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Cinchona is the name of a genus in Rubiaceae family, large evergreens that can grow over 10 metreFor other uses of "metre" and "meter", see Metre (disambiguation). The metre is the basic unit of length in the International System of Units (SI: Systeme International d'Unites). It is defined as the length of the path travelled by light in absolute vacus tall. There are over 40 species in the genus, many of which have spread from their South American center of origin to countries all over the world (especially IndiaThe Republic of India is a large multicultural country in South Asia, with a population of over one billion. The Indian economy is the fourth largest in the world, in terms of purchasing power parity, and is the world's second-fastest growing economy.). The trees in this genus are the source of a variety of alkaloidAn alkaloid is a nitrogenous organic molecule that has a pharmacological effect on humans and other animals. The name derives from the word alkaline; originally, the term was used to describe any nitrogen-containing base (an amine in modern terms). Alkalos, the most important of which is quinineQuinine CHNO, is a natural alkaloid having antipyretic, antimalarial and analgesic properties. It was formerly used in the prevention of malaria until supplanted by its derivatives quinacrine, chloroquine, and primaquine. Quinine may still be used to trea, an anti-feverAntipyretics are drugs that prevent or reduce fever by lowering the body temperature from a raised state. However, they will not affect the normal body temperature if one does not have fever. Antipyretics cause the hypothalamus to override an interleukin- agent especially useful against malariaMalaria ( Italian: bad air ; formerly called ague or marsh fever in English) is an infectious disease which causes about 500 million infections and 2 million deaths annually, mainly in the tropics and sub-Saharan Africa. The protozoan cause of malaria was. The medicinally important part of the tree is the bark, which is stripped from the tree, dried and powdered. As a medicinal, cinchona bark is also known as Peruvian Bark.

The name of the genus is due to Linnaeus, who named the tree in 1742 after the countess of Cinchona, who was, at the time, popularly attributed for discovering the medicinal properties of the bark. Stories of the medicinal properties of this bark, however, are perhaps noted in journals as far back as the 1560s- 1570s (see the Ortiz link below). By the 1630s (or 1640s, depending on the reference), the bark was being exported to Europe. In the late 1640s, the method of use of the bark was noted in the Schedula Romana, and in 1677 the use of the bark was noted in the London Pharmacopoeia.