BACKGROUND
Ilex paraguariensis St. Hilaire (Aquifoliaceae) ("Mate" or "Yerba mate") is one of the most commercialized plants of South America which grows naturally in NE Argentina, Uruguay, SE Brazil and E Paraguay, where it is also cultivated. It is used to prepare a tea-like beverage (infusions or
The genus Ilex to which mate (Ilex paraguariensis) belongs, consists of more than 500 species. A wide range of metabolites including saponins and phenylpropanoids has been reported from Ilex species. However, despite the previous works on the Ilex metabolites, the metabolic similarities between