Tonka Bean
Scientific Name(s): Dipteryx odorata (Aubl.) Willd., Dipteryx oppositifolia (Aubl.) Willd.
Common Name(s): Cumaru, Tonco bean, Tonco seed, Tonga bean, Tongo bean, Tonka bean, Tonquin bean, Torquin bean
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com. Last updated on Dec 11, 2023.
Clinical Overview
Use
Tonka bean contains coumarin, which is used as a flavoring in foods and tobacco, as well as a fragrance in cosmetics.
Dosing
There is no clinical evidence to support a specific dosage of tonka bean.
Contraindications
Contraindications have not been determined.
Pregnancy/Lactation
Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking. Avoid use.
Interactions
None well documented.
Adverse Reactions
If ingested in modest amounts, tonka beans have not been reported to produce any serious adverse reactions. Caution is advised in hepatic impairment. Coumarin, as a constituent of tonka beans or tonka extract, is prohibited from use in food by the FDA.
Toxicology
Little information is available.
Scientific Family
- Fabaceae (bean)
Botany
Members of the genus Dipteryx are native to South America (Venezuela, Guyana, and Brazil), as typically large trees bearing single-seeded fruits about 3 to 5 cm in length. The fruit is dried with the seed removed. If not processed further, the fruit is sometimes known as "black beans." The beans are macerated in rum and then air-dried, resulting in the formation of a crystalline deposit of coumarin making the seeds appear frosted.
Tonka beans are rounded at one end and bluntly pointed at the other. The bean is black and deeply wrinkled longitudinally, with a very fragrant odor and an aromatic, bitter taste.Trease 1978, USDA 2017
History
Tonka beans contain coumarin, which is used in the food, cosmetic, and related industries to impart a pleasant fragrance to cakes, preserves, tobacco, soaps, and liqueurs.Duke 2003, Lewis 1977 The seeds are sometimes cured in rum.Mabberley 1987 However, according to the Food and Drug Administration (Code of Federal Regulations), food containing any coumarin as a constituent of tonka beans or tonka extracts is deemed impure.ECFR 2007 Synthetic coumarin has, to some extent, replaced the natural product.
South American natives mix the seed paste with milk to make a thick, nutty-flavored beverage. Extracts of the plant have been used in traditional medicine as a tonic and to treat cramps and nausea. Seed extracts have been administered rectally for schistosomiasis in China. The fruit has also been said to have aphrodisiac properties.
Chemistry
Coumarin is present at 1% to 3% by weight of the fermented seed, but some strains may contain up to 10%.Duke 2003, FDA 2016, Lewis 1977 Umbelliferone (7-hydroxycoumarin) has been isolated from the seed.
Tonka beans contain 25% fat containing unsaponifiable sitosterin and stigmasterin, and a larger amount of starch.Trease 1978 Coumarin has an odor reminiscent of vanillin. A number of related isoflavones have been isolated from the heartwood, including odoratin and dipteryxin. The bark exudes a resin that contains lupeol, betulin, and other minor components.
Crude extracts of callus and roots of D. odorata were analyzed by high-pressure liquid chromatography to detect and quantify isoflavone contents. The structures of 2 isoflavones were elucidated as 7-hydroxy-4′,6-dimethoxyisoflavone and 3′,7-dihydroxy-4′,6-dimethoxyisoflavone. The production of dry biomass of 7-hydroxy-4′,6-dimethoxyisoflavone in cultured callus was 4.12 mg/g, approximately 11-fold higher than the amount accumulated in roots of D. odorata wild-growing plants.Januario 2005
Purification of an ethyl acetate-soluble fraction of the methanol extract of the seeds of D. odorata using a quinone reductase induction assay to monitor fractionation led to the isolation of the following 11 compounds: dipeteryxic acid, 5 methoxyxanthocercin A, isoliquiritigenin, 6,4′-dihydroxy-3′-methoxyaurone, sulfuretin, balanophonin, butin, eriodictyol, 7-hydroxychromone, 7,3′-dihydroxy-8,4′-dimethoxyisoflavone, and (−)-lariciresinol.Jang 2003
Uses and Pharmacology
There are no well-controlled studies describing the pharmacologic effects of tonka beans or their components. Coumarin is toxic when ingested in high doses.
Synthetic coumarin has been developed to replace the natural product in some cases. Warfarin (eg, Coumadin), a substituted coumarin, is a potent anticoagulant used in human therapeutics and rodenticides.(Claus 1970)
Compounds isolated from the tonka bean have been studied in cancer chemoprevention and for acaricidal activity.
Cancer chemoprevention
Animal data
Isoliquiritigenin isolated from D. odorata, which is also present in licorice and shallots, induced quinone reductase activity in Hepa 1c1c7 cells and inhibited prenoplastic lesion formation in a carcinogen-treated mouse mammary organ culture assay by 76% inhibition at 10 mcg/mL.(Cuendet 2006, Jang 2003)
Quinone reductase activity was induced in a dose-dependent manner in the concentration range of 2 to 30 mcM, with a maximum of 7-fold induction at the highest concentration tested.(Cuendet 2006)
Quinone reductase elevation with in vitro and in vivo systems correlates with induction of other protective phase 2 enzymes and provides a reasonable biomarker for the potential chemoprotective effect of test agents against cancer initiation.
In another study, the potential of all identified isolates to induce quinone reductase activity of Hepa 1c1c7 cells were evaluated. Isoliquiritigenin exhibited the most potent quinone reductase activity. 6,4′-Dihydroxy-3′-methoxyaurone, sulfuretin, and balanophonin also induced quinone reductase activity.(Cuendet 2006)
Acaricidal activity
Animal data
A cyclohexane extract of tonka beans was toxic to the common pyroglyphid house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinies, showing a dose-dependent acaricidal effect. Coumarin was identified as the active component.
After 24 hours, the median effective dose for coumarin 0.032 g/m 2 was very similar to that of benzyl benzoate 0.025 g/m2, a well-known and widely used acaricidal product.(Gleye 2003)
Other uses
The crude extract of D. odorata induced changes to the uterus and ovarian function of prepubescent rats compared to controls. Morphological and weight changes were also observed in the pituitary and adrenal glands. Estrogen-like compounds produced by D. odorata were implicated as the likely cause.(Rodrigues 2018)
Dosing
There is no clinical evidence to support a specific dosage of tonka bean.
Pregnancy / Lactation
Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking. Avoid use.
Interactions
Case reports are lacking.
Adverse Reactions
If ingested in modest amounts, tonka beans have not been reported to produce any serious adverse reactions. Caution is advised in hepatic impairment.García 2012 Coumarin, as a constituent of tonka beans or tonka extract, is prohibited from use in human food by the FDA.ECFR 2007
Toxicology
Dietary feeding of coumarin to rats and dogs has been associated with extensive hepatic damage, growth retardation, and testicular atrophy.Duke 2003 Large oral doses of the fluid extract may result in cardiac paralysis.Duke 2003 The median lethal dose (oral) of coumarin is 680 mg/kg in rats and 202 mg/kg in guinea pigs.Windholz 1983
References
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This product may adversely interact with certain health and medical conditions, other prescription and over-the-counter drugs, foods, or other dietary supplements. This product may be unsafe when used before surgery or other medical procedures. It is important to fully inform your doctor about the herbal, vitamins, mineral or any other supplements you are taking before any kind of surgery or medical procedure. With the exception of certain products that are generally recognized as safe in normal quantities, including use of folic acid and prenatal vitamins during pregnancy, this product has not been sufficiently studied to determine whether it is safe to use during pregnancy or nursing or by persons younger than 2 years of age.
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