Jergón Sacha

(Dracontium sp)

Family: Araceae
Genus: Dracontium
Species: longipes, loretense, croatii, peruviuanum, asperum
Synonyms: Dracontium spruceanum, D. carderi, D.costaricense, D. ornatum, Cyrtosperma spruceanum, Echidnium spruceanum
Common Names: Jergón sacha, fer-de-lance, sacha jergon, hierba del jergon, erva-jararaca, jararaca, jararaca-taia, milho-de-cobra, taja-de-cobra
Phytochemicals: Alkaloids, Flavonoids, Phenols, Saponins, Sterols, Triterpenes
Part Used: Tuber/rhizom

HERBAL PROPERTIES AND ACTIONS

Main Actions: kills viruses neutralizes venom reduces inflammation

Other Actions: calms cough expels worms

Standard Dosage: Rhizome. Capsules: 2-3 g 2-3 times daily; Tincture: 3-5 ml twice daily

Jergón sacha is a rainforest understory plant that consists of a single, giant, deeply-divided leaf borne from an underground tuber on a long, thick stem which resembles the trunk of a sapling. When fertile, the flower stem emerges from near the base of the plant and rises up to 1–2 m in height. Thirteen species of Dracontium grow in the South and Latin American tropics. Four of these Amazonian species look almost identical and are used interchangeably in tropical herbal medicine systems: Dracontium longipes, D. loretense, D. peruviuanum, and D. asperum. While all four species are indigenous to the Amazon, D. asperum is more prevalent in the rainforests of Brazil, Suriname, and Guyana; longipes, loretense, and peruviuanum are more prevalent in the Peruvian, Colombian, and Ecuadorian rainforests.

Initial phytochemical screening indicates that the rhizome contains alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols, saponins, sterols, triterpenes, and starch; yet, none of these have been quantified or identified.

Despite the large and growing market for jergón sacha, not a single clinical study has been published on its actions. If jergón sacha's longstanding use as an effective snakebite remedy was clinically validated, it may explain its more recent use as an antiviral for HIV as well. The most recent class of drugs developed for HIV are called protease inhibitors. Protease inhibitors work by blocking an active component in HIV-its protease enzyme. With the protease enzyme blocked, HIV makes copies of its virus that are defective and can't infect new cells. In current (mainstream) HIV therapy, protease inhibitor drugs are usually combined with other antiviral drugs (which kill the virus directly) after the protease inhibitors have disabled its replication. Proteases are ubiquitously present in every cell of every living organism: they are enzymes that digest proteins.

It is well known that proteases are also main ingredients in snake venom. For this reason, many herbal remedies that have been validated as snakebite remedies (especially those employed at the site of the bite) have been shown to be natural protease inhibitors also. In fact, many pharmaceutical company researchers bio-prospecting for new chemicals and drugs in the Amazon are very interested in those plants the Indians employ as snakebite remedies for just this reason. It may be possible that Dr. Inchuastegui stumbled across one of these natural protease inhibitors in his work with HIV patients and jergón sacha. Clinical research is still required however, to verify the mechanisms of action in jergón sacha against viruses and against snakebite and, particularly, if they are one and the same.

Ethnobotanically, jergón sacha is considered a "signature plant": the plant's indigenous uses are directly related to its appearance. In this particular case, the trunk-like stem and its mottled coloring closely resembles a poisonous snake indigenous to the areas in which it grows.

Local villagers as well as Indian tribes throughout the Amazon rainforest use the large tuber or rhizome of the jergón sacha plant as an antidote for the bite of these snakes. In such a case, the tuber is chopped up quickly, immersed in cold water, and drunk. More tuber is chopped finely and placed in a large banana leaf, which is then wrapped around the bite area. This poultice is changed every hour or two; more of the tuber is eaten every 3-4 hours.

Jergón sacha made its way out of the jungle and into herbal medicine systems of South America for other purposes.

The use of jergón sacha for AIDS and HIV in Peru was fueled by several newspaper articles published in Peruvian newspapers and magazines beginning in the early 1990s. The subject of the articles was a Peruvian physician, Dr. Roberto Inchuastegui Gonzales, who was president of the Committee of AIDS and Transmissible Diseases at the Peruvian Institute of Social Security in Iquitos, Peru. The media reported that, in experiments with AIDS patients conducted from 1989 to 1993, the doctor administered two plant extracts with remarkable results. One was a rhizome extract of jergón sacha (D. peruviuanum) as an antiviral, and the other was an extract of two cat's claw vines (Uncaria tomentosa and U. guianensis) as immunostimulants. Dr. Inchuastegui reported that a majority of HIV patients treated had tested negative for the HIV virus and returned to normal lives after taking these two plant extracts for an average of six months. He has yet to publish any clinical trials. His work in Iquitos with AIDS patients has surfaced periodically in news and media reports over the last decade which continues to purport the use of jergón sacha for HIV and other viruses. This has fueled the market in Peru for the sale of jergón sacha and, in the late 1990s, news of his work was disseminated in Eastern Europe.

Thousands of kilos of jergón sacha rhizome have been exported annually to Poland, Russia, and other countries since.

Following- up, a brief summary of worldwide ethnomedical uses of jergón sacha.

Region	Uses
Brazil	for asthma, bites (snake, insect), chlorosis, gout, menstrual disorders, scabies, skin sores, whooping cough, worms, and as an antidote for poison arrow wounds
Ecuador	for snake bite
Guayana	as an antidote (poison arrow, stingray, spider, snake)
Mexico	for snake bite and urinary insufficiency
Panama	for snake bite
Peru	for AIDS, cancer, diarrhea, herpes zoster, gastrointestinal problems, hernia, HIV, palpitations (heart), immune enhancement, snake bite, tremors (hand), tumors, viral infections
Elsewhere	for snake bites

JERGÓN SACHA PLANT SUMMARY

Main Preparation Method:	cold maceration, capsules, or tincture
Main Actions (in order):	antiviral, antivenin, cough suppressant, protease inhibitor (typically used for viral infections), anti-inflammatory
Main Uses:	for snakebite for viral infections (HIV, hepatitis, whooping cough, influenza, parvovirus, and others) for upper respiratory problems (cough, bronchitis, asthma, etc) for spider, bee, scorpion, and other venomous insect bites as a topical wound healer
Properties/Actions Documented by Research:	none
Other Properties/Actions Documented by Traditional Use:	anti-inflammatory, anticancerous, antivenin, antiviral, cough suppressant, diuretic, immune stimulant, larvicidal
Traditional Remedy:	In Peruvian herbal medicine, 2-3 g of the dry powdered rhizome is taken 2-3 times daily, or 3-5 ml of a rhizome tincture twice daily is recommended.
Contraindications:	None reported.
Drug Interactions:	None reported.

 



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