VELVET BEANS WITH REMARKABLE ADVANTAGES

COMMON NAME: Mucuna

LATIN NAME: Mucuna pruriens

ORIGIN: Africa (except northern regions) and tropical Asia

HABITAT: The homeland of Mucuna pruriens is Africa and tropical Asia. Currently, Mucuna has spread almost all over the world. In large quantities, the plant can be found in the Caribbean. It is worth noting that Mucuna pruriens is a plant that was not initially invasive on already cultivated lands. It only became such after the cultivation of the lands of South Florida. In many countries of the world, Mucuna pruriens is planted as a bean crop, capable of perfectly enriching the soil with nitrogen. In Vietnam and Benin, the plant is used as a bio-controller of the well-known Emperor Cylindrical weed.

BOTANICAL INFORMATION: Mucuna pruriens is a type of herbaceous plant from the genus Mucuna, the Fabaceae family.

Mucuna pruriens is a perennial climbing plant. This shrub has long shoots, sometimes reaching a length of more than 15 m. When the shrub is young, it is almost completely covered with fluffy hairs, while adult Mucuna almost does not have them. The leaves of the plant come in different shapes: diamond-shaped, oval, widely oval. They are wrinkled, pointed towards the end. It is interesting that in young shrubs of Mucuna both sides of the leaves are pubescent.

Mucuna pruriens is a flowering plant. Inflorescences are a hanging brush from 16 to 33 cm in length. The flowers on this brush grow perpendicular to the very axis of the inflorescence and have a length of 3 to 6 mm.

The length of the fruits of Mucuna pruriens at the stage of their ripening varies from 5 to 14 cm, and the width is from 1 to 2 cm. Inside the fruit there are up to 7 seeds. They can be both shiny and brown, and even black. They have a flat ellipsoidal shape. Outside, they are covered with rather sharp, like needles, orange hairs. These hairs contain serotonin and mukunin - substances that can cause severe irritation, blisters, dermatitis and, of course, itching when in contact with the skin.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION:
Mucuna pruriens contains alkaloids and the “precursor” of dopamine - the isomer of L-DOPA (levodopa), a small amount of serotonin, nicotinic acid, bufotenin, dimethyltryptamine, 5-MeO-DMT. Mature seeds of Mucuna contain about 3-6% of the amino acid L-DOPA, as well as a small amount of nicotine, serotonin, bufotenin, DMT-n-oxide, beta-carboline, 5-MeO-DMT-n-oxide. The leaves of the plant contain levodopa, dimethyltryptamine, 5-MeO-DMT, DMT-n-oxide.

INTERESTING INFORMATION:

Its popular names “itchy beans” the plant received for a reason. The fact is that the hairs lining the seed capsules and a small spicule on the leaves contain the so-called 5-hydroxytryptamine, or serotonin. It is the substance that causes severe itching in contact with skin. A source of itching is also a cup of flowers. However, stinging hairs and spicules of Mucuna, located on the outside of the capsules, are used as a powder against this very itch.

Its second funny name - "mad beans" - Mucuna pruriens inherited from the local population, once lived in Northern Mozambique. The fact is that after contact with the plant, a person has an obsessive desire to scratch the affected area quickly and energetically.

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