[Historical research of cinchona cultivation in Japan (1): first trial cultivation in Japan in the early Meiji period recorded in Nomutenmatsu].

Cinchona is known as a magic bullet for malaria and its cultivation was dominated by Java on a global scale in the 19th century. In 1875, in accordance with a suggestion by Takeaki Enomoto, the Meiji government made a request to the Dutch government that cinchona seedlings be distributed to Japan. In response to that request, in 1876, 42 cinchona seedlings arrived in Yokohama from Java. It was the first time cinchona seedlings were shipped to Japan. After that, cinchona seeds and seedlings were shipped to Japan a total of three times between 1876 and 1883. The seeds shipped in 1878 were raised at the Nishigahara Agricultural Experiment Station and then planted at nine places in both Okinawa and Kagoshima Prefectures in 1882. The planter was Yasusada Tashiro. However, all of the planted seedlings had died by 1884. The first national farming plan of cinchona in Japan ended in failure. These matters were found in documents included in Nomutenmatsu compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce of the Meiji government in 1888.

[Historical research of cinchona cultivation in Japan (Part 3)--A proposal to introduce cinchona by Takeaki Enomoto].

We attempted to determine how one of the most valuable medicinal plants, cinchona, was brought to and cultivated in Japan. In the course of the study, we report that cinchona seedlings were brought to Japan for the first time in 1876, as per Takeaki Enomoto's proposal to the Meiji government. We also examine the details of his proposal in effort to clarify that the written proposal was submitted between February and March, 1874, and considered his motives leading to the submission. Cinchona is a very important medicinal plant that has saved human lives. However, there was no proof that Takeaki Enomoto's proposal made it introduction to Japan possible, nor was there any evidence that its cultivation was attempted. In addition, it was not clear that the details of the above has been found in document including the Nomutenmatsu (agricultural report published by the Meiji Government). It is significant that the details has been clarified by our series of studies not only from the standpoint of the history of pharmacy, but also from the accounts of the great predecessors involved, such as Takeaki Emonoto and Yasusade Tashiro.