Pistachia lentiscus chia or latifolia, is a small resinous evergreen shrub or tree, native to the eastern Mediterranean, now grown only on the Greek island of Chios, but earlier known to grow on other Aegean islands, Attica, and elsewhere. The part used is a trunk exudate, the resin obtained from the tree trunk by careful pricking. The resinous gum so obtained has been traditionally used against dyspepsia, gastric pains and peptic ulcers. The principal active constituents appear to be various essential oils of the resin, including mastic oil, lentisc oil, various triterpenes, etc, but the pharmacological activity of the herb has not been sufficiently examined.
- Anti-fungal. In vitro tests of the resin showed significant anti-fungal activity against three important pathogenic fungi: Candida albicans, C tropicalis, and Torulopsis glabrata, a yeast closely related to the Candida species. T glabrata is normally nonpathogenic for humans, but it may cause serious illness to patients with compromised immune systems, and people receiving immunosuppressive drugs, antibiotics and corticosteroids.
- Anti-microbial. The resin showed also significant anti-bacterial activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative pathogens. The gram-positive bacteria tested were Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis; the gram-negative bacteria were Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
- Peptic ulcer curative. Recent investigations in the effectiveness of mastic gum in the treatment of Helicobacter pylori, now known as the principal pathogen involved in gastritis and peptic ulcers, were carried out. A double blind placebo-controlled trial showed complete healing for 70 percent of patients on mastic, as compared to 22 percent for the placebo group. In an in vitro test, the mastic killed both the H pylori and six pure clinical isolates, three sensitive and three resistant to metronidazole, irrespective of the pathogen’s level of susceptibility to the chemical drug. What should be added is that mastic has no known toxicity or side effects.