IQUIMEFA   05518
INSTITUTO QUIMICA Y METABOLISMO DEL FARMACO
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
capítulos de libros
Título:
Mate (Ilex paraguariensis) a Review
Autor/es:
R. FILIP, G. E. FERRARO, A. L. BANDONI, N. BRACESCO, E. NUNES, A. GUGLIUCCI, E. DELLACASSA.
Libro:
Research Signpost- Biological Sciences- Natural Products-
Referencias:
Año: 2007;
Resumen:
Maté (Ilex paraguariensis St. Hil., Aquifoliaceae) is a widely distributed tree or shrub of NE Argentina, Southern Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.  It’s dried and ground leaves (“yerba mate” or “yerba”) are used as a very popular folk beverage dating from precolombian times. The traditional beverage “maté” is used in complementary and alternative medicine as a CNS stimulant, diuretic, weight reducing, antioxidant, antihipercholesterolemic, among others properties. Some of these pharmacological activities have been scientifically proved. The use of this specie has gained popularity in the United States, Europe and Asia in the last few years where it is sold as dried drug material or as extracts in different medicinal, cosmetic preparations or as an ingredient in functional foods. Mate contains purine alkaloids –methyl xanthines –flavonoids, vitamins such as vitamin A, the B complex, C and E; polyphenols: caffeoylderivatives compounds and numerous triterpenic saponins derived from ursolic acid. More than 100 compounds were detected in the volatile fraction of mate. This review describes the history, botanical description, industrial processing, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, indications, toxicity, side effects and contraindications. In the concluding part, promising areas of research related with the high polyphenols content of maté have been highlighted in order to isolate and identify those compounds which could be utilized for the treatment of diseases where oxidative stress is involved.