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Catuaba Extract
Rainforest indigenous Indians first discovered the libido enhancing qualities of catuaba and over the last centuries have composed many songs praising its wonders.* In Brazil this plant is considered a central nervous system stimulant and used for sexual weakness and lowered libido in both men and women.* For more complete information on this unique rainforest plant, please see the the Database File for Catuaba in the Tropical Plant Database. To see pictures of catuaba, click here.
Traditional Uses:* as an aphrodisiac and libido stimulant for males and females; to tone, balance, and calm the central nervous system (and for nerve pain, exhaustion, over stimulation); for nervousness, emotional stress, and insomnia (related to overactive neurotransmitters); as a general tonic (tones, balances, strengthens overall body functions); for poor memory, Alzheimer's disease, and dementia
Suggested Use: Take 60 drops (2 ml) of a 1:4 concentrated tincture 2 or more times daily, or as directed by a healthcare professional. This plant is best prepared as a decoction or a tincture: For more complete instructions on preparing herbal decoctions and tinctures see the Methods for Preparing Herbal Remedies Page.
Contraindications: None reported.
Drug Interactions: None reported
Published Research on Catuaba
All available third-party research on catuaba can be found at PubMed. A partial listing of the published research on catuaba is shown below:
Anti-inflammatory, Pain-relieving & Antioxidant Actions:
Kamdem, J., et al. "Catuaba (Trichilia catigua) prevents against oxidative damage induced by in vitro ischemia-reperfusion in rat hippocampal slices." Neurochem Res. 2012 Dec; 37(12): 2826-35.
Viana, A., et al. " Antinociceptive Activity of Trichilia catigua Hydroalcoholic Extract: New Evidence on Its Dopaminergic Effects" Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2011; 2011:
Tabanca, N., et al. "Flavan-3-ol-phenylpropanoid conjugates from Anemopaegma arvense and their antioxidant activities." Planta Med. 2007 Aug; 73(10): 1107-11.
Vaz, Z. R., et al. "Analgesic effect of the herbal medicine Catuaba in thermal and chemical models of nociception in mice." Phytother. Res. 1997; 11(2): 101-6.
Barbosa, N. R., et al. "Inhibition of platelet phospholipase A2 activity by catuaba extract suggests anti-inflammatory properties." Phytother. Res. 2004; 18(11): 942-4.
Antidepressant Actions:
Campos, M. M., et al. "Antidepressant-like effects of Trichilia catigua (Catuaba) extract: evidence for dopaminergic-mediated mechanisms." Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2005; 182(1): 45-53.
Neuroprotective Actions:
Kamden, J., et al. "Catuaba (Trichilia catigua) Prevents Against Oxidative Damage Induced by In Vitro Ischemia-Reperfusion in Rat Hippocampal Slices." Neurochem Res. 2012 Dec;37(12):2826-35.
Cytotoxic & Antimicrobial Actions:
Jaciana, S., et al. "Antimicrobial, Antiproliferative and Proapoptotic Activities of Extract, Fractions and Isolated Compounds from the Stem of Erythroxylum caatingae Plowman." Int J Mol Sci. 2012; 13(4): 4124-4140.
Mazzio, E., et al. " In Vitro Screening for the Tumoricidal Properties of International Medicinal Herbs" Phytother Res. 2009 March 3.
Valverde, G., et al. "Effects of the extract of Anemopaegma mirandum (Catuaba) on Rotenone-induced apoptosis in human neuroblastomas SH-SY5Y cells." Brain Res. 2008 Mar; 1198: 188-96.
Uchino, T., et al. "Potent protecting effects of Catuaba (Anemopaegma mirandum) extracts against hydroperoxide-induced cytotoxicity." Toxicol. In Vitro. 2004 Jun; 18(3): 255-63.
Pizzolatti, M. G., et al. "Two epimeric flavalignans from Trichilia catigua (Meliaceae) with antimicrobial activity." Z. Naturforsch 2002; 57(5-6): 483-88.
Satoh, M., et al. "Cytotoxic constituents from Erythroxylum catuaba. Isolation and cytotoxic activities of cinchonain." Natural Med. 2000; 54(2): 97-100.
Manabe, H., et al. "Effects of catuaba extracts on microbial and HIV infection." In Vivo 1992; 6(2): 161-65.
Constituents Identified:
Queiroz, E., et al. "Two new tropane alkaloids from the bark of Erythroxylum vacciniifolium Mart. (Erythroxylaceae)." Nat. Prod. Commun. 2009; 4(10): 1337-40.
Daolio, C., et al. "Classification of commercial Catuaba samples by NMR, HPLC and chemometrics." Phytochem. Anal. 2008 May; 19(3): 218-28.
Tabanca, N., et al. "Flavan-3-ol-phenylpropanoid conjugates from Anemopaegma arvense and their antioxidant activities." Planta Med. 2007 Aug; 73(10): 1107-11.
Beltrame, F. L.,et al. "A validated higher-performance liquid chromatography method for quantification of cinchonain Ib in bark and phytopharmaceuticals of Trichilia catigua used as Catuaba." J. Chromatogr. A. 2006; 1119(1-2): 257-63.
Rolim, A., et al. "Total flavonoids quantification from O/W emulsion with extract of Brazilian plants." Int. J. Pharm. 2006 Feb 3; 308(1-2): 107-14.
Zanolari, B., et al. "Methylpyrrole tropane alkaloids from the bark of Erythroxylum vacciniifolium." J. Nat. Prod. 2005; 68(8): 1153-8.
Kletter, C., et al. "Morphological, chemical and functional analysis of catuaba preparations." Planta Med. 2004; 70(10): 993-1000.
Zanolari, B., et al. "On-line identification of tropane alkaloids from Erythroxylum vacciniifolium by liquid chromatography-UV detection-multiple mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry." J. Chromatogr. A. 2003 Dec; 1020(1): 75-89.
Zanolari, B., et al. "Tropane alkaloids from the bark of Erythroxylum vacciniifolium." J. Nat. Prod. 2003; 66(4): 497-502.
Graf, E., et al. "Alkaloids from Erythroxylum vacciniifolium Martius, II: The structures of catuabine A, B, and C." Arch. Pharm. 1978 Feb; 311(2): 139-52.