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Una de Gato (cat's claw) is well-known in South America and is rapidly gaining popularity in North America as a remarkable tonic herb. It is now considered on par with the world's foremost immune-fortifying herbs such as echinacea, golden seal, pau d'arco, garlic and Siberian ginseng. Inside Una de Gato, scientists have found alkaloids that enhance the immune system; its quinovic acid glycosides also back up the immune system.
Una de Gato or Cat's Claw is a large woody vine that is indigenous to the Amazon Rainforest and other tropical areas of South and Central. It's name is derived from the hook-like thorns that grow along the vine that resemble a claw of a cat. Cat's Claw (U. tomentosa) has been used medicinally for at least 2,000 years. The most attention to date has been on the oxindole alkaloids found in the bark and roots of Cat's Claw, which have been documented to stimulate the immune system. With so many documented uses of this important rainforest plant, it is not surprising that it came to the attention of western researchers and scientists. Worldwide research done on this powerful herb has led scientists to patent many of the single chemicals found in it for medical use. In May of 1994, the World Health Organization sponsored the First International Conference on Cat's Claw in Geneva Switzerland. At the conference, Cat's Claw received official recognition as a medicinal plant and it was pointed out that not since quinine was discovered in the bark of a Peruvian tree in the 17th century, has any other rainforest plant ever prompted such worldwide attention.
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