<
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/the-chilean-tree-that-could-cure-malaria-and-other-diseases/>
"At first glance, it looks like any other vineyard in Chile’s Casablanca
Valley, with rows of terraces strung out across a rocky hillside. But take a
closer look and you will see that grapes are not the only crop.
In several places, saplings a foot tall sprout from beneath the vines, their
glossy green leaves glistening in the noonday sun. But it is the mature,
40-year-old tree half-way up the hillside that draws the eye.
With its tall, dark-grey trunk and spreading canopy, the Chilean soapbark tree,
Quillaja Saponaria, towers above the wine terraces. When it rains, a soapy
substance known as a saponin oozes from its bark. In the next few years,
molecules derived from these saponins promise to revolutionise vaccinology,
enhancing the ability of vaccines to induce immune responses against malaria,
Covid-19, influenza and a host of other diseases.
“It is a beautiful tree but it can take up to 25 years before the bark is ready
to be harvested,” explains Javier Gonzalez, the forestry manager for Desert
King, one of the main suppliers of pharmaceutical-grade saponins from Chile.
“Some people don’t want to wait that long and strip the bark after just 20
years.”
In some cases, the bark is peeled from the base of trunk, causing the tree to
wither and die. In other cases, loggers fell the tree and strip away all of the
bark, leaving the wood to rot in the forest.
By selecting varieties rich in saponins, and cloning them, Desert King hopes to
speed up the growing and harvesting process, while preserving the tree for
future generations. According to Gonzalez, the vines provide shade and
protection for the seedlings when they are young, while watering regularly
speeds growth. The aim is to see if, rather than waiting 25 years for the trees
to reach maturity before stripping the bark, Desert King can obtain a similar
yield from branches and leaves of five to 10-year-old trees."
Via
Fix the News: We’re making a podcast about the malaria vaccine and
What
Could Go Right?: The Ever-Evolving Olympics
https://fixthenews.com/were-making-a-podcast-about-the-malaria-vaccine/
https://theprogressnetwork.org/paris-2024-olympics/
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
