(Lauraceae) Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers.

Local name(s): ໝາກ ຊາງ, ສີ ໃຄ ຕົ້ນ (mak sang, see kai tohn)

Medicinal use(s): Treatment for smallpox and meningitis.

Part(s) used: root, stem

Field characters: Treelet 4 m tall, fruits dark green, glossy with white dots.

Locality: Xieng Khouang Province, Kham District, Kham Medicinal Biodiversity Preserve, 15 km from Kham town. Ba Tha village, northern edge of MBP at meteorological station site.

Habitat: Broadleaved evergreen submontane forest. Low-statured forest cover along slope.

Altitude: 1499 m asl

Collector(s): D.D. Soejarto, K. Sydara, M. Xayvue

Collection number(s): DDS 14982

Collection Date: May 16, 2014 

Additional data:  

Voucher specimen is in deposit at the Field Museum (F) Herbarium, Chicago, USA under accession no. 2313856.

Synonyms, images, taxonomic description: 

Plants of the World onlineFlora of China Vol. 7 Page 118, 122Global Biodiversity Information Facility Biotik Laos

Useful references: 

Chen, J. et al. Study on Chemical Constituents of The Root of Litsea cubeba.Ⅱ.Chloroform Portion and Ethyl Acetate Portion from Methanol Extract. Chinese J. Pharmaceut. 2010-07. 
Jiang, Z. et al. Comparative Toxicity of Essential Oils of Litsea pungens and Litsea cubeba and Blends of Their Major Constituents against the Cabbage Looper, Trichoplusia ni. J. Agric. Food Chem. 2009; 57(11):4833-4837. 
Kong, D.-G. Et al. The genus Litsea in traditional Chinese medicine: An ethnomedical, phytochemical and pharmacological review. J. Ethnopharmacol. 2015; 164:256–264. Si, L. et al. Chemical Composition of Essential Oils of Litsea cubeba Harvested from Its Distribution Areas in China. Molecules 2012; 17(6):7057-7066. 
Thielmann, J. & Muranyi. Review on the chemical composition of Litsea cubeba essential oils and the bioactivity of its major constituents citral and limonene. J. Essent. Oil Res. 2019; 31(5):361-378. 
Wang, H. & Liu, Y. Chemical composition and antibacterial activity of essential oils from different parts of Litsea cubeba. Chem Biodivers. 2010; 7(1):229-35. 
Yang, K. et al. Bioactivity of essential oil of Litsea cubeba from China and its main compounds against two stored product insects. J. As.-Pacif. Entomol. 2014; 17(3):459-466.