Abstract: Maca (Lepidium meyenii) is a culinary and medicinal herb belonging to the Brassicaceae family. Maca originates in the high plateaus of the Andes of Peru, and now it has been introduced successfully in Yunnan and other places in China. Maca has been approved as a new food resource and contains lots of bioactive compounds, including polysaccharides, alkaloids, glucosinolates, sterols, and flavonoids. These compounds show a variety of biological activities, such as anti-fatigue, antioxidant, immunoregulatory, fertility-promoting, endocrine regulatory and anti-tumor effects. Maca tubers are also rich in nutrients such as protein, starch and amino acids. This paper briefly reviews the current status of studies on the extraction, purification, quantitative analysis and evaluation of bioactive components in Maca and of studies on Maca starch, which is expected to provide reference for further research and utilization of Maca.

Key words: Maca; bioactive ingredients; starch; biological activity