About Aegle marmelos (L.) Corrêa
Aegle marmelos (L.) Corrêa is a deciduous shrub or small to medium-sized tree. It can grow up to 13 metres (43 feet) tall, with slender drooping branches and a rather open, irregular crown. This species is native across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, and is cultivated throughout Sri Lanka, Tamilnadu, Thailand, and Malesia. Studies indicate that bael fruit originated in India, specifically in the Eastern Ghats and in the central to northern parts of the country. In India, bael fruit is grown in Uttar Pradesh, eastern Indian states including Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Orissa, as well as in the Himalayan foothills, the Deccan plateau, and the Indo-Gangetic plains. Aegle marmelos grows naturally in dry, open forests on hills and plains, at altitudes ranging from 0–1,200 m (0–3,937 ft), in regions with a mean annual rainfall of 570–2,000 mm (22–79 in). In India, Aegle marmelos has a reputation for being able to grow in locations where other trees cannot. It adapts to a wide range of soil conditions, tolerating a pH range of 5–10, and can withstand waterlogging. It also has an unusually wide temperature tolerance, growing in conditions from −7–48 °C (19–118 °F). A pronounced dry season is required for the tree to produce fruit. Aegeline is a known constituent of bael leaf, and is consumed as a dietary supplement intended to cause weight loss. In 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Defense Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, and Hawaii state and local health officials identified an outbreak of 97 cases of acute non-viral hepatitis that first emerged in Hawaii. Seventy-two of these affected people reported using the dietary supplement OxyElite Pro, which contains aegeline and was manufactured by Dallas-based company USPlabs. The FDA had previously taken action against an earlier formulation of OxyElite Pro because it contained dimethylamylamine, a stimulant the FDA determined was an adulterant when included in dietary supplements. Dimethylamylamine can cause high blood pressure, and lead to heart attacks, seizures, psychiatric disorders, and death. USPlabs later reformulated OxyElite Pro without informing the FDA or submitting the required safety data for the new dietary ingredient. Doctors at the Liver Center at The Queen's Medical Center investigating the first Hawaii cases reported that between May and September 2013, eight previously healthy people came to the center with drug-induced liver injury. All of these patients had used the reformulated OxyElite Pro, purchased from different sources, with different lot numbers and expiration dates, at doses within the manufacturer's recommendation. Three of these patients developed fulminant liver failure, two underwent urgent liver transplantation, and one died. The number of these cases ultimately rose to 44 in Hawaii. In January 2014, leaders from the Queen's Liver Center told state lawmakers they were almost certain aegeline was the agent responsible for these cases, but the mechanism through which aegeline may damage the liver has not been identified. The leaves, bark, roots, fruits, and seeds of Aegle marmelos are used in traditional medicine to treat various illnesses.
