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Jatoba is used throughout the Amazon rainforest for a quick boost of natural energy without any caffeine or other harmful stimulants.* Chemical analysis of jatoba shows that it is rich in biologically active compounds including diterpenes, sesquiterpenes, flavonoids, and oligosaccharides. Some of these chemicals (such as copalic acid, delta-cadinene, caryophyllene and alpha-humulene) have shown to exhibit antifungal, antiyeast, and antibacterial actions in independent laboratory studies.*

For more complete information on this unique rainforest plant, please see the plant database file on jatoba in the Tropical Plant Database. More information can also be found in the new Antimicrobial Guide. To see pictures of jatoba, click here.

Traditional Uses: for candida and yeast infections; for fungal infections (athlete's foot, nail fungus, etc.); for prostatitis; for cystitis and urinary tract infections; as a natural stimulant and energy tonic (tones, balances, strengthens overall body functions)

Suggested Use: This plant is best prepared as a decoction. Use one teaspoon of powder for each cup of water. Bring to a boil and gently boil in a covered pot for 20 minutes. Allow to cool and settle for 10 minutes and strain warm liquid into a cup (leaving the settled powder in the bottom of the pan). It is traditionally taken in 1 cup dosages, 2-3 times daily. This decoction has also been traditionally used externally on the skin and as a douche. For more complete instructions on preparing herbal decoctions see the Methods for Preparing Herbal Remedies Page.

Contraindications: Not to be used during pregnancy or breast-feeding.
Drug Interactions: None known.
Other Practitioner Observations: Jatobá can provide a significant energy lift to some people. Take prior to 4 pm to avoid sleep disturbances.

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Third-Party Published Research on Jatobá

All available third-party research on jatobá can be found at PubMed. A partial listing of the published research on jatobá updated through Feb 2019 is shown below:

Anticandidal & Antifungal Actions:
Jatobá contains terpene and phenolic chemicals which are responsible for protecting the tree from fungi in the rainforest. In fact, the jatobá tree is one of the few trees in the rainforest that sports a completely clean trunk bark, without any of the usual mold and fungus found on many other trees in this wet and humid environment. These antifungal terpenes and phenolics have been documented in several studies over the years and the antifungal activity of jatobá is attributed to these chemicals.
Boniface, P., et al. "Current state of knowledge on the traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of the genus Hymenaea." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2017 Jul; 206: 193-223.
Costa, M., et al. "Essential oils from leaves of medicinal plants of Brazilian flora: Chemical composition and activity against Candida species." Medicines. 2017 May; 4( 2): E27.
da Costa, M., et al. "Antifungal and cytotoxicity activities of the fresh xylem sap of Hymenaea courbaril L. and its major constituent fisetin." BMC Complement. Altern. Med. 2014 Jul; 14: 245.
Cavin, A., "Bioactive diterpenes from the fruits of Detarium microcarpum." J. Nat. Prod. 2006; 69(5): 768-73.
Abdel-Kader, M., et al. "Isolation and absolute configuration of ent-Halimane diterpenoids from Hymenaea courbaril from the Suriname rain forest." J. Nat. Prod. 2002; 65(1): 11-5.
Yang, D., et al. "Use of caryophyllene oxide as an antifungal agent in an in vitro experimental model of onychomycosis." Mycopathologia. 1999; 148(2): 79-82.
Hostettmann, K., et al. "Phytochemistry of plants used in traditional medicine." Proceedings of the Phytochemical Society of Europe. Clarendon Press, Oxford. 1995.
Rahalison, L., et al. "Screening for antifungal activity of Panamanian plants." Inst. J. Pharmacog. 1993; 31(1): 68-76.
Verpoorte, R., et al. "Medicinal plants of Surinam. IV. Antimicrobial activity of some medicinal plants." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1987; 21(3): 315-18.
Arrhenius, S.P., et al. "Inhibitory effects of Hymenaea and Copaifera leaf resins on the leaf fungus, Pestalotia subcuticulari." Biochem. Syst. Ecol. 1983; 11(4): 361-66.
Giral, F., et al. "Ethnopharmacognostic observation on Panamanian medicinal plants. Part 1." Q. J. Crude Drug Res. 1979; 167(3/4): 115-30.
Marsaioli, A. J., et al. "Diterpenes in the bark of Hymenaea courbaril." Phytochemistry. 1975; 14: 1882-83.

Antiparasitic & Antimalarial Actions:
Ribeiro, T., et al. "Antileishmanial activity and cytotoxicity of Brazilian plants." Exp. Parasitol. 2014 Aug; 143: 60-8.
Valente, P., et al. "In vitro acaricidal efficacy of plant extracts from Brazilian flora and isolated substances against Rhipicephalus microplus (Acari: Ixodidae)." Parasitol. Res. 2014 Jan; 113(1): 417-23.
Polanco-Hernández, G., "Synergistic effect of lupenone and caryophyllene oxide against Trypanosoma cruzi." Evid. Based Complement. Alternat. Med. 2013; 2013: 435398.
Kohler, I., et al. "In vitro antiplasmodial investigation of medicinal plants from El Salvador." Z. Naturforsch. 2002; 57(3-4): 277-81.
Hostettmann, K., et al. "Phytochemistry of plants used in traditional medicine." Proceedings of the Phytochemical Society of Europe. Clarendon Press, Oxford. 1995.
Rouquayrol, M. Z., et al. "Molluscicidal activity of essential oils from Northeastern Brazilian plants." Rev. Brasil Pesq. Med. Biol. 1980; 13: 135-43.
Pinheiro de Sousa, M., et al. "Molluscicidal activity of plants from Northeast Brazil." Rev. Bras. Pesq. Med. Biol. 1974; 7(4): 389-94.

Antibacterial &Antiviral Actions:
Wang, J., et al. "Astilbin inhibits the activity of sortase A from Streptococcus mutans." Molecules. 2019 Jan; 24(3).
Aarthy, M., et al. "Discovery of potent inhibitors for the inhibition of dengue virus envelope protein: an in silico approach." Curr. Top. Med. Chem. 2018; 18(18): 1585-1602.
Boniface, P., et al. "Current state of knowledge on the traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of the genus Hymenaea." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2017 Jul; 206: 193-223.
Cecilio, A., et al. "Screening of Brazilian medicinal plants for antiviral activity against rotavirus." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2012 Jun; 141(3): 975-81.
Tincusi, B., et al. "Antimicrobial terpenoids from the oleoresin of the Peruvian medicinal plant Copaifera paupera." Planta Med. 2002; 68(9): 808-12.
Denyer, C., et al. "Isolation of antirhinoviral sesquiterpenes from ginger (Zingiber officinale)." J. Nat. Prod. 1994; 57(5): 658-62.
Muroi, H., et al. "Combination effects of antibacterial compounds in green tea flavor against Streptococcus mutans." J. Agric. Food Chem. 1993; 41: 1102-5.
Caceres, A., et al. "Plants used in Guatemala for the treatment of dermatomucosal infections. 1: Screening of 38 plant extracts." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1991; 33(3):277-83.
Verpoorte, R., et al. "Medicinal plants of Surinam. IV. Antimicrobial activity of some medicinal plants." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1987; 21(3): 315-18.

Antioxidant Actions:
Jatobá’s documented antioxidant actions are thought to be related to its content of astilbin, fisetin, taxifolin, and other known antioxidant chemicals called procyanidins.
Zhu, Y., et al. "Neuroprotective effects of Astilbin on MPTP-induced Parkinson's disease mice: Glial reaction, α-synuclein expression and oxidative stress." Int. Immunopharmacol. 2019 Jan; 66: 19-27.
Zhang, H., et al. "Nrf2 ARE signaling acts as master pathway for the cellular antioxidant activity of fisetin." Molecules. 2019 Feb; 24(4).
Althunibat, O., et al. "Fisetin ameliorates oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis in diabetic cardiomyopathy." Life Sci. 2019 Feb 8
Xie, X., et al. "Taxifolin protects RPE cells against oxidative stress-induced apoptosis." Mol. Vis. 2017 Jul; 23: 520-528.
Wang, M., et al. "Astilbin improves potassium oxonate-induced hyperuricemia and kidney injury through regulating oxidative stress and inflammation response in mice." Biomed. Pharmacother. 2016 Oct; 83: 975-988.
Topal, F., et al. "Antioxidant activity of taxifolin: an activity-structure relationship." J. Enzyme Inhib. Med. Chem. 2016 Aug; 31(4): 674-83.
Bezerra, G., et al. "Phytochemical study guided by the myorelaxant activity of the crude extract, fractions and constituent from stem bark of Hymenaea courbaril L." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2013 Aug; 149(1): 62-9.
Sasaki, K., et al. "High-performance liquid chromatographic purification of oligomeric procyanidins, trimers up to nonamers, derived from the bark of Jatoba (Hymenaea courbaril)." Biosci. Biotechnol. Biochem. 2009 Jun; 73(6): 1274-9.
Closa, D., et al. "Prostanoids and free radicals in CCl4-induced hepatotoxicity in rats: effect of astilbin." Prostaglandins Leukot. Essent. Fatty Acids. 1997; 56(4): 331-34.
Lopez, J. A. "Isolation of astilbin and sitosterol from Hymenaea courbaril." Phytochemistry 1976; 15: 2027F.

Anti-inflammatory & Muscle Relaxant Actions:
Jatobá’s anti-inflammatory actions are thought to be provided, in part, by the large amount of astilbin and caryophyllene oxide found in the bark. These natural plant chemicals are also found large amounts in another rainforest tree resin called copaiba (Copaifera).
do Rosário, M., et al. "Degalactosylation of xyloglucans modify their pro-inflammatory properties on murine peritoneal macrophages." Int. J. Biol. Macromol. 2017 Dec; 105(Pt 1): 533-540.
Boniface, P., et al. "Current state of knowledge on the traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of the genus Hymenaea." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2017 Jul; 206: 193-223.
Wang, M., et al. "Astilbin improves potassium oxonate-induced hyperuricemia and kidney injury through regulating oxidative stress and inflammation response in mice." Biomed. Pharmacother. 2016 Oct; 83: 975-988.
Chavan, M., et al. "Analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity of Caryophyllene oxide from Annona squamosa L. bark. Phytomedicine. 2010 Feb; 17(2): 149-51.
Bezerra, G., et al. "Phytochemical study guided by the myorelaxant activity of the crude extract, fractions and constituent from stem bark of Hymenaea courbaril L." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2013 Aug; 149(1): 62-9.
Veiga Junior, V., et al. "The inhibition of paw oedema formation caused by the oil of Copaifera multijuga Hayne and its fractions." J. Pharm. Pharmacol. 2006; 58(10): 1405-10.
Basile, A. C., et al. "Anti-inflammatory activity of oleoresin from Brazilian Copaifera." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1988; 22(1): 101-9.

Chelation Actions:
Asensio, V., et al. "Screening of native tropical trees for phytoremediation in copper-polluted soils." Int. J. Phytoremediation. 2018; 20(14): 1456-1463.
Mendonça, A., et al. "RR2 dye adsorption to Hymenaea courbaril L. bark activated carbon associated with biofilm." Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. Int. 2018 Nov 22.
Dos Santos, N., et al. "Phytoremediation of Brazilian tree species in soils contaminated by herbicides." Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. Int. 2018 Sep; 25(27): 27561-27568.

Non-Toxic Actions:
Vale, C., et al. "Assessment of toxic, genotoxic, antigenotoxic, and recombinogenic activities of Hymenaea courbaril (Fabaceae) in Drosophila melanogaster and mice." Genet. Mol. Res. 2013 Jul; 12(3): 2712-24.