About Aglaia rimosa (Blanco) Merr.
Aglaia rimosa (Blanco) Merr. is an evergreen small tree belonging to the plant family Meliaceae. It grows primarily in the wet tropical biome, and can be found in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Taiwan, specifically on Hengchun Peninsula and Orchid Island. In Taiwan, its official common name is Large-leaved aglaia. This name comes from the fact that its leaflets are larger than those of the other two native Taiwanese Aglaia species, Aglaia elaeagnoidea and Aglaia chittagonga. All three of these species have imparipinnate leaves. The flowers of Aglaia rimosa are fragrant, but their scent is lighter than that of Aglaia odorata. The anticancer compound rocaglamide (RocA) was originally extracted from this species by researchers in Taiwan. The Tao people of Orchid Island use Aglaia rimosa to make boat rowlocks and house pillars. This use is likely the origin of the Tao name for the species, "maraboa", which means four limbs towards the sky. The fruit of Aglaia rimosa is edible. It is also an easy-to-cultivate landscape plant, and it contains the anticancer component rocaglamide.
