Medical Dictionary
Main Entry:
quas·sia Pronunciation:
'kwäsh-(E-)&, 'kwäs-E-& Function:
noun 1 capitalized : a genus of shrubs ortrees (family Simaroubaceae) having pinnate leaves with winged petioles and large racemose scarlet flowers —compare
SIMAROUBA 2 : a drug consisting of the heartwood of various tropical trees (family Simaroubaceae) used in medicine as a bitter tonic and as a remedy forroundworms, as an insecticide, and in brewing as a substitute for hops
Quasási /'kwäs-E/,
Graman (fl 1730), Suriname slave. Quassi was a blackslave who obtained his freedom and practiced as a medicine man. Around 1730 he discovered the medicinal value of the bark and heartwood of certain trees in the treatment of malignant fevers common inSuriname. According to tradition, a traveling Swede bought the secret of the cures and brought specimens of the plants back to Sweden. Linnaeus examined the plants and named the genus
Quassia.Later, the name
quassia was applied to the drug as well.
[bit-er-woo
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