Ethnobotany of dye plants in Southern Italy, Mediterranean Basin: floristic catalog and two centuries of analysis of traditional botanical knowledge heritage

Olive (Olea europaea L.) is a species of great economic importance in the Mediterranean basin. Italy is very important for the olive industry; in fact, olive's genetic patrimony is very rich and characterized by an abundance of cultivars. At present, the majority of ancient landraces are vegetatively propagated by farm. It is likely that the number of cultivars is underestimated because of inadequate information on minor local cultivars that are widespread in different olive-growing areas. The existence of many cultivars reinforces the need for a reliable identification method. It is important to improve the ex situ plant germplasm collection and fairly to characterize all cultivars for future breeding programs. In the present report, we used 11 loci microsatellites to characterize 211 olive cultivars of an olive collection cultivated in six regions of southern Italy. These regions represent the major area for olive cultivation in Italy and have a strategic geographical location in the Mediterranean basin. The dendrogram obtained, using the unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean clustering algorithm, depicts the pattern of relationships between the studied cultivars. There is a clear structuring of the variability relative to the geographic origin of olive cultivars. This work, for the very high number of the Italian olive cultivars analyzed, highlights the degree and distribution of genetic diversity of this species for better exploitation of olive resources and for the design of plant breeding programs. Besides, the use of molecular markers, like simple sequence repeats, is imperative to build a database for cultivar analysis, for traceability of processed food, and for appropriate management of olive germplasm collections.

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Ethnobotany in Intermedical Spaces: The Case of the Fulni-ô Indians (Northeastern Brazil)

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2012/648469 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2012 ◽

pp. 1-13 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Gustavo Taboada Soldati ◽

Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque

Keyword(s):

Secondary Data ◽

Medical System ◽

The Body ◽

Northeastern Brazil ◽

Important Species ◽

Cultural Sustainability ◽

Botanical Knowledge ◽

Therapeutic Uses ◽

Local Practices ◽

Traditional Botanical Knowledge

We analyzed the Fulni-ô medical system and introduced its intermedical character based on secondary data published in the literature. Then we focused on the medicinal plants known to the ethnic group, describing the most important species, their therapeutic uses and the body systems attributed to them. We based this analysis on the field experience of the authors in the project Studies for the Environmental and Cultural Sustainability of the Fulni-ô Medical System: Office of Medicinal Plant Care. This traditional botanical knowledge was used to corroborate the hybrid nature of local practices for access to health. We show that intermedicality is a result not only of the meeting of the Fulni-ô medical system with Biomedicine but also of its meeting with other traditional systems. Finally, we discuss how traditional botanical knowledge may be directly related to the ethnogenesis process led by the Fulni-ô Indians in northeastern Brazil.

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Identifying the 993–994 CE Miyake Event in the Oldest Dated Living Tree in Europe

Radiocarbon ◽

10.1017/rdc.2019.37 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 61 (5) ◽

pp. 1317-1325 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Gianluca Quarta ◽

Alfredo Di Filippo ◽

Lucio Calcagnile ◽

Marisa D’Elia ◽

Franco Biondi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mass Spectrometry ◽

High Resolution ◽

Accelerator Mass Spectrometry ◽

Mediterranean Basin ◽

Southern Italy ◽

Living Tree ◽

Cross Dating ◽

First Time ◽

The Mediterranean Basin ◽

Tree Stem

ABSTRACTCombined dendrochronology and accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon (AMS 14C) dating analyses were used in order to date an old living tree named Italus, growing in the Pollino massif in Southern Italy. Wiggle match AMS 14C dating analysis was performed on a 320-yr-long floating chronology obtained by cross-dating four wood cores extracted from the exposed roots of the tree. Following this approach, an age for the tree of ≈1230 yr was estimated. This age makes Italus the oldest living tree in Europe. High-resolution 14C dating analyses performed on single rings extracted from the tree stem allowed us to identify the 993–994 CE large excursion in atmospheric 14C concentration (Miyake event) revealing for the first time its presence in the Mediterranean basin.

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Climate change in the Mediterranean basin: a case study on carbon cycle in a forest of southern Italy

Forest - Rivista di Selvicoltura ed Ecologia Forestale ◽

10.3832/efor0259-0020052 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 52-65 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

C Marino ◽

G Manca ◽

G Matteucci ◽

G Scarascia Mugnozza

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Carbon Cycle ◽

Mediterranean Basin ◽

Southern Italy ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

The Mediterranean Basin

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Multistep food plant processing at Grotta Paglicci (Southern Italy) around 32,600 cal B.P.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1505213112 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 112 (39) ◽

pp. 12075-12080 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

Marta Mariotti Lippi ◽

Bruno Foggi ◽

Biancamaria Aranguren ◽

Annamaria Ronchitelli ◽

Anna Revedin

Keyword(s):

Early Modern ◽

Mediterranean Basin ◽

Southern Italy ◽

Food Plants ◽

Plant Resources ◽

Starch Grains ◽

Early Modern Humans ◽

Grinding Tool ◽

Plant Processing ◽

The Mediterranean Basin

Residue analyses on a grinding tool recovered at Grotta Paglicci sublayer 23A [32,614 ± 429 calibrated (cal) B.P.], Southern Italy, have demonstrated that early modern humans collected and processed various plants. The recording of starch grains attributable to Avena (oat) caryopses expands our information about the food plants used for producing flour in Europe during the Paleolithic and about the origins of a food tradition persisting up to the present in the Mediterranean basin. The quantitative distribution of the starch grains on the surface of the grinding stone furnished information about the tool handling, confirming its use as a pestle-grinder, as suggested by the wear-trace analysis. The particular state of preservation of the starch grains suggests the use of a thermal treatment before grinding, possibly to accelerate drying of the plants, making the following process easier and faster. The study clearly indicates that the exploitation of plant resources was very important for hunter–gatherer populations, to the point that the Early Gravettian inhabitants of Paglicci were able to process food plants and already possessed a wealth of knowledge that was to become widespread after the dawn of agriculture.

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Preserving Traditional Botanical Knowledge: The Importance of Phytogeographic and Ethnobotanical Inventory of Peruvian Dye Plants

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants6040063 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 63

Author(s):

José Mostacero León ◽

Segundo López Medina ◽

Helmut Yabar ◽

Jordan De La Cruz Castillo

Keyword(s):

Botanical Knowledge ◽

Traditional Botanical Knowledge

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Pre-Zanclean end of the Messinian Salinity Crisis: new evidence from central Mediterranean reference sections

Journal of the Geological Society ◽

10.1144/jgs2020-183 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. jgs2020-183

Author(s):

Speranta-Maria Popescu ◽

William Cavazza ◽

Jean-Pierre Suc ◽

Mihaela Carmen Melinte-Dobrinescu ◽

Nadia Barhoun ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Basin ◽

Southern Italy ◽

Scientific Literature ◽

Calcareous Nannofossils ◽

Central Mediterranean ◽

Reference Sections ◽

Stratotype Section ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

New Evidence ◽

The Mediterranean Basin

The concept of a geologically instantaneous earliest Zanclean reflooding of the Mediterranean Basin after the Messinian drawdown has dominated geological thinking and is ingrained in the scientific literature. The base of the Trubi Formation in southern Italy, formally defined as the Zanclean Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) at 5.33 Ma, has traditionally been considered as marking the marine reflooding of the Mediterranean. However, several studies provide evidence that marine reflooding occurred prior to the Zanclean GSSP, the most reliable of which comes from southern Calabria. Here, we show that the sedimentary coastal prism cropping out extensively immediately below the base of the Trubi Formation in this region and correlatable with the Arenazzolo Unit in Sicily contains a fully marine micropalaeontological association of calcareous nannofossils and dinoflagellate cysts, thus pointing to both a high sea-level and marine conditions before deposition of the Trubi Formation (i.e. in the latest Messinian).

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The Mediterranean Lifestyle: The Power of Food

EDIS ◽

10.32473/edis-fs399-2020 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 (6) ◽

Author(s):

Charissa Lim ◽

Alexa Hosey ◽

Farah Tadros ◽

Madison Woodard ◽

Jeanette Andrade

Keyword(s):

Dietary Pattern ◽

Mediterranean Basin ◽

Southern Italy ◽

Daily Life ◽

Food Science ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

Minimal Consumption ◽

Of Greece ◽

The Mediterranean Basin

The Mediterranean diet dates back to the early 1960s, in which the population living among the Mediterranean basin, much of Greece and Southern Italy consumed high amounts of fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and unprocessed cereals with minimal consumption of meat. This dietary pattern has been shown to improve heart health, maintain weight, and reduce the risk for chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. This new 6-page publication discusses the Mediterranean dietary pattern and provides tips to incorporate this lifestyle into daily life, as well as sample recipes. Written by Charissa Lim, Alexa Hosey, Farah Tadros, Madison Woodard, and Jeanette Andrade, and published by the UF/IFAS Food Science and Human Nutrition Department.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fs399

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Plant leaves for wrapping zongzi in China: an ethnobotanical study

Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine ◽

10.1186/s13002-019-0339-7 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 15 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Fengke Lin ◽

Binsheng Luo ◽

Bo Long ◽

Chunlin Long

Keyword(s):

Cultural Diversity ◽

Human Health ◽

Plant Species ◽

Cocos Nucifera ◽

Ethnobotanical Study ◽

Plant Leaves ◽

Potential Threat ◽

Zizania Latifolia ◽

Botanical Knowledge ◽

Traditional Botanical Knowledge

Abstract Background Zongzi, a common Chinese rice-pudding and one of the most symbolic foods in traditional Chinese festivals, is integral to both Chinese traditional culture and daily meals. Traditionally, the leaves of different plant species have been used to wrap zongzi. The variety of zongzi leaves (ZLs) can contribute to the zongzi-based cultural diversity. Given the cultural and dietary significance of zongzi, the ethnobotanical surveys were carried out, aiming to investigate the diversity of plant species and associated traditional botanical knowledge of ZLs, which could attract particular attention for their further studies. Method Both literature studies and field surveys were conducted in the study. The field investigations were carried out from May 2006 to June 2018 throughout China. Ethnobotanical information about ZLs was obtained by direct observation, semi-structured interviews, and key informant interviews. Results In total, ZLs from 57 plant species were identified and recorded, belonging to 38 genera and 18 families. Several folk legends have been formed to explain the origin of using plant leaves to pack zongzi. Over time, Chinese people have developed diverse traditional botanical knowledge surrounding ZLs, especially regarding the zongzi flavor, antiseptic functions, and medicinal values. Based on the literature review, some species of ZLs such as the leaves of Corchorus capsularis and Vernicia fordii may even pose a potential threat to human health. Presently, in some regions of China, the traditional ZLs, such as Cocos nucifera, Tilia tuan, and Zizania latifolia, are being substituted by commercialized ZLs such as Phragmites australis and Indocalamus tessellatus. Conclusion A variety of traditional ZLs have been discovered in China. Although diverse traditional knowledge exists in China surrounding the usage of ZLs, some species may have the potential of threatening human health. Therefore, further explorations are necessary to comprehensively evaluate traditional ZLs, the results of which could help to conserve the cultural diversity of zongzi, to guarantee food safety, and to encourage the uses of plant leaves in food, medicine, and environmental management, for our human health.

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Cranial Trepanation: Case Studies between the IV Century BC and VI Century in Southern Italy

10.5772/intechopen.95334 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Alessio Vovlas ◽

Nunzio Di Nunno ◽

Ginevra Panzarino ◽

Sandro Sublimi Saponetti

Keyword(s):

Surgical Procedures ◽

Late Antiquity ◽

Mediterranean Basin ◽

Southern Italy ◽

Central Area ◽

Surgical Removal ◽

The World ◽

Basin Area ◽

The Mediterranean Basin ◽

Multidisciplinary Teamwork

Cranial trepanation is among the oldest head surgical procedures, creating a hole through the skull. This procedure is the surgical removal of a portion of the skull as a medical treatment to cure a specific disease or as a religious or magical ritual. Cranial trepanation has been reported from very early times and widespread all over the world. This work is based on data from six trepanned skulls from the Hellenistic Age (IV century BC) to the Late Antiquity (VI century). The samples come from Puglia (Southern Italy), from the northern (the peninsula of Gargano) to the central area: three cases come from Vieste (Foggia), Ischitella (Foggia) and Alberona (Foggia), the others three from Gravina in Puglia (Bari) and Canosa (Barletta, Andria, Trani). All skulls have been evaluated via an anthropological, radiological and odontological approach. This study indicates the value of a methodology, which encompasses anthropology, radiology and imaging, and archeo-forensic investigations, highlighting the need for multidisciplinary teamwork in any assessment of human remains. The study supports the hypothesis of the presence of a long tradition of medical centres in the Mediterranean basin area.

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