Lepidium meyenii or maca is an herbaceous biennial plant of the Brassicaceae family native to the high Andes of Peru It was found at the Meseta de Bombón (plateau) close to Lake Junin 1 It is grown for its fleshy hypocotyl (fused with a taproot ), which is used as a root vegetable , typically dried to a powder or flour, and a medicinal herb , an aphrodisiac or endocrine supporter.

VILLEGAS, L.F.; GASCO, M.; HIDALGO, J.; XUE, J.; CHEN, S-L.; GONZALES, G.F. Biological Effects and Safety of Lepidium meyenii, Maca (variety red), a Plant from the Highlands of Peru. Disponível em: %20F.%20Gonzales%20%20Biological %20Effects%20of% Acesso em 05 de abril de 2010.

QUIROS, C.F.; EPPERSON, A. JINGUO Hu, AND MIGUEL HOLLE. Physiological Studies and Determination of Chromosome Number In: Maca, Lepidium Meyenii (Brassicaceae). ZHENG, B.L. Effect of Aqueous Extract from Lepidium meyenii on Mouse Behavior in Forced Swimming Test. Quality Management of Nutraceuticals. American Chemical Society, 2002.

The one Maercks used on Klein is called Amniofill, one of Mimedx's newest offering, which is used on-label to treat non-healing wounds and scarring, but doctors like Maercks are experimenting with the possibilities in cosmetic procedures, too. ADEBIYI, A.; ADEBIYI, P.G.; PRASAD, R.N.V. Pregnancy outcomes following pre- and post-implantation exposure of Sprague-Dawley rats to benzyl isothiocyanate. Food and Chemical Toxicology, v. 42, n. 5, p. 715-720, 2004.

Mimedx declined to comment on this story, so we weren't able to ask them our big question: Do the women who voluntarily give their placentas know all the places they might go? But Brenden Parent, director of applied bioethics at NYU, says that consent and safety are the big issues at play. He says that you cross an ethical line when people donate their materials, thinking they're doing something altruistic for the sake of health or medicine of another individual, when really that material is being used for a profit." Mimedx, for the record, is reportedly worth $2 billion and sells products like Amniofill for a wide range of uses, including off-label cosmetic procedures.

A planta Lepidium meyenii é nativa na Região dos Andes, no Peru, mas pode ser encontrada na Bolívia, Colômbia, Chile e Argentina. Entretanto, a espécie Lepidium meyenii Walp. é a única domesticada e primariamente cultivada nas altas montanhas dos Andes Centrais Peruano em torno de 2000 a.C., em altitudes entre 3.500 a 4.800 metros (CÁRDENAS, 1999; CÁRDENAS, 2005).

MARIN-BRAVO, M. Histology of Maca, Lepidium meyenii Walpers (Brassicaceae). Revista Per Biologia, v. 10, n. 1, p. 101-108, 2003. Online ISSN1727-9933. BUSTOS-OBREGON, E.; YUCRA, S; GONZALES, G.F Lepidium meyenii (Maca) reduces spermatogenic damage induced by a single dose of malathion in mice. Blackwell Publishing: Asian Journal Andrology, v.7, n.1, p.71-6, 2005.

DREWES, S.E.; GEORGE, J.; KHAN, F. Recent findings on natural products with erectile-dysfunction activity Medical aspects of some steroidal natural products. Phytochemistry, v. 62, p. 1019-1025, 2003. MUMMENHOFF, K.; POLSTER, A.; MUHLHAUSEN, A.; THEIßEN, G. Lepidium as a model system for studying the evolution of fruit development in Brassicaceae. REVIEW PAPER. Journal of Experimental Botany, v. 60, n. 5, p. 1503-1513, 2009.

As you might assume, Hollywood doctors have also gotten involved in the world of stem cells, but it's a lot more conservative — at least among the procedures we know about. RAMIREZ, A.R.A. Biotenologia y Metabolitos Secundarios em Lipidium peruvianum Chacón. Maca”. TESE. Facultad de Ciencias Biologicas - E.A.P. de Ciencias Biologicas. Universidade Nacional Mayor de San Marcos - Peru. pp. 115, 2002.

The human placenta Dr. Maercks uses in treatments like Klein's is sterilized through a secret process called pureon” by its manufacturer, Mimedx The Marietta, Georgia-based biotech company specializes in regenerative vigor extreme funciona mesmo and therapeutic biologics,” like skin grafts and allografts, which are basically sheets of processed skin, placenta, or umbilical cord tissue that pack the growth factors that turn on stem cells.

La Maca Peruana es un alimiento altamente nutritivo que beneficia a millones de personas alrededor del mundo. Aun asi, la disponibilidad mundial de este alimiento, así como sus raices genéticas naturales, está sufriendo un ataque directo. Muchas de la cosechas de Maca Peruana de 2014 han sido tomadas ilegalmente en Peru. Nuevas producciones agrícolas en China están produciendo ahora dos veces mas Maca (de calidad mucho peor) que en Peru. Además companías chinas tienen 7 patentes de GMO para la Maca.