PARTE UTILIZADA= Used part: Hojas y ramas pequeñas.

ACCIÓN FARMACOLÓGICA= Pharmacological action: Internamente se la emplea como estimulante, estomacal, tónico, diurética, antiulcerosa.

POSOLOGÍA= Posology: En infusión se emplea como estimulante y diuretico. Sirve de vehículo para el consumo de otras plantas medicinales

COMPOSICIÓN QUÍMICA= Chemical composition: Se han registrado los siguientes compuestos: alfa-amirina, cafeína, ácido 3-cafeoilquínico, colina, glucosa, levulosa, un glicósido cianogenético 2-beta-D-glucopiranosiloxi-p-hidroxi –6,7- dihidromandelonitrilo, matesaponina I, alcaloides pirrolizidínicos, teofilina, trigonelina a ácido ursólico. (Ribeiro, 1948; Mendive, 1949; Gosmann & Schenkel, 1989; Clifford y Ramírez-Martínez, 1990). 

ZONA GEOGRÁFICA= Geografical zone: Planta americana, vive en el sur del Brasil, en Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina y Uruguay. 

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

Mate (Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil) contains phytochem. compds. capable of preventing a no. of health problems. Knowledge on the genetic contribution to the variability in these compds. can help to obtain mate progenies with higher levels thereof in breeding programs. The compn. of triterpene saponins, methylxanthines, chlorogenic acid and the antioxidant activity of eight mate progenies were evaluated. Significant differences among progenies were verified in contents of triterpene saponins (0.003-0.080%), caffeine (0.226-1.377%), theobromine (0.176-0.831%), and chlorogenic acid (1.344-2.031%) and in antioxidant activity (31.251-51.406%). The contents of theobromine were found to be neg. correlated with saponins and caffeine, and caffeine with chlorogenic acid, while theobromine was pos. correlated with chlorogenic acid. The heritability values for saponins (75.09%), caffeine (75.19%), theobromine (66.87%), chlorogenic acid (52.86%) and antioxidant activity (67.75%) indicate the possibility of genetic gain in selection for these traits. 

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) Yerba Mate (Ilex paraguariensis), a tea known for its high antioxidant content, was fed (250 g/cow.day) to 8 of 16 Holstein cows for 6 wk to assess its effect on their performance.  Cows were weighed and blood samples were taken on Weeks 0, 3 and 6.  Blood samples were centrifuged and plasma was analyzed for reactive oxygen metabolites, biol. antioxidant potential, advanced oxidn. protein products and non-esterified fatty acids.  Cows were milked two times daily and milk yields were recorded daily for individual cows.  On Weeks 0 and 6, individual milk samples were collected from two consecutive milkings, composited, and analyzed for somatic cell counts, fat and true protein concns.  Plasma concns. of reactive oxygen metabolites, biol. antioxidant potential and non-esterified fatty acids were not affected by Yerba Mate supplementation.  Similarly, no effect of Yerba Mate supplementation was noted on milk fat and protein content and on somatic cell counts.  This study indicates that supplementation of dairy cows' diet with Yerba Mate during mid lactation seems to improve milk yield when cows are fed with maize silage; however, even if the effect on milk yield was significant it was quite small and needs to be validated with further studies.  Cows' oxidative status was not affected by Yerba Mate supplementation indicating that the effect of Yerba Mate on their productive performances is not mediated by changes in redox status.

2) The "yerba mate" tree, Ilex paraguariensis, is a functionally dioecious crop species with economic relevance in several South American countries.  We report a genomic screening accomplished through representational difference anal. (RDA) in male and female I. paraguariensis trees.  The aim of the present paper was to investigate the occurrence of sex-related genomic differences in order to develop an early gender detection mol. method that could help reducing energy inputs during the "yerba mate" processing and that could be suitable for breeding programs.  An intra-expt. redundancy was detected via SSCP anal. and sequence characterization.  Taking together both reciprocal RDA assays, fragments isolated can be discriminated into three main categories.  The first category of fragments shows spurious affinities with available deposited sequences and could be considered as specific to I. paraguariensis.  The second category comprises sequences identified as organellar or ribosomal plant DNA.  Sequences grouped in the third category involve clones akin to conserved domains of retrotransposons (RNaseH, integrases and/or chromodomains) from at least two distinct lineages of Ty3/Gypsy retrotransposons and one from Ty1/Copia retroelements, which in addn. are assocd. to sex detn. regions of the Solanaceae, Caricaceae and Salicaceae.  A contig sequence was assembled that codes for an integrase core domain and a chromodomain.  The phylogenetic anal. of the so-called IPRE (for I. paraguariensis retroelement) integrase domain indicates that it belongs to the Del lineage of the Chromoviridae.  This is the first report of mobile elements isolated and detected from the "yerba mate" tree.  Although RDA derived fragments, so far tested, have been retrieved from both sexes with similar sequences, assocn. to sex related regions cannot be completely discarded.  Implications of present results are further discussed.

3) Leaves and products made from them are the major focus of research on bioactive compds. of mate (Ilex paraguariensis).  However, studies on other parts of the plant, are scarce.  The aim of this study was to det. the methylxanthines, phenolic compds., and antioxidant activity of mate bark (residual biomass) and to compare with those of mate leaves.  The high antioxidant activity of mate bark and its high concn. of total polyphenols were apparent in both the aq. and the methanolic exts., the values of which were greater than those detected in the leaves.  Of the phenolic acids identified, the levels of chlorogenic acid and 4,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid in the samples were significantly higher in the methanolic bark ext.  With regard to methylxanthines, considerable concns. were detected in the samples.  The results obtained contribute to the viability of exploiting this residue, broadening the use of the mate plant.

4) Despite its antioxidant capacity and well-known health benefits, yerba mate tea (Ilex paraguariensis) has been shown to possess some genotoxic and mutagenic activities and to increase incidence of some types of cancer.  The aim of this study was to est. the cyto- and genotoxicity of mate tea in human peripheral lymphocytes in vitro.  We found that yerba mate ext. induced a concn.-dependent, statistically significant increase in the level of apoptotic and necrotic cells and a decrease in the nuclear division index (NDI).  Mate-exposed lymphocytes had a reduced transcriptional rDNA activity, which may be due to the stress conditions, and showed an elevated prodn. of micronuclei.  The FISH technique revealed the appearance of an acrocentric signal in mate-induced micronuclei, which suggests that under these conditions yerba mate ext. may display aneugenic activity.  Since caffeine is one of the most abundant compds. found in the dry mass of mate, we conducted addnl. expts. with caffeine alone.  We showed that caffeine used at the same concns. manifests a more potent cyto- and genotoxic effect that may account, at least in part, for the disadvantageous effects obsd. for yerba mate ext. 

Summary
Ilex paraguariensis (Aquifoliaceae) is a South American plant originally native from the northern areas of the Plate River Basin. Known by the common name of yerba mate, the leaves of this shrub are the major component of the well known infusion called mate. Together with other important crops such as tea, coffee, cocoa, and guaraná, yerba mate is of great importance in the preparation of stimulating beverages, mostly due to the presence of caffeine and other alkaloids. In combination, the active principles present in the plant are responsible for the eupeptic, tonic, and diuretic activities claimed for I. paraguariensis, while tannins and saponins provide it with a mildly bitter taste. Pharmacological evidence suggests that yerba mate is a stimulating, weight loosing, hypolipemiant, digestive, antimicrobial and antioxidant agent.

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Origin:
Native to South America; cultivated in some Indian gardens. In northern India, grows in Lucknow.

Action:
Stimulant to brain and nervous system, mild antispasmodic, eliminates uric acid. Used for physical exhaustion, rheumatism, gout and nervous headache. (A national drink of Paraguay and Brazil.) Causes purging and even vomiting in large doses.

Caution:
Causes purging and even vomiting in large doses.

1) ALONSO PAZ, Eduardo ; BASSAGODA, María Julia ; FERREIRA, Fernando. Yuyos : uso racional de las plantas medicinales. Montevideo : Fin de siglo, 1992, p.114-115.

2) 270 (doscientos setenta) plantas medicinales iberoamericanas. Santiago de Bogotá : CYTED-SECAB, 1995, p.46-47.

3) NAKAMURA, Keiko Leonice, et al. Genetic variation of phytochemical compounds in progenies of Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil. Crop Breeding and Applied Biotechnology.2009, vol.9, nº2, p.119-126.
 
4) CELI, Pietro; RAADSMA, Herman W.   Effects of Yerba Mate (Ilex paraguariensis) supplementation on the productive performance of dairy cows during mid-lactation.   Animal Production Science. 2010, vol.50, nº5-6, p.339-344.
 
5) GOTTLIEB, Alexandra Marina; POGGIO, Lidia. Genomic screening in dioecious "yerba mate" tree (Ilex paraguariensis A. St. Hill., Aquifoliaceae) through representational difference analysis. Genetica (Dordrecht, Netherlands). 2010, vol.138, nº6, p.567-578.
 
6) PAGLIOSA, Cristiane Manfe, et al. Methylxanthines, phenolic composition, and antioxidant activity of bark from residues from mate tree harvesting (Ilex paraguariensis A. St. Hil.).  Food Chemistry. 2010, vol.122, nº1, p.173-178.
 
7) WNUK, Maciej, et al.  Evaluation of the cyto- and genotoxic activity of yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) in human lymphocytes in vitro. Mutation Research, Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis. 2009, vol.679, nº1-2, p.18-23.

8) ALONSO, Jorge ; DESMARCHELIER, Cristian. Plantas medicinales autóctonas de la Argentina : bases científicas para su aplicación en atención primaria de la salud.  Buenos Aires: L.O.L.A, 2005, p. 614.

9) Plantas medicinales autóctonas de la Argentina. Bases científicas para su aplicación en atención primaria de la salud / Jorge Alonso y Cristian Jorge Desmarchelier. - 1a ed. - Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires: Corpus Libros Médicos y Científicos, 2015.

10) Khare, C.P./ Indian Medicinal Plants. -- Nueva Dheli: Springer, 2007 . - p. 836.