''Zanthoxylum coco'' (also known as ''Fagara coco'') is an evergreen tree of the family

Rutaceae The Rutaceae () is a family (biology), family, commonly known as the rueRUTACEAE
in Bo ...

, native to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

where it grows in the wild, mostly in spiniferous forests of the low mountain ranges of the western Chaco. It is characteristic of the hill forest of the

Sierras Pampeanas The Sierras Pampeanas (also called Central Sierras or Pampas Sierras) (English: Pampas Mountains) is a geographical region of Argentina. The Sierras Pampeanas are a chain of mountains that rise sharply from the surrounding pampa region of N ...

Description

The coco, also cochucho or smelly sauco, is usually found either in isolated groups or standing alone, from a small to medium-sized tree, ranging from 6 to 8 metres in height. The foliage is abundant,

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

with imparipinnate leaves that present paired spines presumably in the place of leaflets. Punctations, in pairs, on the leaflets are quite distinctive. Leaves have serrated margins and pinnate venation. Flowers have five

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s and are arranged in paniculate inflorescences. The fruit is spherically shaped,

dehiscent Dehiscence is the splitting of a mature plant structure along a built-in line of weakness to release its contents. This is common among fruits, anthers and sporangia. Sometimes this involves the complete detachment of a part. Structures that op ...

; containing a shiny blackish seed. The whole plant has a characteristic unpleasant smell, hence the alternative name "smelly sauco".

Biochemistry

Even though unused in the general botanical pharmacopeia, ''Zanthoxylum coco'' tissues are very rich in

alkaloid Alkaloids are a broad class of natural product, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. Some synthetic compounds of similar structure may also be termed alkaloids. Alkaloids are produced by a large varie ...

s. γ- Fagarine, N-methylisocorydine, skimminianine, α-fagarine, fagarine-2, magnoflorine,

nitidine Nitidine is a benzophenanthridine alkaloid found in species of the genus '' Zanthoxylum '', notably in '' Zanthoxylum nitidum''. This compound has an anti-malarial activity.Bouquet, J., et al. (2012)Biological activities of nitidine, a potential a ...

chelerythrine Chelerythrine is a benzophenanthridine alkaloid present in the plant '' Chelidonium majus'' (greater celandine). It is a potent, selective, and cell-permeable protein kinase C inhibitor ''in vitro''. And an efficacious antagonist of G-protein-co ...

berberine Berberine is a Quaternary ammonium cation, quaternary ammonium salt from the protoberberine group of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids, occurring naturally as a secondary metabolite in some plants including species of ''Berberis'', from which its name ...

, palmatine and candicine have been isolated from the foliage and wood.Boelcke, O.: (1989) Plantas vasculares de la Argentina - Bs.As., Ed. H. Sur, 2da. reimpresión, 171 - 369 pp.

Taxon synonym usage

The ''coco'' belongs to the genus ''

Zanthoxylum ''Zanthoxylum'' is a genus of about 250 species of deciduous and evergreen trees, shrubs and climbers in the Family (biology), family Rutaceae that are native to warm temperate and Subtropics, subtropical areas worldwide. It is the type gen ...

''. However, most local scientific articles use ''Fagara'' as the genus name.

References

* Hieronymus, G.: (1882), Plantae Diaphoricae Florae Argentinae - Bs. A.s, Ed. Kraft, 53 - 404 pp. * Domínguez, J. A.: (1928), Contribuciones a la Materia Médica Argentina, Bs. As., Ed. Peuser, 95 - 433 pp. * Stucker, G.V.: (1930), Contribución al estudio del Fagara coco, Congreso Internacional de Biología, Montevideo, Oct. 1930. * Fernández Rua, R.: (1933), El alcaloide de la corteza del Fagara coco: la fagaridina, Córdoba, folleto - 12 pp. y tablas. * Boelcke, O.: (1989) Plantas vasculares de la Argentina - Bs.As., Ed. H. Sur, 2da. reimpresión, 171 - 369 pp. {{Taxonbar, from=Q3339238

coco Coco or variants may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Coco'' (2009 film), a French comedy film * ''Coco'' (2017 film), an American animated fantasy film * '' Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle'' (), a 2020 Japanese anime film ...

Trees of Argentina Trees of Bolivia Gran Chaco Plants described in 1833 Taxa named by William Jackson Hooker Taxa named by George Arnott Walker Arnott