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Kino (botany)

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– Composition:
– Astringent tannin compounds are major active components of kinos.
– Kino’s chief constituent is kinotannic acid, comprising 70-80%.
– Kino also contains kino red, a phlobaphene from kinotannic acid oxidation.
– Kino yields kinoin, a crystalline neutral principle.
– Kino is soluble in alcohol and caustic alkalis, but not in ether.

– Applications and sources:
– Kinos are used in medicine, tanning, and as dyes.
– Kino was introduced to European medicine in 1757 by John Fothergill.
– Different types of kino include East Indian, Malabar, Amboyna, Bengal, and Australian kino.
– Kino is not absorbed well from the stomach or intestine.
– Kino was used as a gargle and in traditional remedies, like Aboriginal Australian tea for colds.

– Notes:
– A study by Paolo Cabrita discusses the role of kino flow in plant defense mechanisms.
– Hillis W.E. wrote about heartwood and tree exudates.
– Various references provide information on kino, its uses, and sources.
– Aboriginal People and Their Plants by Philip A. Clarke mentions the use of kino.
– Williams Ch. discusses medicinal plants in Australia, including kino.

– References:
– Kino (East Indian, Malabar, Madras, Or Cochin Kino) on chestofbooks.com.

– Further reading:
– Jean H. Langenheim’s book “Plant Resins: Chemistry, Evolution, Ecology, and Ethnobotany.”

– External links:
– Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kino (gum).
– Encyclopedia Americana (1920) entry on Kino (gum).

Kino (botany) (Wikipedia)

Kino is a botanical gum produced by various trees and other plants, particularly bloodwood species of eucalypts (Angophora, Corymbia, Eucalyptus) and Pterocarpus, in reaction to mechanical damage, and which can be tapped by incisions made in the trunk or stalk. Many Eucalyptus, Angophora and Corymbia species are commonly referred to as 'bloodwoods', as the kino usually oozes out a very dark red colour. Kino flow in angiosperms contrasts with resin flow in conifers. The word kino is of Indian origin. In Australia, "red gum" is a term for kino from bloodwood trees and red acaroid resin from Xanthorrhoea spp.

Copious flow of kino from a wound near the base of the trunk of a marri (Corymbia calophylla)
Kino sap solidified inside damaged eucalyptus log
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