Areca alkaloids

Areca catechu Carved areca nuts from India

Areca alkaloids are a group of tetrahydropyridine stimulant alkaloids found in the areca nut, the seeds of the areca palm (Areca catechu).[1]

## Contents

* 1 Occurrence
* 2 Chemistry
* 3 Properties
* 4 References

## Occurrence

Areca alkaloids are isolated from the areca nut, which are hemispherical seeds and are approximately 3 cm in size. Areca nuts are cultivated in India and East Asia.[1]

## Chemistry

The main alkaloid is arecoline, which accounts for over 50% of the total alkaloid content in betel quid.[2] Other representatives include arecaidine, guvacoline, and guvacine.[1]

* Arecoline

* Arecaidine

* Guvacoline

* Guvacine

The total alkaloid content of the nuts increases during ripening and decreases upon subsequent drying.[3] Toasting and drying the nuts increases the ratio of arecoline in the total alkaloid content.[2][3]

## Properties

Arecolin is a potent parasympathomimetic that enhances salivary and sweat secretion and stimulates intestinal activity. The vermifuge function of areca preparations is used today only in veterinary medicine.[1] Traditionally, areca nut has been used as an aphrodisiac, anorectic, digestive stimulant, and diuretic, as well as in the treatment of asthma, cough, dermatitis, fainting, glaucoma, erectile dysfunction, parasitic worm diseases, leprosy, toothache, and vaginal discharge, as well as to constrict the vagina.[4]

Areca nuts are typically chewed with calcium hydroxide (hydrated lime) and leaves of betel pepper, especially in East Asia (known as "sirih pinang"). This practice stimulates the nervous system in a manner akin to tobacco.[5][1]

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Entry on Areca-Alkaloide. at: Römpp Online. Georg Thieme Verlag, retrieved {{{Datum}}}.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Jain, Vipin; Garg, Apurva; Parascandola, Mark; Chaturvedi, Pankaj; Khariwala, Samir S.; Stepanov, Irina (2017-02-28), "Analysis of Alkaloids in Areca Nut-Containing Products by Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry" (in en), Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 65 (9): 1977–1983, doi:10.1021/acs.jafc.6b05140, PMID 28190359, Bibcode: 2017JAFC...65.1977J
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Shwetha, H. R.; Kotrashetti, V. S.; Reddy, N.; Chaitanya Babu, N. (2019-05-03), "Estimation of the Major Constituents of Arecanut in Its Different Forms" (in en), Austin Journal of Nutrition and Food Sciences 7 (1): 1113, http://smj.sma.org.sg/2704/2704smj11.pdf
4. ↑ Bhalla, Ashish; Thirumalaikolundusubramanian, Ponniah; Fung, Jeffery; Cordero-Schmidt, Gabriela; Soghoian, Sari; Kaur Sikka, Veronica; Singh Dhindsa, Harinder; Singh, Surjit (2014), Meenakshisundaram Ramachandran, ed., "Chapter 6 - Native Medicines and Cardiovascular Toxicity" (in en), Heart and Toxins (Academic Press), doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-416595-3.00006-2, ISBN 978-0-12-416595-3
5. ↑ Eberhard Breitmaier (1997), Alkaloide, Wiesbaden: Springer Fachmedien, pp. 37, ISBN 3-519-03542-1

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