Cinchona officinalis


Cinchona officinalis
Quinine Bark
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Rubiaceae
Subfamily: Cinchonoideae
Tribe: Cinchoneae
Genus: Cinchona
Species: C. officinalis
Binomial name
Cinchona officinalis
L.

Cinchona officinalis, the Quinine Bark tree Spanish: Qinchona Qinchona ยท Portuguese: Quinquina, is a South American tree, native to Amazon Rainforest plant community.

Uses

Cinchona officinalis is a medicinal plant, one of several Cinchona species used for the production of quinine, which is an anti-fever agent. It is especially useful in the prevention and treatment of malaria. Cinchona calisaya is the tree most cultivated for quinine production.

There are a number of other alkaloids that are extracted from this tree. They include cinchonine, cinchonidine and quinidine

See also

References

    External links

    Media related to Cinchona officinalis at Wikimedia Commons