A little thread about chloroquine, which you may have heard is being explored as a potential therapy for #COVID19. 1/
Chloroquine is derived from the bark Cinchona trees. There are 23 described species, all native to the tropical Andes which span Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina. (Photo: James Steakley) 
The fever-reducing effects of the bark of these trees was noticed and widely used by multiple Indigenous peoples of the tropical Andes.
Chloroquine is Indigenous knowledge. 3/
Chloroquine is Indigenous knowledge. 3/
Colonizers took this knowledge, samples of bark, and whole plants back to Europe. By the mid-17th century, quinine (chloroquine is its analog) was widely used as an anti-malarial all around the world. 4/
“Quinine” will be familiar to many of you. It’s in tonic water. Now, I’m not going to go as far as to say gin & tonic helps fight #COVID19, but… *sips gin & tonic* 5/
So, as trials move forward, let’s just be mindful of the origins of chloroquine, okay? Okay. 👍🏻 6/6
P.S. If you liked this thread, you might also like this one I did on plant-derived medicines
