''Larrea divaricata'', commonly known as chaparral, is a small evergreen bush in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Zygophyllaceae Zygophyllaceae is a family of flowering plants that contains the bean-caper and caltrop. The family includes around 285 species in 22 genera. Plants in the family Zygophyllaceae may be trees, shrubs, or herbs. They are often found in dry habit ...

. It is native to arid regions of South America, where it is known as ''jarilla'' or ''jarillo''. It was first described in 1800 by the Spanish botanist

Antonio José Cavanilles Antonio José Cavanilles (16 January 1745 – 5 May 1804) was a leading Spanish taxonomic botanist, artist and one of the most important figures in the 18th century period of Enlightenment in Spain. Cavanilles is most famous for his 2-vol ...

Description

''Larrea divaricata'' is a slow-growing shrub growing to a maximum height of . The stems are cylindrical. The small, dark green, elliptical leaves are resinous and grow in opposite pairs. The yellow flowers have five petals and appear in October and November. The fruits are dry capsules containing greyish hairs and five seeds. The plant is dispersed when goats eat the leaves and seed capsules in the dry season when little grass is available.

Distribution and habitat

''Larrea divaricata'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to southwestern South America. Its range includes Bolivia, Peru, Chile, and Argentina, especially Patagonia. It is found in open woodland, scrubland, and rough grassland. This plant only grows in South America, whereas the closely related ''

Larrea tridentata ''Larrea tridentata'', called creosote bush, greasewood, and chaparral is a medicinal herb. In Sonora, it is more commonly called ''hediondilla''; Spanish ''hediondo'' = "smelly". It is a flowering plant in the family Zygophyllaceae. The specific ...

'' occurs in North America. The two have been confused in the past, but in the 1940s, they were found to be separate species.

Uses

The resin contains

lignan The lignans are a large group of low molecular weight polyphenols found in plants, particularly seeds, whole grains, and vegetables. The name derives from the Latin word for "wood". Lignans are precursors to phytoestrogens. They may play a rol ...

s, polyphenolic substances with possible therapeutic uses. The plant also contains guaiaretic acid and its derivatives,

flavonoid Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans. Chemically, flavonoids ...

triterpene Triterpenes are a class of terpenes composed of six isoprene units with the molecular formula C30H48; they may also be thought of as consisting of three terpene units. Animals, plants and fungi all produce triterpenes, including squalene, the pre ...

s, and other organic substances. In Bolivia, an extract of ''L. divaricata'' has been used as an

abortifacient An abortifacient ("that which will cause a miscarriage" from Latin: '' abortus'' "miscarriage" and '' faciens'' "making") is a substance that induces abortion. This is a nonspecific term which may refer to any number of substances or medications, ...

. Since this plant is suspected of being used as an

adulterant An adulterant is a substance secretly added to another that may compromise the safety or effectiveness. Typical substances that are adulterated include food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals or fuels. Definition Adulteration is the practice of secre ...

in preparations of "chapparral", a herbal remedy made from ''L. tridentata'', the use of that substance during

pregnancy Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring gestation, gestates inside a woman's uterus. A multiple birth, multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Conception (biology), Conception usually occurs ...

and

lactation Lactation describes the secretion of milk from the mammary glands and the period of time that a mother lactates to feed her young. The process naturally occurs with all sexually mature female mammals, although it may predate mammals. The process ...

is not advised. An aqueous extract has been shown to have antimicrobial properties against ''

Helicobacter pylori ''Helicobacter pylori'', previously known as ''Campylobacter pylori'', is a gram-negative, Flagellum#bacterial, flagellated, Bacterial cellular morphologies#Helical, helical bacterium. Mutants can have a rod or curved rod shape that exhibits l ...

'', a Gram-negative bacterium found in the stomach and known to be associated with

gastritis Gastritis is the inflammation of the lining of the stomach. It may occur as a short episode or may be of a long duration. There may be no symptoms but, when symptoms are present, the most common is upper abdominal pain (see dyspepsia). Othe ...

peptic ulcer Peptic ulcer disease is when the inner part of the stomach's gastric mucosa (lining of the stomach), the first part of the small intestine, or sometimes the lower esophagus, gets damaged. An ulcer in the stomach is called a gastric ulcer, while ...

s, and

stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a malignant tumor of the stomach. It is a cancer that develops in the Gastric mucosa, lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a numb ...

References

{{Authority control divaricata Taxa named by Antonio José Cavanilles