Common names | Carqueja
Scientific name | Baccharis trimera
Used part | Whole
Known active compounds | apigenin, cirsimaritin, eupatorine, genkwanin, hispidulin 

Potential benefits in cosmetics | anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, slimming

Product name | Carqueja-ANB

 

 

Plant Story

Baccharis trimera, traditionally known as carqueja in Brazil, is a shrub native to South America. It is found throughout the Amazon rainforest in Peru, Brazil, Colombia, as well as the tropical parts of Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Indigenous people of the rainforest have used carqueja for centuries to treat various diseases. The aerial part of carqueja is made into a tea and used in folk medicine to reduce inflammation, to relieve pain, to treat ulcers, and to protect and detoxify the liver.

 

Phytochemical studies reported that the main isolated constituents of carqueja is flavonoids. It contains up to 20% flavonoids including apigenin, cirsimaritin, eupatorine, genkwanin, hispidulin, quercetin, luteolin, and rutin. Other constituents are also found in carqueja including monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, sapogenin, and various phenolic acids such as gallic acid, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, and ellagic acid. The extracts of carqueja show anti-oxidant activities by scavenging free radicals and anti-inflammatory activities in carrageenan-induced animal in vivo model. When tested with 3T3-L1 adipocytes, the carqueja extracts decreased lipid accumulation and the levels of adipogenic transcriptional factors.