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"SHIHUA MACA", WILD MACA OF CULTIVATED MACA (Lepidium peruvianum Chacón)

Dra. Gloria Chacón de Popovici

"Shihua Maca" is rarely found on domestic Maca crops and is distinguished visually by the presence of its fruits that are small silicula which are present at the time of the harvest of the domestic Maca roots and the rosette of the plant size is small. Its seeds are scattered by the wind or fall to the ground to develop again, without which the farmer is account until they appear. So I found it by chance on June 20, 2000, in the cultivation of Dr. Luis Castillo Huerta in its Chupaca farm located in the pampa of Junín, in the harvest of the Maca root domestic, in a visit that I made with the Miss Lourdes Candia , engineer agronomist. So I could study the botanical characteristic of Shihua Maca, whose issue gave it to Dra. Elida Carrillo , Director of the Herbarium (Chacon de Popovici, Gloria, 2001 ). TAXONOMIC CLASSIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION BOTANY OF “WILD MACA", 2000. DIVISION : Magnoliophyta (Angiospermae) CLASS : Magnoliopsida (Dicotyledonea) SUBCLASS : Archichlamideae ORDER : Capparales (Roheadales) FAMILY : Brassicaceae (Crucíferae) GENUS : Lepidium SPECIES : Lepidium peruvianum Chacón VERNACULAR NAME: “Shihua Maca” o “Maca silvestre” Description. It is a herbaceous, annual plant arrocetada, tuberous root. Almost acaule stem where born strongly petiolated leaves bipinnatifidas, deciduous before leaving the secondary branches which are herbaceous. The flower is complete, small, and actinomorphic and hipoginea, the chalice with 4 fixed sepals, Corolla with 4 free of white petals, 2 fertile stamens and 4 sterile or staminodes, the pistil stigma globose, thin style short and super ovary. The floral bud presented the formula: K 2-2; 4 Co, 2-4; G (2). The inflorescence is simple cluster and they also have pedunculated axillary flowers. The fruit is a silicula consisting of 2 carpels, typical of the Crucifer family or Brassicaceae. Seed campilotropos, characterized because the micropyle and the funicle are very close to pale reddish brown color when it is without the brush or layer that covers the seed. The exemplary type was delivered personally to Dr. Elida Carrillo in the year 2000 for your registration in the Herbarium (Chacón de Popovici, Gloria, 2001 ).

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Wild Maca or " Shihua Maca " , differs from the cultivated Maca, because its branches with flowers, fruits and seeds appear at 7 months of age and is when the root is fibrous, then dries and dies, in other words, its biological life becomes 7 months and does not reach the 11 months of age of cultivated Maca or its size, because it is smaller and due to this characteristic, Junín and Pasco farmers not has given the importance of the ethnia Chinchay 4,000 years ago. The roots present the same colors and shapes as cultivated Maca. “Shihua Maca” The tuberous root of cultivated Maca , to 7 or 8 months of age is largest than the “Maca Shihua” and is ready to be harvested and used in nutrition. Basal leaves are strongly petiolated and 7 and 8 months will begin to flame and die, giving rise to secondary herbaceous stems. “Cultivated Maca” Biological development of "Cultivated Maca" The roots that have not been harvested, continue its development, until are secondary stems or branches in the ninth month, giving rise to the flowers, fruits and seeds, such as shown in the photo, and the 11 months the root becomes fibrous and dies, showing thus that the biological age of the cultivated Maca is annual. Maca cultivated with flowers and fruits at 10 months “SHIHUA MACA” CHEMICAL STUDY. Copies of the wild plant ("Shihua Maca ") that I found in the culture of Dr. Luis Castillo in the year 2000, I made the chemical analysis of the root in the Chemistry Laboratory of Mining-metallurgical Geological Institute (INGEMMET) in collaboration with the Mag. Chemistry, Maria Jara Facundo , discovering 31 elements, as shown below (Chacón de Popovici, Gloria, 2001 ).

CHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF THE MACA ROOT WILD OR "SHIHUA MACA" (Lepidium peruvianum Chacon), PROVINCE OF JUNÍN, JU NÍN

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As you can be seen, macronutrients are composed of 8 elements, being the main potassium, with 1,618.60 mg/100g, followed by the chlorine with 410 mg, calcium, sulphur, sodium, aluminum, phosphorus and magnesium. Relating to micronutrients presented 5 elements, 11 elements in traces and vestiges 4 without the elements of lead, cadmium,

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silver and mercury that are routinely performed in INGEMMET to see if there is contamination of these elements, thus proving its safety. On June 20, 2000 I took my visit to Junín to carry samples of "Cultivated Maca" leaves for a chemical study, but I also did a test spot to see if the cattle and sheep accepted to Maca as food leaves. My surprise was great because they were immediately launched to eat, had no qualms, and in some cases, the sheep pounced, as also, the offspring. I show some photos taken that day.

Beef sheep small sheep This essay made me think that culture Chinchay noted this concern in camelid (llama and alpaca) cattle feeding on wild Maca (“Maca Shihua”), and thus was born the interest to observe its properties, then tame it and give rise to what is cultivated Maca, and then applying new methods they obtained seed Maca for purposes of extending crops on ridges for food use in the human.

"Wild Maca" or “Shihua Maca” Cultivated Ma ca "Maca seed" A comparative chemical study of the roots of Maca wild and cultivated Maca, as well as the leaves of the cultivated Maca, have done in collaboration with INGEMMET, whose results are the same chemical elements but with variation in some, macronutrients, as shown in the following table (Chacón de Popovici, Gloria, 2001).

COMPARATIVE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF MINERALS FROM THE ROOT

AND LEAF OF MACA CULTIVATED WITH THE ROOT OF THE MACA WILDLIFE or "SHIHUA MACA" (mg/100 g)

(Lepidium peruvianum Chacon)

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NUTRIENTES Nº MINERALES RAIZ HOJA SHIHUA

MACRO 1 Potasio (K) 1,627.00 3,178.20 1,618.60 2 Calcio (Ca) 366.20 1,812.50 299.50 3 Cloro (Cl) 360.00* 660.00 410.00 4 Fósforo (P) 350.90 420.00 128.10 5 Azufre (S) 309.20 265.00 280.00 6 Magnesio (Mg) 137.50* 162.50 122.80

MICRO 7 Sodio (Na) 93.80* 37.50 230.10

8 Aluminio (Al) 149.00* 27.50 130.90

9 Fierro (Fe) 95.00* 5.00 13.10 10 Sílice (Si) 7.60 2.00 16.50 11 Manganeso (Mn) 2.30 5.30 1.70 12 Zinc (Zn) 2.30 5.20 1.90 13 Rubidio (Rb) 1.40 2.80 2.00

14 Estroncio (Sr) 0.83 1.67 0.80

15 Titanio (Ti) 1.90 1.50 1.00

TRAZAS 16 Estaño (Sn) 1.00 0.50 - -

17 Bario (Ba) 0.70 0.90 0.70 18 Cobre (Cu) 0.13 0.67 0.40 19 Vanadio (V) 0.50 0.50 0.20 20 Antimonio (Sb) 0.50 0.50 0.20 21 Molibdeno (Mo) 0.20 0.20 0.50 22 Arsénico (As) 0.20 0.20 0.50 23 Litio (Li) 0.24 0.19 0.30

VESTIGIOS 24 Níquel (Ni) 0.04 0.20 0.10

25 Bismuto (Bi) 0.20 0.10 0.20

26 Cromo (Cr) 0.08 0.20 0.05

27 Cobalto (Co) 0.02 0.02 0.02

Root of Carhuamayo, Junín * Root of Turpo, Apurímac; * Root of Cajamarca; * Root of Pasos,

Huancavelica; * Black root cortex; (- -) It did not Root and leave of Maca Cultivate d Maca Shihua You can see that the root of the "cultivated Maca" presents 6 macronutrients, being the potassium the first macronutrient with almost similar to the "Maca Shihua" amounts, but calcium, phosphorus and sulphur are greater than the of the "Maca Shihua". The element sodium in the "Maca Shihua" is very important to join with the chlorine that is also as

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macronutrient, giving rise to the common salt (Sodium Chloride), important food for livestock. On the other hand, in "Cultivated Maca", amounts of sodium is lower than the “Shihua Maca ", by such reason makes it higher in human nutrition. Separately, the magnesium in both cases is high, element essential in the human and animal organism. Chemical analyses of "Cultivated Maca" leaves are 6 macro nutrients, especially potassium, calcium, chlorine, phosphorus and magnesium with quantities greater than the root of the "cultivated Maca". The quantities of potassium in the leaves is almost double that of the root with 3,178.20 mg.100 g. In the case of calcium, the quantities of leaf is 5 times greater than the root, with 1,812.50 mg.100 g, chlorine is almost double with 660.00 mg100, phosphorus is slightly higher with 420.00 mg.100 g, sulphur is almost same with 265.00 mg and magnesium, is also greater with 162.50 mg. In both cases, sodium is found as micronutrient, proving its nutritional quality and your choice in eating by cattle. I have subsequently told Mrs. Gladys Ticlavilca perform a trial feeding sheets of the Maca "Cuyes" or "guinea pigs" (Cavia tshudii ), who kindly gave me a photo taken by her in 2001. In conversations I've had with growers of the cultivated Maca on if used the leaves to feed the animals, the response has been, that they prefer to dry the leaves along with the root at the time of harvest, since these become yellow within a few days. For this reason, it is necessary to crops while leaves just beginning to flame and die to let them dry together with the root. According to the chemical analysis of the box, this fact is justified, because the minerals that contain leaves go to root before drying. ALKALOIDS FROM THE "SHIHUA MACA ". In 2001 I have done Histochemical analysis of Shihua Maca root in the Laboratory of Criminology of the Police National of the Peru, thanks to the collaboration of the biologist Ruth Hernandez Necochea , using reagents of Mayer and Dragendorff for alkaloids, with positive reaction, and for the starch I used a solution of iodine Iodurada with result positive. FOLIC ACID . It is a vitamin B complex which is present in the root and leaves of the Cultivated Maca in quantities of 314 µg/g and 710 µg/g respectively. This study I have done with Dr. Carlos Roe G . in October 2004, analyzing several samples of my product cooked flour Maca (Lepidium peruvianum Chacon) , as also of baked powder of the leaves and the root of the "Maca Shihua" with 1.0 mg/Kg. “Shihua Maca”

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THE VITAMIN B12 OR CIANOCOBALAMINA. Animals get it thanks to symbiotic bacteria in your digestive tract. Generally, vitamin B12 is secreted in the small intestine along with the bile and other secretions in the human. Some bacteria in the small intestine apparently produce vitamin B12 which can be absorbed. Within the molecule are Hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur and cobalt, these latest metals are found in the root and leaves of Maca. A ring of Korrin, dimeti-benzimidazol, propanolamine and a cobalt Atom participates in its chemical composition. It forms crystals of dark red tone. Vitamin B12 in aqueous solution is sensitive to the action of acids, alkalis and light UV. (Photo retrieved from the google.com: vitamin B12 ).

The majority of plants do not contain this vitamin, but yes, yeasts, but the plants also contain bacteria aerobic mesophilic own yeasts that are seen when these are converted into cooked powder. Assays for the identification of vitamin B12 have done them in collaboration with Dr. Carlos Roe G ., in 2004, using 1 g of the Maca root cooked flour, 1 g of powder boiled in leaves of Maca and 1 g of flour of "Shihua Maca", each sample was diluted in 5 ml of distilled water and applied the technique for the identification of vitamin B12 in the blood serum, finding 1.64 µg/g at the root, 2.03 µg/g in leaves and "Shi hua Maca" 0.3 µg/g. Microbiological analysis of the boiled Maca root is bacteria aerobic mesophilic and yeast, which would be the indicators of the presence of vitamin B12. All samples referred to in the table have been cooked on the stove and sprayed. Only products of plants that have been sterilized by radiation present very small quantities or sometimes absent of mesophilic aerobic bacteria and yeasts and any other microorganism living, being these organic products dangerous for the body if you don't have a safety test, as also any type of radiation or chemicals used in the process of the product, changes the chemical composition and natural properties of this.

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REGISTRATION OF THE EXEMPLARY OF THE WILD MACA or " SHIHUA MACA ", ANCESTRAL MACA PLANT ( Lepidium peruvianum Chacon ).

In 2007 have handed over to the biologist, botanist of the Herbarium of the Museum Mr. Severo Baldeón , 3 copies of the "wild Maca" (ancestral plant) for the registration in the Herbarium of the Museum of Natural history of the USM, being registered as a wild plant of "Shihua Maca" (Lepidium peruvianum Chacon) distinguishing them by their colors. The "Maca Shihua" of purple root is # 215821 and two copies of the "Maca Shihua" yellow root have Nº 215822 and 215823.

“Shihua Maca” Root dark violet Registration Nº 215821 Registro Nº 215821

“Shihua Maca” “Shihu a Maca” Root yellow Root yellow Registration Nº 215822 Registration Nº 2 15823 Thanks to the kindness of Dr. Ronald Carter , doctor endocrinologist Peruano, Advisor of the Company Natural Health International, the plant wild or ancestral Maca (Lepidium peruvianum Chacon) , popularly known as " Shihua Maca ", is deposited at the Herbarium of Berkeley, California, USA, from November 8, 2007, delivered to Dr. Paul Silva, Director of the Herbarium, and Dr. Robert Vogt Curator of the Herbarium in Berlin-Dahlem, Germany in December 2007.

Dr. Paul Silva and Dr. Ronald Carter Dr. Robert Vogt and Dr. R. Carter