (Camellia sinensis). Planta Medica . 2003, vol.69, nº9, p.882-884.
 
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8) Lista de plantas/Bussmann, Rainer W; Sharon, Douglas. Graphicart, 2015 .-- p. 75 - 239.

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10) Mejía, Kember; Rengifo, Eisa /Plantas medicinales de uso popular en la Amazonía Peruana.-- Lima : Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional, 2000. -- p. 286

11) DeFilipps, Robert A.; Krupnick, Gary A. / PhytoKeys, v. 102. - - p. 1 - 314,  2018.

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13) MacDonald Idu; Erhabor,Joseph O.; Efijuemue, Harriet M. / Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research. – v. 9 no. 2, 2021. – p 4.

14) Asprey, G.F.; Phyllis Thornton/ Medicinal plants of Jamaica. Parts I & II. – p. 4.

15) Abd El-Ghani1, Monier M./ Traditional medicinal plants of Nigeria: an overview: Agric. Biol. J. N. Am., 2016, 7(5): 220-247. - p. 223.