evidence: Chemists found that the seeds in the sweetgum fruit contain significant amounts of shikimic acid, the starting material used to produce the main antiviral agent in Tamiflu that blocks the replication of the flu virus. Thomas Poon, Ph.D., revealed, "Sweetgum balls have lots of potential, but a new process uses genetically modified e. coli (intestinal bacteria), which can be efficiently grown in labs to produce shikimic acid." [...] In the mature Sweetgum tree (Liquidambar Styraciflua), the fruit emerges as a green seedpod that later dries into a brown mace-like ball. The seeds that are rich in shikimic acid. And to get the seeds before they disperse, you have to get the sweetgum balls while they’re green and still hanging on the tree. [...] Shikimic Acid Rich Sweetgum Ball Tincture Recipe