Cultural significance of medicinal plant families and species among Quechua farmers in Apillapampa,Bolivia

Ethnopharmacological relevance

Medicinal plant use was investigated in Apillapampa, a community of subsistence farmers located in the semi-arid Bolivian Andes.

Aim of the study

The main objectives were to identify the culturally most significant medicinal plant families and species in Apillapampa.

Materials and methods

A total of 341 medicinal plant species was inventoried during guided fieldtrips and transect sampling. Data on medicinal uses were obtained from fifteen local Quechua participants, eight of them being traditional healers.

Results

Contingency table and binomial analyses of medicinal plants used versus the total number of inventoried species per family showed that Solanaceae is significantly overused in traditional medicine, whereas Poaceae is underused. Also plants with a shrubby habitat are significantly overrepresented in the medicinal plant inventory, which most likely relates to their year-round availability to people as compared to most annual plants that disappear in the dry season. Our ranking of medicinal species according to cultural importance is based upon the Quality Use Agreement Value (QUAV) index we developed. This index takes into account (1) the average number of medicinal uses reported for each plant species by participants; (2) the perceived quality of those medicinal uses; and (3) participant consensus.

Conclusions

According to the results, the QUAV index provides an easily derived and valid appraisal of a medicinal plant's cultural significance.     

Ethnobotany, biochemistry and pharmacology of Minthostachys (Lamiaceae)

AIMS OF THE STUDY: The South American mint genus Minthostachys is of great importance in the Andes as a medicinal, aromatic, culinary and commercial essential oil plant. After decades of taxonomic confusion and virtual indeterminability of specimens, new systematic and taxonomic work has been conducted in recent years. The present paper attempts to summarize the state of knowledge about Minthostachys with a focus on ethnobotany, analyses of essential oil content and pharmacology, to identify the currently accepted species names for the plants examined in these previous studies, and to assess where additional research is needed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All available studies on Minthostachys were obtained and evaluated. Herbaria were contacted to identify voucher specimens cited in the respective publications. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The great majority of published studies was conducted on a single species, Argentinean Minthostachys verticillata. In contrast, the most widely distributed and well-known species (Minthostachys mollis) as well as several locally important and intensively used species (e.g., Minthostachys acutifolia) have received disproportionately little attention, and virtually nothing is known about the local endemics among the 17 species currently recognized. In many cases, however, it is difficult to relate the results to taxonomic entities due to the lack of voucher specimens. Future research efforts should especially be directed at studying the chemistry and potential for use of several common but so far neglected species of the central and northern Andes, at disentangling environmental and genetic influences on essential oil composition, at prerequisites for cultivation, and at the pharmacological basis of the most important traditional uses. Because of the morphological complexity of the genus, future researchers are urged to deposit voucher specimens of the plants used in their studies to facilitate species identification and to make the results more comparable and reproducible.     

Hot and cold: Medicinal plant uses in Quechua speaking communities in the high Andes (Callejón de Huaylas,Ancash, Perú)

Ethno-pharmacological relevance

An ethnopharmacological survey has been set up in high altitude Quechua speaking communities dwelling in Callejón de Huaylas (Ancash department, Peru) and in medicinal plant markets in order to document the medicinal plants use of 178 species within the frame of a traditional Andean medicinal system.

Materials and methods

A sound ethnopharmacological survey was performed during the years 2011, 2012 and 2013 in different places along Callejón de Huaylas valley in the peruvian Andes, were Quechua speaking communities dwell. Two different methodologies were used: first, plant uses were recorded during walks with informants and in medicinal plant markets held on a regular bases in the area (Huaraz, Carhuaz, Yungay). Secondly, traditional healers (curanderas, curanderos) were interviewed about their practices and healing sessions were observed, in order to understand better the traditional medicinal system as a whole (disease aetiology, diagnosis, treatments, healers).

Results

Altogether, 178 medicinal species were collected. Most of the plants found on the market were also found in the wild and vice-versa. Medicinal plant trade is exclusively held by women, selling their merchandise to local people or to big retailer. Plants are classified according their hot or cold virtues, this in accordance with the local conception of the body physiology and disease aetiology, based on a hot–cold polarity. Main use notified for medicinal plants is “(bath) against cold”, a prophylactic measure against diseases of cold nature. Other uses include culture bound illnesses i.e. susto, aire, nervios, or heart pain, commonly cited in South America. Regarding symptoms, rheumatic/arthritic pain, musculoskeletal traumas, cough, pulmonary and respiratory problems, gastritis and stomach ache, were the most frequently cited. Diagnosis and treatment are intrinsically linked together and mainly based upon divination techniques using egg and cuy (Cavia porcellus L., Caviidae).

Discussion and conclusion

Medicinal plants use and traditional medicinal practices are still very vivid in Callejón de Huaylas as highlighted by the abundance of medicinal plants traded in the markets. In this business, women have a key position as healers at the family and community level. Medicinal uses of the majority of the species presented here are reported for the first time. Because medicinal plants sold on the market are collected from the wild and also because high altitude medicinal plants are generally small herbaceous species pulled out with their roots, there is a serious risk of over exploitation and extinction of endemic species.     

Medicinal plants of Seberida (Riau Province, Sumatra, Indonesia)

Field enquiries on the plants used to treat diseases in villages of Seberida Municipality indicated that a large number of plant species (at least 100) are being used in therapy. Many of the uses, however, are magical in nature. Those in which a cause-effect relationship may be established (56) are presented in this paper. A review of the ethnomedical and experimental literature showed that medicinal plant uses in Seberida fall into three categories: those for which uses are corroborated by similar medicinal uses for the same plant or different species of the same genus in other cultures, those for which uses of the plant or species of the same genus are corroborated by evidence of relevant pharmacological activity in the experimental literature and those for which the medicinal uses are not corroborated. A discussion of these categories is presented. Taken as a whole, the medicinal uses of plants in Seberida are characterized by a remarkably high proportion of plants used to treat fevers and malaria and by a high proportion of species of which the leaves are used (externally or internally) for medicinal purposes. Comparison with other studies reported in the literature seems to indicate that a high frequency of the use of leaves in therapy may be a part of a larger cultural phenomenon among the tropical forest tribes of Southeast Asia and the southern Pacific Islands. Possible rationales for this type of use are offered.     

Studies on pharmaceutical ethnobotany in the high river Ter valley (Pyrenees, Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula)

An ethnobotanical study has been carried out in the high river Ter valley (Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula) a small area located in the eastern Pyrenees, with 294 km(2) and 4526 inhabitants. Through 42 interviews with 60 informants of a mean age of 71.1, 220 species belonging to 71 botanical families were reported, 90.6% of which were used in human medicine and 7.8% in veterinary therapy. The present paper is focused on human medicinal plant uses. One fungal and four vascular plant species have not, or have very rarely been cited as medicinal, and for other taxa some very scarcely reported medicinal uses have been recorded (110 uses concerning 78 species).     

Studies on pharmaceutical ethnobotany in the region of Turkmen Sahra, north of Iran (Part 1): general results

This paper is the result of ethnobotanical survey on the Turkmens of Golestan and Khorasan Province (Iran) conducted from June 2002 to the end of 2003. Turkmens are traditionally an isolated ethnic group residing in northern parts of Iran. We studied the folk herbal medicine among Turkmens of Iran. Totally, 136 species from 51 families were documented from which 120 species used as medicinal and 84 species mentioned by three or more informants. Information about plant uses is all summarized in Table 1. Some interesting and endemic species have been reported for medicinal uses, also some new uses for common species were documented. Some of these species are good targets for further analysis.     

Medical ethnobotany of the Teribes of Bocas del Toro, Panama

Ethnomedical uses of 108 medicinal plant species, belonging to 52 families, 89 genera, used by the Teribe Amerindians of Bocas del Toro Province in Panama, along with their socio-cultural practices are reported here. The methods of administration of the herbal remedies, the plant parts used, their families and local names are also documented. The recorded medicinal plants were used mainly for fever, various type of pain and inflammation. The potential value of 26 plants and their traditional uses was elucidated through literature search.     

Medicinal plants used by the Criollos of Northwestern Argentine Chaco

Medicinal remedies of herbal origin employed by Criollos herdsmen of northwestern Chaco were studied through collections of plant specimens and by interviewing 83 local informants from several villages. A total of 619 medicinal uses were recorded for 163 plant species during field work. For each plant species the scientific and vernacular names, the parts of the plant used, specific medicinal uses, modes of preparation and administration and way of obtaining them were listed. Most species are collected in the wild (78%), they account for the seventy nine percent of the total recorded medicinal uses; the rest are obtained through cultivation or bought in markets. Plants are used mainly for diseases of the digestive tract (26.5% of total uses); skin affections (14.6%); respiratory disorders (9.1%); reproductive disorders (8.4%) and affections of the circulatory system (7.7%); and as antipyretics (7.5% of total uses).     

新疆厄鲁特蒙古族药用民族植物学的研究

新疆厄鲁特蒙古族对植物的药物利用知识包括对植物种类的选择、植物药用部分的选择、功能和主治的认识、药用方法的实践等4个方面。民间药用植物共有42种,隶属于22科、38属。民间选择的药用部位可分为全草类、根及根茎类、茎类、叶类、花类、果实类、其他类等7个类型,根及根茎类和全草类是药用最多的部位。民间对药用植物功能和主治有着一定的认识,但往往不能明确区分植物药用功能和主治。民间对植物的药用方法有着类似炮制、配方、剂型和用药方法的知识和经验;内服药以水煎服为主,外用药以涂搽和洗浴为主。新疆厄鲁特蒙古族民间药用植物知识对寻找药用植物新种类及其方法提供了线索。     

Studies on pharmaceutical ethnobotany in the region of Pallars (Pyrenees,Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula). Part III. Medicinal uses of non-vascular plants

An ethnobotanical survey was carried out in the region called Pallars--constituted by two districts, Pallars Sobirà and Pallars Jussà--, situated in the Central Pyrenees, in North West Catalonia (Iberian Peninsula), with an approximate area of 2530 km(2) and a population of 19000. Through interviews with 264 people, we obtained data on 437 plant species used for health care. We detected 867 unreported or uncommon uses corresponding to 272 plant species, 52 of which had never or very rarely been cited as medicinal. This is the third paper of a series intended to present the most important findings concerning the ethnopharmacology of the area studied; it includes information on 18 pharmaceutical uses of 16 non-vascular plant species (two algae, eight fungi, five lichens and one moss). Two previous papers reported the general results and the new or very scarcely reported medicinal vascular plants, and the unreported or very uncommon uses of already known medicinal plants.     

Traditional plant use in the areas of Monte Vesole and Ascea, Cilento National Park (Campania, Southern Italy)

The present ethnobotanical field study conducted during summer 2003 in two distinct regions of the Cilento National Park (Mt Vesole and Ascea) documents the local use of 90 different plant species for medicinal, food and domestic purposes. Overall, 59 people native to the area were interviewed, and 883 use-reports have been recorded. The scientific names, local names, plant parts used, preparation and administration processes are given and compared with practices in other Italian regions. In total, 63 species are documented as medicinal, 49 as food, and 22 as craft plants. Over 40% of all species are used in more than one category and over half of the food plants are also used for medicinal purposes. In general the recorded species are well known in the traditional phytotherapy of Campania and Italy. However, some uses are unusual and are discussed in detail.     

Ethnobotany of the Alt Empordà region (Catalonia,Iberian Peninsula): Plants used in human traditional medicine

Ethnopharmacological relevance

This paper provides significant ethnobotanical information on pharmaceutical plant uses from a tourist and industrialised region, where some degree of acculturation exists, so that there is urgency in recording such data.

Aim of the study

To collect, analyze and evaluate the ethnobotanical knowledge about medicinal plants in a north-eastern Iberian region (Alt Empordà, 1358 km², 129,160 inhabitants).

Methodology

We performed 101 semi-structured interviews with 178 informants (mean age 69; 71% women, 29% men), identified the plant taxa reported and analyzed the results, comparing them with those from other territories.

Results

The informants reported data on 518 species. Of these, 335, belonging to 80 botanical families, were claimed as medicinal. This work is focused on human medicinal plant uses, which represent 98% of the pharmaceutical uses (3581 out of 3643 use reports). Around 800 medicinal uses, concerning 200 species, have not, or have very rarely been cited as medicinal; of these, 32 uses of 30 species have been reported by three or more independent informants.

Conclusions

The folk knowledge about medicinal plant use is still alive in the studied region, and a number of scarcely reported plant uses has been detected, some of them with promising phytotherapeutical applications.     

Medicinal plant diversity of Sitamata wildlife sanctuary, Rajasthan, India

The present study has been carried out in Sitamata wildlife sanctuary of Chittorgarh and Udaipur district located in south-west region of Rajasthan. A field survey of the study area was carried out during 2002-2004 to document the medicinal utility of herbs occurring in this area. Two hundred fourty-three genera belonging to 76 families have been reported which are used by the tribals of about 50 villages around the sanctuary as means of primary health care to cure various ailments. The study revealed the new ethnobotanical uses of 24 plant species belonging to 20 genera. A list of plant species along with their local name, plant part/s used and mode of administration for effective control in different ailments of ethnomedicinal plants are given.     

Ethnobotany of medicinal plants used in Xalpatlahuac,Guerrero, México

Ethnopharmacological importance

Medicinal plants have been used for centuries for the empirical treatment of many diseases. This study documented the use of plant species in traditional medicine in the municipality of Xalpatlahuac, Guerrero, México.

Materials and methods

Direct interviews were performed with inhabitants from Xalpatlahuac. The interviews were analyzed with two quantitative tools: (a) the informant consensus factor (ICF) that estimates the level of agreement about which medicinal plants may be used for each category and (b) the relative importance (RI) that determines the extent of potential utilization of each species.

Results

A total of 67 plant species with medicinal purposes, belonging to 36 families and used to treat 55 illnesses and 3 cultural filiations were reported by interviewees.Nineteen mixtures with medicinal plants were reported by the interviewers. Mentha piperita was the most used plant for combinations (4 mixtures). The results of the ICF showed that diseases of the respiratory and digestive systems had the greatest agreement. The most versatile species according to their RI are Marrubium vulgare, Mimosa albida and Psidium guajava..

Conclusion

This study demonstrates that plant species play an important role in healing practices and magical–religious rituals among inhabitants from Xalpatlahuac, Guerrero, Mexico. Furthermore, pharmacological, phytochemical and toxicological studies with medicinal flora, including mixtures, are required for the experimental validation of their traditional uses.     

Studies on pharmaceutical ethnobotany in the region of Pallars (Pyrenees,Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula). Part II. New or very rare uses of previously known medicinal plants

An ethnobotanical survey was carried out in the region called Pallars--consisting of two districts, Pallars Sobirà and Pallars Jussà--, situated in the Central Pyrenees, in North West Catalonia (Iberian Peninsula), with an approximate area of 2530 km(2) and a population of 19,000. Through interviews with 264 people, we obtained data on 437 plant species used for health care. We detected 867 unreported or uncommon uses corresponding to 272 plant species, 52 of which had never or very rarely been cited as medicinal. This is the second paper of a series intended to present the most important findings concerning the ethnopharmacology of the area studied; it includes unreported or very uncommon uses of known medicinal plant species. A previous paper reported the general results and the new or very scarcely reported medicinal vascular plants, and a further one will deal with medicinal non vascular plants.     

Observations on the traditional phytotherapy among the inhabitants of Parvati valley in western Himalaya, India

The present paper deals with the field observations recorded on the traditional indigenous therapeutic applications of the plants used by the inhabitants of the Parvati valley of Kullu district in western Himalaya of India. The Parvati valley is inhabited by different ethnic groups like Gujjars, Gaddis, Malanis, Kulluvis and others. These inhabitants have been dependent on the ambient plant resources for food, fuel, fiber, timber, household articles and medicines to a great extent for ages. Even today a number of plants of the local flora are used for curing various ailments and diseases. First-hand information about 50 plant species belonging to 45 genera and 28 families were recorded during extensive field surveys carried in Parvati valley during 2000-2002. The information is given in a tabular form as scientific names of plants in alphabetic order followed by family and field numbers of the voucher specimens collected. Information on local/vernacular names of plants, uses, parts used, names of ailments and modes of usage are given in detail. Information on traditional uses and commercial uses as well as biological activities of the related species is included on the basis of the existing relevant literature so as to present a comprehensive account.     

Plant genetic resources and traditional knowledge on medicinal use of wild shrub and herbaceous plant species in the Etna Regional Park (Eastern Sicily,Italy)

Ethnopharmacological relevance

This paper illustrates the results of a study carried out in the Etna Regional Park (Eastern Sicily, Italy) concerning the traditional knowledge on medicinal use of wild plant species. It contains the results of a quantitative analysis carried out for the first time. A total of 71 wild species are used for medicinal purposes. Two species, Astracantha sicula (Biv.) Greuter and Trifolium phleoides Willd., are little known as medicinal in the Mediterranean area. The main aim of the study was to understand to what extent current knowledge on the medicinal use of plants is still an element of the culture within the elderly population of the Etna Regional Park. A further aim was to identify species not previously reported as medicinal in the Mediterranean area with a potential agricultural interest.

Methodology

The information was obtained using a semi-structured interview format performed on a sample of 196 people over the age of 60 who were considered experts in rural traditions. The plant uses were compared with other medical-ethnobotanical studies carried out in other areas of Sicily, Italy and various other Mediterranean countries. A number of quantitative indices were also used in order to verify the incidence of the species cited in the study within the culture and traditional medicine.

Results

Local communities currently use a total number of 71 wild species (34 families) as remedies for medicinal purposes. Most of the species were used as treatments against metabolic disorders and for general health. The leaves and the aerial parts of plants are the most-used parts of the plant and the most common preparation methods are decoction and direct application of plant parts. Astracantha sicula and Trifolium phleoides have never been documented as a species with medicinal properties in the Mediterranean literature.

Conclusions

Only very few medicinal uses are widely known by all the informants and, on many occasions, a specific medicinal use is cited by only very few people. The quantitative analysis shows that the level of traditional knowledge on medicinal use of plants in the study area is poor, highlighting a considerably advanced state of cultural erosion.     

Studies on pharmaceutical ethnobotany in the region of Pallars (Pyrenees, Catalonia, Iberian Peninsula). Part I. General results and new or very rare medicinal plants

An ethnobotanical survey was carried out in the region called Pallars--constituted by two districts, Pallars Sobirà and Pallars Jussà--situated in the Central Pyrenees, in North West Catalonia (Iberian Peninsula), with an approximate area of 2530 km(2) and a population of 19000. We obtained data on 437 plant species used for health care through interviews with 264 people. We detected 867 unreported or uncommon uses corresponding to 272 plant species, 52 of which had never or very rarely been cited as medicinal. To present the most important findings concerning the ethnopharmacology of the area studied, this first part includes the general results and the new or very scarcely reported medicinal vascular plants. Further papers will deal with unreported or very uncommon uses for known medicinal plant species and with medicinal non-vascular plants.     

Traditional knowledge of Kani tribals in Kouthalai of Tirunelveli hills, Tamil Nadu, India

An ethnobotanical survey was carried out among the ethnic groups (Kani/Kanikaran) in Southern Western Ghats of India. Traditional uses of 54 plant species belonging to 26 families are described under this study. In this communication, the information got from the tribals were compared with the already existing literature on ethnobotany of India. The documented ethnomedicinal plants were mostly used to cure skin diseases, poison bites, wounds and rheumatism. The medicinal plants used by kanis are arranged alphabetically followed by family name, local name, major chemical constituents, parts used, mode of preparation and medicinal uses.     

Lippia: traditional uses, chemistry and pharmacology: a review.

The chemical composition, pharmacological activity and traditional uses of 52 species attributed to the genus Lippia (Verbenaceae) as used in the South and Central America, and Tropical Africa, were revised and compared. A survey of the available literature shows that these species are used mostly for the treatment of gastrointestinal and respiratory disorders and as seasoning. Additionally, some of these Lippia species showed antimalarial, spasmolitic, sedative, hypotensive and, anti-inflammatory activities. Generally, the essential oil or the phenolic compounds (flavonoids) from these plant extracts are assumed to be the active principles.