Agarwood

This article is about the resinous heartwood from Aquilaria trees. For the trees which produce agarwood, see Aquilaria.

Agarwood or just Agar is the resinous heartwood from Aquilaria trees, large evergreens native to southeast Asia. The trees occasionally become infected with mold and begin to produce an aromatic resin in response to this attack.

As the infection grows, it results in a very rich, dark resin within the heartwood. It is this precious resinous wood that is treasured around the world.

The resin is commonly called gaharu, jinko, aloeswood, agarwood, or oud, and is valued in many cultures for its distinctive fragrance, thus it is used for incense and perfumes.

One of the reasons for the relative rarity and high cost of agarwood is the depletion of the wild resource. Since 1995 Aquilaria malaccensis, the primary source, has been listed in Appendix II by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. In 2004 all Aquilaria species were listed in Appendix II; however, a number of countries have outstanding reservations regarding that listing.

Professor Sulaiman Bin Doss Mohamed

History Agarwood or eaglewood is the most expensive wood in the world. It is valued in many cultures for its distinctive fragrance, and used extensively in incense and perfumes. Agarwood is the occasional product of two to four genera in the family Thymelaeaceae, with Aquilaria agallocha , Aquilaria crassna and Aquilaria malaccensis the best known species. The wood is formed as a result of the tree's immune response to fungal infection. The odor of agarwood is complex and pleasing, with few or no similar natural analogues. As a result, agarwood and its essential oil gained great cultural and religious significance in ancient civilizations around the world.

Agarwood or eaglewood is the most expensive wood in the world. It is valued in many cultures for its distinctive fragrance, and used extensively in incense and perfumes. Agarwood is the occasional product of two to four genera in the family Thymelaeaceae, with Aquilaria agallocha , Aquilaria crassna and Aquilaria malaccensis the best known species. The wood is formed as a result of the tree's immune response to fungal infection. The odor of agarwood is complex and pleasing, with few or no similar natural analogues. As a result, agarwood and its essential oil gained great cultural and religious significance in ancient civilizations around the world.

Etymology

Agarwood is known under many names in different cultures: • Both agarwood and its resin distillate /extracts are known as Oud in Arabic (literally wood) and used to describe agarwood in nations and areas of Islamic faith. Western perfumers may also use agarwood essential oil under the name "oud" or"oude" • In Europe it went by the name of Lignum aquila, or eagle-wood, presumably because of its appearance. • Another name is Lignum aloes or Aloeswood. This is potentially confusing, since a genus Aloe exists (unrelated), which also has its uses, as in the "aloe" brought by Nicodemus to embalm the body of Jesus which was from the genus Aloë. • The Malaysia and Indonesian name is "gaharu". • In Vietnamese, it is known as trầm hương. • In Hindi,(India) it is known as "agar".

Formation

Agarwood

There are fifteen species in of the Aquilaria genus and eight are known to produce agarwood. In theory agarwood can be produced from all members; however, until recently it was primarily produced from A. malaccensis. A. agallocha and A. secundaria are synonyms for A. malaccensis. A. crassna and A. sinensis are the other two members of the genus that are usually harvested.

Formation of agarwood occurs in the trunk and roots of trees that have been infected by a parasitc ascomycetous mould, Phaeoacremonium parasitica, a dematiaceous (dark-walled) fungus. As a response, the tree produces a resin high in volatile organic compounds that aids in suppressing or retarding the fungal growth. While the unaffected wood of the tree is relatively light in colour, the resin dramatically increases the mass and density of the affected wood, changing its colour from a pale beige to dark brown or black. In natural forest only about 7% of the trees are infected by the fungus. A common method in artificial forestry is to inoculate all the trees with the fungus.

High quality resin comes from a tree's natural immune response to a fungal attack. It is commonly known as agarwood #1 (first quality). An inferior resin is created using forced methods where aquilaria trees are deliberately wounded, leaving them more susceptible to a fungal attack. This is commonly called agarwood #2.The grade is Super King, 4 Super, 3 Super, 2 Super, Super and A.

Odour profile

Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable, especially those that may be related to generating commercial sales and medicinal use. Please check for inaccuracies, and modify and cites sources as needed.

A natural perfume oil obtained by CO2 extraction from agarwood retains the odor of "true" agarwood: a cepes (mushroom) and carrot seed accord, which can be roughly approximated by combining ambergris, jasmine, earth and wood notes. Lightly infected wood, sometimes cultivated, produces an (allegedly) inferior oil with a vetiver / sandalwood / patchouli character.

Trade and Use

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Professor.Sulaiman Bin Doss Mohamed research about agarwood genetic

Also known as aloeswood, eaglewood and gaharu, agarwood is a highlyprized wood and is used primarily for medicine, perfume and incense. Agarwood has been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years in traditional East Asian medicine. Agarwood perfumes comprise agarwood oil mixed with a carrier such as sandalwood oil. 'Attar oil,' for example, is a water-based perfume containing agarwood oil that is normally used by Muslims to lace prayer clothes. Agarwood essences have also recently been used to fragrance soaps and shampoos. Agarwood is used in Arab countries (especially in the Persian Gulf) as incense. In Japan, it is used in Kōdō or "incense ceremony" along with Sandalwood. Agarwood (Aloeswood) was used by the Ancient Egyptians for embalming dead bodies. Agarwood extract is rarely used in western perfumery due to its prohibitive price. The TRAFFIC report Heart of the Matter revealed that over 700 tons of agarwood from one species alone, Aquilaria malaccensis, was reported in international trade in 1997, with Indonesia and Malaysia being the main exporters. From 1995 to 1997, Indonesia reported exporting 920 tons. Peninsular Malaysia recorded over 340 tons exported during the same period. This does not include export figures for Sarawak, which reached nearly 530 tons in 1998 alone. Due to its rarity and the high demand for it, agarwood and agarwood extracts bring high prices. Indiscriminate cutting of trees of the relevant species in the hope of finding agarwood has resulted in depletion of wild trees. One species has been CITES-listed. Projects are currently underway in some countries in southeast Asia to infect cultivated Aquilaria trees artificially to produce agarwood in a sustainable manner. In the past, Malaysia (formerly Malaya) was a popular spot for traders to seek perfumes. The native perfumes produced from real woods and petals from Malaya successfully attracted traders from all over the world, especially from Portugal and Britain. However, the popularity of agarwood in Malaysia faded after the colonization of Malacca. Today, gaharu (Malay word for agarwood) is becoming more popular in Malaysia. This is due to a movement by Professor Sulaiman Bin Doss Mohammed Khan, originating in Muar Johor, to create awareness of the precious sources of agarwood in Malaysia. This kind of awareness is vital as Malaysia is rich in agarwood, deep in the jungles, mainly in Terengganu and Pahang. The government of Malaysia recently financed some agencies to continue research and development of gaharu. The goal is also to increase the trade of agarwood in Malaysia to levels such as those during the Malacca Sultanate centuries ago. Populations of eight species of Aquilaria have already declined to the point where they are considered threatened according to the IUCN Red List Categories. Of these, A. malaccensis is the only species protected from international trade under CITES, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The species was listed in Appendix II of CITES in 1995. However, even this level of protection is facing difficulties. Under CITES, exports of the species must meet certain and specific biological and legal requirements. In many cases, the information needed to determine whether these criteria can be met is woefully inadequate or altogether absent. In many cases, exports are approved with very little information on the status of the species and knowing whether exploitation is within sustainable levels.

Agarwood Detail

For more detail, please call Professor Sulaiman Bin Doss Mohamed at:
Telephone No:'
+60126020313,
+6069512230 ,
E-mail:sulaimandoss@yahoo.com
Website:
http://wiki.riteme.site/wiki/Agarwood http://sulaimandoss.tripod.com/dors http://www.geocities.com/sulaimandoss
Address:
174-21, Lorong Rambutan,
Jalan Tunku Bendahara,
84000, Muar, Johore,
Malaysia.

Practitioners Around the World

It is recommended by experienced practitioners for providing motivation and devotion to meditation. It is supposed to facilitate communication with the transcendent, refreshes the mind and body, drives away evil spirits, takes away exhaustion, removes impurities, expels negative energies, brings alertness, calms the nervous system, relieves anxiety, invokes a sense of strength and peace, creating natural order in your sacred living areas, enhances cerebral functioning, remedies nervous disorders such as neurosis, obsessive behavior, etc., and it is a companion in solitude. Chinese, Tibetan, Ayurvedic and Unanai physicians have all used Agarwood in their practice to treat various diseases as well as mental illness.

Characteristics of Agarwood

The cheapest Oud oil is distilled from agarwood that costs as little as $20 a kilogram, while the finest Oud can be distilled from agarwood that costs as much as $7,000 per kilogram (2008). Yves Saint Laurent uses Agarwood in perfume products. Aloeswood/Oudh oil is not commonly known in the West.

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Hydro-Distillation Process in Extracting Of Agarwood Essential Oil

Aloeswood Medicinal Uses

This section is unverified and lacks source citations. Proceed with caution.

Stimulant, tonic, nausea, nerves, regurgitation, weakness in the elderly, aphrodisiac, diuretic, relieves epilepsy, antimicrobial, carminative (gas), smallpox, rheumatism, illness during and after childbirth, relieves spasms in digestive and respiratory systems, shortness of breath, chills, general pains, lowers fever, asthma, cancer, colic, digestive and bronchial complaints, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, cirrhosis of the liver and as a director or focuser for other medicines. It has also been used as a treatment for lung and stomach tumors.

Grade Of Agarwood

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Reactor

1. AQUILARIA SUBINTEGRA--Found at Thailand
2. AQUILARIA CRASSNA--Found at Malaysia,Thailand, Cambodia
3. AQUILARIA MALACCENSIS--Found at Malaysia,Thailand, India
4. AQUILARIA APICULATA--Found at Philippines
5. AQUILARIA BAILLONIL--Found at Thailand, Combodia
6. AQUILARIA BANEONSIS--Found at Vietnam
7. AQUILARIA BECCARIAN--Found at Indonesia
8. AQUILARIA BRACHYANTHA--Found at Malaysia
9. AQUILARIA CUMINGIANA--Found at Indonesia, Malaysia
10.AQUILARIA FILARIA--Found at Nuegini, China
11.AQUILARIA GRANDIFLORA--Found at China
12.AQUILARIA HILATA--Found at Indonesia, Malaysia
13.AQUILARIA KHASIANA--Found at India
14.AQUILARIA MICROCAPA--Found at Indonesia, Malaysia
15.AQUILARIA ROSTRATA--Found at Malaysia
16.AQUILARIA SINENSIS--Found at China

External links

• Etymology of agarwood and aloe
• [1], photographs of the resin, agarwood and aquilaria
• Article by David Oller & Kyozaburo Nakata
• Interesting article that describes the challenge of sourcing agarwood.
• Hong Kong herbarium factsheet of Aquilaria sinensis
• "Sustainable Agarwood Production in Aquilaria Trees" at the University of Minnesota
• Rainforest project
• The Oriscent Agarwood Guide
• CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna]]