''Canarium luzonicum'', commonly known as elemi, is a

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

native to the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. The

oleoresin Oleoresins are semi-solid extracts composed of resin and essential or fatty oil, obtained by evaporation of the solvents used for their production. The oleoresin of conifers is known as crude turpentine or gum turpentine, which consists of oil o ...

harvested from it is also known as elemi resin.

Synonyms

* ''Canarium carapifolium'' G.Perkins * ''Canarium oliganthum'' Merr. * ''Canarium polyanthum'' G.Perkins * ''Canarium triandrum''

Engl. Engl or Engl. may refer to: *England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more ...

* ''Pimela luzonica'' Blume

Description

''Canarium luzonicum'' is a large evergreen tree growing to a maximum height of about . The leaves are alternate and are pinnate. Clusters of flowers, which are pollinated by insects, are followed by thick-shelled nuts with edible kernels.

Uses

Elemi resin is a pale yellow substance, of

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

-like consistency. Aromatic elemi oil is steam distilled from the resin. It is a fragrant resin with a sharp pine and lemon-like scent. One of the resin components is called

amyrin The amyrins are three closely related natural chemical compounds of the triterpene class. They are designated α-amyrin (ursane skeleton), β-amyrin (oleanane skeleton), and δ-amyrin. Each is a pentacyclic triterpenol with the chemical formula ...

. Elemi resin is chiefly used commercially in varnishes and lacquers, and certain printing inks. It is used as a

herbal medicine Herbal medicine (also called herbalism, phytomedicine or phytotherapy) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. Scientific evidence for the effectiveness of many herbal treatments ...

to treat

bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

catarrh Catarrh ( ) is an inflammation of mucous membranes in one of the airways or cavities of the body, usually with reference to the throat and paranasal sinuses. It can result in a thick exudate of mucus and white blood cells caused by the swelling ...

, extreme

cough A cough is a sudden expulsion of air through the large breathing passages which can help clear them of fluids, irritants, foreign particles and Microorganism, microbes. As a protective reflex, coughing can be repetitive with the cough reflex fol ...

ing, mature skin, scars, stress, and wounds. The constituents include

phellandrene Phellandrenes are organic compounds with the formula . They have a similar molecular structure and similar chemical properties. α-Phellandrene and β-phellandrene are cyclic monoterpenes and are double-bond isomers. In α-phellandrene, both dou ...

limonene Limonene () is a colorless liquid aliphatic hydrocarbon classified as a cyclic monoterpene, and is the major component in the essential oil of citrus fruit peels. The (+)-isomer, occurring more commonly in nature as the fragrance of oranges, ...

, elemol,

elemicin Elemicin is a phenylpropene, a natural organic compound, and is a constituent of several plant species' essential oils. Natural occurrence Elemicin is a constituent of the oleoresin and the essential oil of '' Canarium luzonicum'' (also referre ...

terpineol Terpineol is any of four isomeric monoterpenoids. Terpenoids are terpene that are modified by the addition of a functional group, in this case, an alcohol. Terpineols have been isolated from a variety of sources such as cardamom, cajuput oil, ...

carvone Carvone is a member of a family of chemicals called terpenoids. Carvone is found naturally in many essential oils, but is most abundant in the oils from seeds of caraway (''Carum carvi''), spearmint (''Mentha spicata''), and dill. Uses Food appli ...

, and

terpinolene The terpinenes are a group of isomeric hydrocarbons that are classified as monoterpenes. They each have the same molecular formula and carbon framework, but they differ in the position of carbon-carbon double bonds. α-Terpinene has been isolate ...

. The seed kernels are used for food, both raw and cooked. An edible oil can be extracted from the seeds, and the pulp can be stewed but is somewhat insipid. The young shoots can be boiled and eaten as a vegetable.

History of the name

The word ''elemi'' has been used at various times to denote different resins. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the term usually denoted a resin from trees of the genus '' Icica'' in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, and before that it meant the resin derived from ''

Boswellia frereana ''Boswellia frereana'' is a species of plant native to northern Somalia where it is known as ''yagcar'', ''yagar'', ''yigaar'', or ''yegaar''. Its frankincense is nicknamed the king of all frankincense, and called by the locals ''maydi'' (other s ...

''. The word, like the older term '' animi'', appears to have been derived from ''enhaemon'' (ἔναιμον): the name of a

styptic An antihemorrhagic () agent is a substance that promotes hemostasis (a process which stops bleeding). It may also be known as a hemostatic (also spelled haemostatic) agent. Antihemorrhagic agents used in medicine have various mechanisms of action: ...

medicine said by Pliny to contain tears exuded by the olive tree of Arabia.

References

*J. Lawless, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils (Rockport, MA: Element Books, 1995), 59-67. *R. Tisserand, Essential Oil Safety (United Kingdom: Churchill Livingstone, 1995), 135. {{Taxonbar, from=Q148430 luzonicum Endemic flora of the Philippines Flora of Luzon Trees of the Philippines Resins Near threatened flora of Asia Near threatened plants

Synonyms

Description

Uses

History of the name

See also

References