Ethno-medicinal application of plants in the eastern region of Shimoga district, Karnataka, India

Aim of the study

The present paper aimed to document and study the role of traditional herbal drugs in the treatment of human and veterinary ailments by communities residing in the eastern part of Shimoga district of Karnataka in India and to determine the consensus of informant's knowledge on different category of ailments and fidelity level of plant species in treating particular disease.

Methodology

The ethno-medico-botanical information was collected from herbal healers and knowledgeable elder people residing in 15 randomly selected villages using semi-structured interviews. The data were subjected to informant consensus factor (ICF) and fidelity level (FL) analyses.

Results

Eighty-five plant species of 41 families used to treat 31 human and 10 veterinary ailments were documented. Those medicinal plants which are effective in the treatment of liver complaints category had high ICF (0.77) and the skin diseases and disorders category attracted low ICF (0.12). Certain medicinal plants like Cyclea peltata, Justicia adhatoda, Memecylon umbellatum, Phyllanthus amarus and Tabernaemontana alternifolia were assigned with high degree of FL (100%) value and certain species like Cassia fistula was assigned with very low FL (25%). Some of the noteworthy medicinal uses of plant species in the study area were not reported for such purposes in the previously published literature on ethnobotany.

Conclusion

The local communities residing in eastern part of Shimoga district depended on herbal formulations for the treatment of diseases and disorders that affected them and their animals, as well. A high ICF and FL values indicated the possible occurrence of valuable bioactive compounds in certain plants and such of these plants need scientific evaluation for their pharmacological activities.     

Ethnobotanical survey of antidiarrhoeal plants of Parinche valley,Pune district,Maharashtra, India

Ethnopharmacological relevance

Maharashtra is the third largest state in India with a large tribal population. Documentation of traditional knowledge through ethnobotanical studies is important for conservation and utilization of indigenous knowledge. Diarrhoeal diseases are the second largest cause of morbidity in rural India. Medicinal plants given by the traditional healers of Parinche in Pune district, Maharashtra are known to be efficacious for many common ailments, including diarrhoeal diseases.

Aim of the study

Ethnobotanical survey of antidiarrhoeal plants from Parinche valley towards the documentation and conservation of traditional knowledge.

Materials and methods

Interviews and inquiries were conducted amongst traditional healers, indigenous communities and village elders.

Results

One hundred and eighty two plants used by tribes and natives for different ailments were documented of which 28 flowering plants were for diarrhoea. Leaf was the most preferred plant part. Amongst the 28 plants, antidiarrhoeal activity of five plants viz., Caesalpinia sepiaria, Dioscorea pentaphylla, Launaea pinnatifida, Syzygium rubicundum and Ziziphus jujuba has not been reported previously. Two species viz., Ziziphus xylopyra and Syzygium rubicundum are endemic to India.

Conclusion

Parinche valley is an ethnobotanically rich area with abundant availability and knowledge of medicinal plants that can serve as a model for low cost health care.     

Medicinal knowledge and plant utilization in an Amazonian coastal community of Marudá, Pará State (Brazil)

Ethnopharmacological relevance

It shows the local medicinal uses of biodiversity in Brazil's Amazonian littoral, promoting the value of folk knowledge, and its applicability in future studies.

Aim of the study

To demonstrate the importance of the knowledge of medicinal plants in the Amazonian coastal community of Marudá, located in Pará State, Brazil.

Materials and methods

Fieldwork was conducted between 1996 and 1998, using the methods of participant observation, semi-structured interviews and informal discussions to elicit information from community residents and plant specialists, in addition to collecting plant material.

Results

Community residents possess knowledge of 229 medicinal plants distributed in 81 botanical families and know how to manipulate them in a variety of ways, with special care taken to ensure that they are used in the safest and most efficient manner. Therapeutic indications for these plants include illness and disease recognized in the repertoire of Western medicine as well as ailments perceived from a local cultural perspective.

Conclusion

Results from this study attest to informants’ knowledge of medicinal flora and their ability and openness to integrate new species from diverse origins into their gamut of medicinal knowledge, including industrial therapeutic preparations and animal products. Local uses of biodiversity in Brazil's Amazonian littoral are also evinced, promoting the value of folk medicinal knowledge. Similarly, it mentions the potential of implementing local knowledge in Brazil's Unitary Health System.     

An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in Chandauli District of Uttar Pradesh,India

Aim of the study

Chandauli district is one of the less studied regions of India for its ethnobotanical values. The present paper synthesizes the first report related to the documentation and conservation of ethnomedicinal plants of Chandauli district and their socio-economic relationship with the forests and its resources.

Materials and methods

Ethnobotanical data were collected using semi-structured interviews, field observations, preference and direct matrix ranking with traditional medicine practitioners.

Results

The use of 40 medicinal plants belonging to 27 families was documented in the tribal communities of Chandauli district in India. These species were used in combination of some exotic species such as Foeniculum vulgare, Prosopis spicigera, Crataeva nurvala, Curcuma longa, Punica granatum, Aloe vera, Cocos nucifera, Ocimum sanctum and Allium cepa and some medicinal stones, minerals, salts, etc. Most of the plants (94.6%) were reportedly used to treat human diseases.

Conclusions

Documenting the eroding plants and associated indigenous knowledge can be used as a basis for developing management plans for conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants in the area. The principal threatening factors reported were deforestation (90%), agricultural expansion (85%) and overgrazing (53%).     

Herbal medicines used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus in Arunachal Himalaya, northeast, India

Ethnopharmacological relevance

Medicinal plants have played an important role in treating and preventing a variety of diseases throughout the world. Khampti tribal people living in the far-flung Lohit district of the Eastern Arunachal Himalaya, India still depend on medicinal plants and most of them have a general knowledge of medicinal plants which are used for treating a variety of ailments. This survey was undertaken in Lohit district in order to inventory the medicinal plants used in folk medicine to treat diabetes mellitus.

Materials and methods

Field investigations were conducted in seventeen remote villages of Lohit district starting from April 2002 to May 2004 through interviews among 251 key informants who were selected randomly during our household survey. To elucidate community domains and determine differences in indigenous traditional knowledge of medicinal plants with anti-diabetic efficacy, we repeated our field survey starting from April 2008 to May 2010 with one hundred traditional healers locally called as “Chau ya” in Khampti of Lohit district. “Chau ya” traditional healers who know and use medicinal plants for treating diabetes mellitus were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire.

Results

This study reports an ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh reputed for the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Forty-six plant species were identified in the study area to treat diabetes mellitus by the Khamptis “Chau ya” traditional healers. Comparative published literature survey analysis of this study with other ethnobotanical surveys of plants used traditionally in treating diabetes mellitus suggests that eleven plant species make claims of new reports on antidiabetic efficacy. These plant species are Begonia roxburghii, Calamus tenuis, Callicarpa arborea, Cuscuta reflexa, Dillenia indica, Diplazium esculentum, Lectuca gracilis, Millingtonia hortensis, Oxalis griffithii, Saccharum spontaneum, and Solanum viarum. Some of the plants reported in this study have an antidiabetic effect on rodent models but none have sufficient clinical evidence of effectiveness.

Conclusions

The wide variety of medicinal plants that are used to treat diabetes mellitus in this area supports the importance of plants in the primary healthcare system of the rural people of Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh. The finding of new plant uses in the current study reveals the importance of the documentation of such ethnobotanical knowledge.     

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.     

Investigation of Danshen and related medicinal plants in China

Ethnopharmacological relevance

In China, over 20 Salvia species have been used as Danshen in traditional folk medicine for the treatment of coronary heart diseases and strokes.

Aim of the study

In order to gain a better understanding of the plants used in this formula, where the plants originate and how the plants are traditionally processed and handled.

Materials and methods

A field investigation on traditional functions and folk therapeutic uses of these plants was conducted. Based upon interviewing and working with traditional healers, we present the information recorded in detail upon these medicinal plants including the local name, collecting location, growing environment, distribution and therapeutic effects. The current survey revealed 17 original plants used as folk medicine of Danshen in different regions of China. Additionally, HPLC coupled with DAD detection was applied to study the quality of different Danshen samples.

Results

The results indicated that the official species of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge recorded in Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2005) is the unique species of Danshen that meets all the requirements as described. However, a total of 18 Salvia spp. are collected, used and traded under this same name.

Conclusions

In different regions of China, many species in Salvia genus are collected, traded and used as the traditional medicinal plant, Danshen. Based upon this investigation including both the botanical authentication and the chemical characterization of all the collected species. We found that only S. miltiorrhiza meet the requirements set forth and ascribed as the formal Danshen in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2005).     

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.     

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants of Sirjan in Kerman Province,Iran

Ethnopharmacological relevance

From ancient time human beings have used different plants, animals and minerals to prevent and treat various diseases. In this respect, plants have been of particular importance. Ethnobotany is the science of reviewing how indigenous people and local tribes have used their regional plants for particular purposes such as treating diseases in the past. The information gathered from such studies can help to improve national health systems and even lead to the discovery of new medicines. Keeping this in mind, in this study a survey of Sirjan area ethnobotany was conducted during 2011–2012.

Materials and methods

At the beginning, thirteen local people were interviewed about their region?s medicinal plants and their consumptions. These plants were collected and identified using identification keys. The data collected was analyzed using quantitative value indices F_IC, RFC and CI.

Result

Many plants collected have medicinal properties and have been used by local people to treat various ailments. Of these plants, nineteen families, 37 genera and 43 species belonged to medicinal plants. Among them, Lamiaceae with 8 species and Malva L. with 3 species were the largest medicinal plant families and genera, respectively. These plants are often used as decoction (28%) and as powder (21%). Also, the fruit of these plants are used most often. Besides being used as medicinal plants, they have other uses such as food, fuel, etc. Malva sylvestris has the largest value of relative frequency of citation and cultural importance indices. The most ailment categories have the highest level of informant agreement (mean F_IC=0.92).

Conclusion

Despite the semi-desert climate and lack of rich vegetation, many medicinal and economic plants are found in Sirjan region. Uncontrolled harvesting of the medicinal plants such as Bunium persicum, Cuminum cyminum, Zataria multiflora and Satureja bachtiarica in this region by local people has increased the risk of their extinction and calls for a restrict control over their protection by the authorities.     

Ethnoveterinary knowledge in pastoral Karamoja,Uganda

Ethnopharmacological relevance

The people of Karamoja of northern Uganda chiefly rely on ethnoveterinary knowledge (EVK) to control common livestock health problems. In spite of cattle's central role in Karamojong culture and livelihoods, there has been no systematic recording of their ethnoveterinary plant-based cures to date.

Aim of study

To document the remedies used to treat livestock diseases, their preparation and administration.

Methods

Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, guided questionnaires, group discussions, direct observations and collection trips.

Results

We present information on 209 plant species and 18 non-plant materials. Plant species are distributed over 116 genera and 54 families. The most common medicinal use was treatment against anaplasmosis. Balanites aegyptiacus, Carissa spinarum, Warburgia salutaris and Harrisonia abyssinica had the most uses of all species. All different plant parts were used; bark and underground parts were exploited more frequently than other plant parts. Most remedies listed used a single ingredient, typically soaked in water; only 12.8% remedies used multiple plants. The route of administration was primarily oral followed by topical applications. Almost all plants are collected from the wild; none of the few cultivated plants used had been planted for medicinal purposes.

Conclusions

The pastoralists in the study site possess a wealth of EVK which they use to maintain animal health. Their rich knowledge and high diversity of plants were recorded here for the first time.     

Ethnomedicinal practices in the highlands of central Nepal: A case study of Syaphru and Langtang village in Rasuwa district

Ethnopharmacological relevance

The present paper documents the utilization of medicinal plants for the treatment of various human ailments in two village development committees in the Rasuwa district of central Nepal. It also evaluates the ethnopharmacological significance of the documented reports and identifies species of high indigenous priority in local therapeutics.

Materials and methods

The ethnobotanical information was collected by interviews and group discussions using standard ethnobotanical procedures. The homogeneity of informant?s knowledge was validated by Informant consensus factor (F_IC) and the relative importance of a plant species used as medicine in the study area was calculated with the help of use value (UV).

Results

The present study identified a total of 46 medicinal plants belonging to 26 families used for the treatment of 38 human ailments. Besides medicinal uses, the study has also documented the culinary and cultural use of 13 species of medicinal plants. The most commonly used part was root constituting about 42% of the total utilized plants. The most commonly used form of preparation was paste (31.91%). We found new usage reports for 9 medicinal plants. The F_IC value in the present study ranged from 0.66 to 1 with 84.6% values greater than 0.8 indicating high consensus among the informants. The most preferred species was Neopicrorhiza scrophulariflora (UV=0.96) and the lowest used value was found for Lyonia ovalifolia (UV=0.32).

Conclusions

People of Rasuwa possess rich traditional knowledge in medicinal plants utilization with strong consensus among local people on the utilization of species evident by higher F_IC values in different ailment categories. Strong pharmacological evidence for a majority of species being currently used as medicines shows that the plants used in local therapeutics are likely to be more effective in treating different medical ailments. The bioactive compounds extracted from these medicinal plants could subsequently be used in the creation of novel drugs to treat life threatening human diseases. The species with high use values are the ones likely to be more vulnerable because of high demand and high collection pressure. Therefore, it is imperative to prioritize such species for cultivation and sustainable management in order to ensure their long term availability.     

Ethnopharmacological survey of medicinal plants in Jordan,Mujib Nature Reserve and surrounding area

Aim of the study

Medicinal plants are an important element of indigenous systems in Jordan. These resources are usually regarded as part of a culture's traditional knowledge. Therefore, the aim of this study is to collect information from local population concerning the use of medicinal plants of the Mujib region; identify the most important medicinal plants used; determine the relative importance of the species surveyed and calculate the informant consensus factor (F_ic) in relation to medicinal plant use.

Materials and methods

Qualitative tools were used for data collection and to record the interviewee's personal information and topics related to the medicinal use of specific plants. The collected data were used to calculate the F_ic and the plant use values.

Results and conclusions

Fifty-eight plants were identified to be still in use in traditional practice in Mujib. Our results showed that the highest use values were recorded for the species Artemisia sieberi Bess. and Silybum marianum (L.) Gaertn., while the highest F_ic was cited for digestive problems. Anthropologically, women were the primary gatherers while healers were reported to be both females, predominantly, and males; yet, herbalists are deficient in this local community.     

Ethnopharmacological notes about ancient uses of medicinal plants in Trás-os-Montes (northern of Portugal)

Aim of the study

In order to preserve the ancestral knowledge, an ethnopharmacological study has been carried out in two councils belonging to Trás-os-Montes region a small area located in the northern of Portugal. In that area, medicinal plants, most of the species wild, are still in use among farmers, shepherds and other people who live far from villages and built-up areas.

Materials and methods

Among the 46 people that were interviewed (mean age of 66 years old), 88 species belonging to 42 families of vascular plants were identified for treatment of various human ailments. An ethnopharmacological report is made consisting of species names, vernacular names, popular uses of the plants and their pharmacological properties.

Results and conclusion

The most dominant family is Lamiaceae (18%) and the most frequently part of the plant used for the treatment of diseases are leaves (37.9%). The largest number of taxa is used to treat gastrointestinal disorders (73.9%).     

Therapeutic uses of Aloe L. (Asphodelaceae) in southern Africa

Ethnopharmacological relevance

The African-Arabian succulent genus Aloe L. (Aloaceae/Asphodelaceae) is represented by approximately 120 infrageneric taxa in southern Africa, including A. ferox Mill., a species long used in commercial natural products.

Aims of the study

To assess the documented ethnobotanical knowledge and biocultural value of utility in the genus in southern Africa.

Materials and methods

A survey of over 350 multidisciplinary publications was undertaken.

Results

Local uses for medicine and wellbeing were identified for over half the species of Aloe occurring in the Flora of Southern Africa region. The most frequently cited medicinal uses were the treatment of infections and internal parasites, digestive ailments and injuries. Numerous species were recorded for their social uses, notably as ingredients in tobacco snuff.

Conclusion

The exceptional infrageneric diversity of Aloe, and extensive therapeutic uses in southern Africa, indicate its cultural importance in the subcontinent. These factors highlight the need for the conservation of the species as well as their potential as a source of natural products.     

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants from the Humla district of western Nepal

Aim of the study

The present paper documents the uses of plants in traditional herbal medicine for treatment of human and veterinary ailments in four village development committees in the Humla district of western Nepal. It also determines the homogeneity of informant's knowledge on medicinal plants suitable for different ailment categories and the most preferred plant species used to treat each ailment category in the study areas.

Materials and methods

The ethnobotanical information was collected through semi-structured interviews and key informant discussion. The data were analyzed through informant consensus factor (ICF), fidelity level (FL) and use value (UV).

Results

We documented 161 plant species belonging to 61 families and 106 genera used for treating 73 human and 7 veterinary ailments. We also documented culinary uses and additional uses for 67 and 33 species of medicinal plant species respectively. Most medicines were prepared in the form of powder and used orally. Roots were most frequently used plant parts. The uses of 93 medicinal plants were not mentioned in any previous studies. Gastro-intestinal ailments have the highest ICF (0.40) whereas opthalmological uses have the lowest (zero) ICF. Mentha spicata and Rumex hastatus has the highest FL (100% each) both being used for gastro-intestinal ailments and Delphinium himalayai has the lowest (47.4%) for veterinary uses.

Conclusions

ICF values indicated that there was high agreement in the use of plants in gastro-intestinal ailment category among the users. FL or UV values indicated the most preferred plant species used in study areas. These preferred plant species could be prioritized for conservation and subjected to further studies related to chemical screening for their authenticity. Most of the medicinal plants of the region are collected in the wild and are often harvested for trade. Sustainable harvesting methods and domestication of the highly traded species is thus needed in the study areas.     

An ethnobotanical study of indigenous knowledge on medicinal plants used by the village peoples of Thoppampatti,Dindigul district,Tamilnadu, India

Ethnopharmacological relevance

This study provides significant ethnopharmacological information, both qualitative and quantitative on medicinal plants in the Thoppampatti village, Dindigul district, Tamilnadu, India. There is urgency in recording such data to conserve the traditional medicinal plants. This is the first ethnobotanical study which records the traditional important medicinal plants of Thoppampatti village. To collect, analyze and evaluate the ethnopharmacologic knowledge in Thoppampatti village in order to protect it. This study reports the results of an ethnopharmacological survey on the uses of medicinal plants by inhabitants of the Thoppampatti.

Materials and methods

The field study was carried out in a period of about one year (April 2012–May 2013) in Thoppampatti village. The information was obtained through open and semi-structured interviews with 48 (27 males, 21 females) knowledgeable local people and traditional healers (THs). The collected data were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. In addition, use value (UV), relative importance (RI) and Jaccard index (JI) was determined.

Results

A total of 139 species of plants, mostly trees and herbs, belonging to 54 families were identified in this study. This is used to treat 142 diseases and ailments. These ailments were categorized into 18 major categories. Leaves were the most frequently used parts, while decoction and juice are the most common method of preparation to treat various diseases. Based on IUCN Red data the identified medicinal plants include 11 least concerned species, 3 vulnerable species and one endangered species. The most important species according to their use value were Cynodon dactylon (0.79), Azadirachta indica (0.73), Ocimum tenuiflorum (0.71), Moringa oleifera (0.68), Coriandrum sativum (0.62), Abelmoschus esculentus (0.61), Acalypha indica (0.59) and Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (0.59).

Conclusion

As a result of the present study, medicinal plants play an important role in the health care of Thoppampatti village inhabitants; they rely on medicinal plants to treat various ailments. In addition, the medicinal plants with high RI values might give some useful leads for further pharmacological investigations. Deforestation and overexploitation of a particular plant species leads to extinction so sustainable utilization of medicinal plants is recommended in the study area.     

An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants and traditional therapies on Batan Island,the Philippines

Ethnopharmacological relevance

We studied the local knowledge and uses of medicinal plants among the Ivatan people of Batan Island by documenting their traditional practices.

Aim of the study

To identify the types of medicinal plants used in self-care by the indigenous people of Batan Island, the Philippines and to investigate the extent to which the plants are used. Conservation of medicinal plants and natural resources is becoming increasingly important; thus, this research aims to collect information from local people concerning the use of medicinal plants on Batan Island.

Materials and methods

A total of 116 informants were interviewed, allowing for calculated informant consensus factors (ICF), use value (UV), and fidelity levels (FL) for each medicinal plant species used to cure various ailments. This helped to establish a consensus on which species are effective for particular ailments, as well as the species’ relative importance, and enabled us to understand the extent of the potential utilization of each species.

Results

We describe the therapeutic effects of 112 plant species used medicinally against 13 categories of ailments. The highest ICF value (1.00) was cited for diseases of the ear and respiratory system and for use during pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period. The maximum FL of 100% was found for Carica papaya, Stachytarpheta jamaicensis, Musa sapientum, and Pedilanthus tithymaloides, used for the treatment of constipation, cuts and wounds, diarrhea, and dislocations and fractures, respectively. The highest UV was for Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (0.67). All plants with high UV were used for exogenous diseases, certain infectious and parasitic diseases, injuries, poisonings and other consequences of external factors, and diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissues. In addition to its use for endogenous disease and lifestyle-related diseases and illnesses, Moringa oleifera is also used for diseases of the circulatory system, with a UV of 0.57 and Cocos nucifera is used for diseases of the genitourinary system, with a UV of 0.56.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that many plant species play an important role in local healing practices and that knowledge of traditional medicine is still utilized and plays a significant role on Batan Island. The documentation of this rich traditional ethno-medicinal knowledge has furnished us with novel information that not only will provide recognition of this undocumented knowledge but also could provide new avenues for pharmacological investigations to improve healthcare for a range of ailments.     

Commercialization of animal-derived remedies as complementary medicine in the semi-arid region of Northeastern Brazil

Aim of the study

In this study, we aim to document the use of animal species in traditional medicine and healing practices in the semi-arid region of Northeastern Brazil. While widespread and of great importance to large population that has limited access to contemporary medicine, such practices are poorly understood and the potential value of medicinal animal species largely unknown.

Materials and methods

Based on interviews with the merchants of medicinal animals, we calculated the informant consensus factor (ICF) to determine the consensus over which species are effective for particular ailments, as well as the species relative importance to determine the extent of potential utilization of each species.

Results

We describe the therapeutic effects of 36 animal species used medicinally. The zootherapeutical products sold commercially are used to treat 40 health problems that were classified into 10 broad categories. We also highlight those species valued for their effectiveness against a range of ailments. The highest ICF value (0.91) was cited for diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, which include relief of symptoms such as acne and furuncles.

Discussion and conclusion

This study demonstrates that many animal species play an important role in healing practices. Animals provide the raw materials for remedies prescribed clinically and are also used in the form of amulets and charms in magic–religious rituals and ceremonies. The medicinal value of animal species depends on the local knowledge that exists within user communities, and therefore, the conservation of animal species is imperative to the preservation of local medicinal knowledge and culture.     

Medicinal utilization of exotic plants by Bapedi traditional healers to treat human ailments in Limpopo province,South Africa

Ethnopharmacological relevance

Most exotic plants are usually labelled as alien invasives and targeted for eradication. However, some of these exotic plants play an important role in the traditional primary healthcare sector of the Bapedi culture in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The medicinal uses of most of these species have neither been documented nor their biological activity evaluated.

Aim of the study

To make an inventory of exotic species employed by Bapedi traditional healers to treat different human ailments in the Limpopo Province, South Africa.

Materials and methods

Semi-structured interviews, observation and guided field walks with 52 traditional healers were employed to obtain ethnobotanical data during first half of 2011 on the use of exotic plant species by Bapedi healers to treat human ailments. Based on ethnobotanical information provided by these healers, specimens were collected, numbered, pressed, and dried for identification.

Results

A total of 35 exotics species belonging to 21 families and 34 genera, mostly from the Fabaceae and Solanaceae (11.4% for each), Apocynaceae and Asteraceae (8.5% for each) were used by Bapedi healers to treat 20 human ailments. Trees (45.7%) and herbs (37.1%) are the primary source of medicinal plants. Species most frequently reported were used for the treatment of hypertension (35%), diabetes mellitus, erectile dysfunction and gonorrhoea (25% for each). The highest consensus from individual accounts of the traditional healers on the use of exotic plant remedies in this study was noted for the three ailments. These were for Catharanthus roseus (gonorrhoea, 60%), Punica granatum (diarrhoea, 38.4%) and Ricinus communis (sores, 21.5%). Of the 35 exotic plant species recorded, 34.2% are regulated by the Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act (1983) (CARA) No. 43 of 1983 either as worst weeds or invaders.

Conclusion

The present study demonstrated that exotic plant species play an important part as medicinal remedies employed by Bapedi healers to treat different human diseases in the Limpopo Province. The use of these species as alternative sources of medicinal remedies could alleviate harvesting pressure of wild indigenous plants, thereby enhance biodiversity's region. However, there is a need to formulate an appropriate policy to retain some of the useful medicinal exotics (listed under CARA No. 43 of 1983) within the environment before their medicinal value vanishes as they are eradicated through management strategies adopted by the South African government.