Mespilodaphne quixos
{{Short description|Species of tree}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Ocotea quixos 1.JPG
|image_caption = Dried ispinku (O. quixos) cupules
|status = LC
|status_system = IUCN3.1
|genus = Mespilodaphne
|species = quixos
|authority = (Lam.) Rohwer
|synonyms =
- Acrodiclidium cinnamomoides {{small|(Mutis ex Kunth) Mez}}
- Borbonia peruviana {{small|Juss. ex Steud.}}
- Laurus cinnamomoides {{small|Mutis ex Kunth}}
- Laurus quixos {{small|Lam.}} (basionym)
- Licaria quixos {{small|(Lam.) Kosterm.}}
- Mespilodaphne pretiosa {{small|Nees & Mart., nom. superfl.}}
- Mespilodaphne pretiosa var. angustifolia {{small|Nees, nom. superfl.}}
- Misanteca quixos {{small|(Lam.) Lundell}}
- Nectandra cinnamomoides {{small|(Mutis ex Kunth) Nees}}
- Ocotea cinnamomoides {{small|(Mutis ex Kunth) Kosterm.}}
- Ocotea quixos {{small|(Lam.) Kosterm.}}
|synonyms_ref = {{cite web |title=Mespilodaphne quixos (Lam.) Rohwer |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:77198017-1 |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=22 May 2025}}
}}
Mespilodaphne quixos is a species of evergreen tree in the family Lauraceae, native to Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru. It is one of the South American trees with a cinnamon-like aroma and is used as a spice called ispinku in Southern QuechuaTeofilo Laime Ajacopa, Diccionario Bilingüe Iskay simipi yuyayk'ancha, La Paz, 2007 (Quechua-Spanish dictionary) or ishpinku in Kichwa (Hispanicized spellings ishpingo, eshpingo).{{cite journal|title=Ocotea quixos, American cinnamon|journal=Journal of Ethnopharmacology|author=Plutarco Naranjo|year=1981|volume=4|issue=2|pages=233–236|doi=10.1016/0378-8741(81)90038-6|pmid=7311599}}
It is native to lowland and foothill rainforests in the western Amazon Basin below 1000 meters elevation.
Growth
Ispinku seeds have a diameter of almost 1 inch{{cite web|author=steve starnes |url=http://www.hawaiiantropicalplants.com/spice.html |title=Hawaiian Tropical Plant Nursery: Spice & Beverage Plants |publisher=Hawaiiantropicalplants.com |date= |accessdate=2012-08-05}} and grow in soil which is mildly acidic. It grows at an annual rate of roughly 6 inches for the first three years of its life.
After flowering starts, the flowers are produced once every two years.{{cite web|url=http://www.experience-essential-oils.com/ocotea-essential-oil.html |title=Ocotea Essential Oil - A Gift from the Amazon Basin of Ecuador |publisher=Experience-essential-oils.com |date= |accessdate=2012-08-05}}
Use as a flavouring
The bark is used to produce 'Ecuadorian' (or 'American') cinnamon which bears some resemblance to common cinnamon (which also comes from a tree in this family).{{cite web|url=http://sangay.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/ecuador-culinary-tradition-colada-morada-con-guaguas-de-pan/ |title=Ecuador culinary tradition: Colada Morada con Guaguas de Pan « Galapagos Islands and Ecuador Travel Blog |publisher=Sangay.wordpress.com |date= 2010-11-29|accessdate=2012-08-05}} The tree is known in Quechua languages as ispinku, which specifically refers to the flowers, and more recently as Flor de Canela.{{cite journal|title=Food Chemistry - Chemical composition and biological activities of Ishpingo essential oil, a traditional Ecuadorian spice from Ocotea quixos (Lam.) Kosterm. (Lauraceae) flower calices |doi=10.1016/j.foodchem.2003.07.019 |volume=85 |issue=3 |journal=Food Chemistry |pages=415–421|year=2004 |last1=Bruni |first1=Renato |last2=Medici |first2=Alessandro |last3=Andreotti |first3=Elisa |last4=Fantin |first4=Carlo |last5=Muzzoli |first5=Mariavittoria |last6=Dehesa |first6=Marco |last7=Romagnoli |first7=Carlo |last8=Sacchetti |first8=Gianni |hdl=11381/1449234 |hdl-access=free }}
The taste of Ecuadorian cinnamon is thought to come from the presence of methyl cinnamate and trans-cinnamaldehyde which are also found in the essential oils which come from the flower calices of the plant.
Some reports show it has been used as a flavouring since Incaic times, and modern Ecuadorians still use this spice during general cooking and the production of food for rituals. Offerings to family ancestors for the Day of the Dead for example. These include food such as colada morada (purple pudding) and beverages such as the alcoholic drink alajua, both of which require the use of ispinku as a key ingredient.
Medicinal uses
The oils have previously been used in the traditional medicine of some Amazonian tribes for their anti-inflammatory properties and some peer-reviewed data also support this theory.
Investigation of trans-cinnamaldehyde showed that it significantly reduced the production of NO by macrophages (cells of the immune system), which is something that normally occurs during inflammation. The same study of methyl cinnamate did not show this effect.{{cite journal|title=Ocotea quixos Lam. essential oil: In vitro and in vivo investigation on its anti-inflammatory properties|url=http://www.compassionateconsulting.net/uploads/Ocotea_quixos_PDF_article_in_Fitoterapia_try_2.pdf|author1=Vigilio Ballabeni|author2=Massimiliano Tognolini|author3=Carmine Giorgio|author4=Simona Bertoni|author5=Renato Bruni|author6=Elisabetta Barocelli|name-list-style=amp|journal=Fitoterapia|year=2010|volume=81|issue=4|pages=289–95|doi=10.1016/j.fitote.2009.10.002|pmid=19825398|access-date=2011-07-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215203128/http://compassionateconsulting.net/uploads/Ocotea_quixos_PDF_article_in_Fitoterapia_try_2.pdf|archive-date=2012-12-15|url-status=dead}}
It has also been shown that this oil can reduce the chance of blood clot formation by preventing platelet aggregation in the blood.{{cite journal|title=Pharmacological Research - Antiplatelet and antithrombotic activities of essential oil from wild Ocotea quixos (Lam.) Kosterm. (Lauraceae) calices from Amazonian Ecuador |doi=10.1016/j.phrs.2006.09.009 |pmid=17079160 |volume=55 |issue=1 |journal=Pharmacological Research |pages=23–30|year=2007 |last1=Ballabeni |first1=Vigilio |last2=Tognolini |first2=Massimiliano |last3=Bertoni |first3=Simona |last4=Bruni |first4=Renato |last5=Guerrini |first5=Alessandra |last6=Rueda |first6=Gabriela Moreno |last7=Barocelli |first7=Elisabetta }}