Traditional knowledge about medicinal plant in the remote areas of Wari Tehsil, Dir Upper, Pakistan

Traditional medicine is cheaper and easily available to local people, to care for most frequent diseases in the Northern parts of Pakistan. Our study aimed at inventorying medicine from local plants, documenting their uses, and assessing their market value in 2015-2018 during spring, summer, and winter seasons. A total of 15 trips were made, 5 in each season. Semi-structured interviews with 165 inhabitant’s age range between 20-80 years were conducted, analyzed the data is analyzed using Relative frequency of citation(RFC), Use Value(UV), Fidelity Level(FL), Informants consensus factor(ICF), and Jaccard index(JI) to find the most frequent and well-known used species in the area. A total of 86 species belonging to 39 vascular plant families, 33 genera were documented as medicinally important. Family Asteraceae was observed as the dominant family among all the families with 10 species, the leaf was the most used parts and decoction 36% was the most preferred preparation type. Herb was the predominant life form (67%). The maximum UV (0.92) was demonstrated by J. adhatoda L. species, while A. sativum L. shows maximum RFC (0.58), the highest ICF value represented by diarrhea and dermatitis 0.92, and high FL value is recorded 100%. According to our collections, wild species were 45%, invasive species were 38% and cultivated 17% recorded, dicots species were recorded more 81%. Seven 7 medicinal species is being economically important and export to the local and international market of the world, whereas P. integrima L. species were the most exported species according to the local dealers. The investigated area is rural and the local people depend on the area's plants for their health needs, and other uses like a vegetable, fuelwood, fodder, etc. The current result of RFC, UV, ICF, FL, and JI shows that medicinal flora needs to be pharmacologically and phytochemically investigated to prove their efficacy. The documentation of medicinal knowledge is important to preserve this precious old knowledge before it is lost forever, due to technological and environmental changes in the world.

Ethnobotanical Studies of flora of Jebel Aulia district, Khartoum state with emphasis to toxicity of the common medicinal plants: دراسة تصنيفية للنباتات واستخداماتها العشبية في منطقة جبل أولياء، ولاية الخرطوم مع التركيز علي سمية النباتات الطبية المحلية

Ethnobotany is the scientific study of the relationships that exist between people and plants. Ethnobotanists aim to document, describe and explain complex relationships between cultures and plants, focusing primarily on how plants are used, managed and perceived across human societies. This includes use for food, clothing, currency, ritual, medicine, dye, construction, cosmetics. Ethnobotanical studies are often significant in revealing locally important plant species especially for the discovery of crude drugs The documentation of traditional knowledge, especially on the medicinal uses of plants. has provided many important drugs of modern day. Out of the total flowering plants reported from the world, more than 50, 000 are used for medicinal purposes ( Govaerts, 2001 ). Extensive and intensive field trips were conducted to the study area during a course of two years from 2013 to 2015 representing several sites through Jebel Aulia district, Khartoum state. The study revealed a total of 117 species belonging to 100 genera and 45 families were recorded at Jebel Aulia locality. The family Poaceae was found to be the richest (13 species) followed by Ceasalpiniaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Mimosaceae (7 species) and Asteraceae (6 species). Herbs have dominated the vegetation of the study area (62. 40%) followed with trees (15. 40%), shrubs (8. 5%). Genus Euphorbia was considered as the most speciose (4 species) pursued with Senna and Ipomea which were represented by 3 species each. Tribulus longipetalus and Cyperus alopecuroides along with their Ethnomedicinal uses were documented for the first time. Fruits were the most commonly used plant part to prepare medicine followed with leaves and seeds. The main preparation methods of herbal remedies were infusion (25%) followed with decoction (14. 3%), edible (10. 7%) and pills (10. 7%). Oral administration was the most common route of herbal remedies within traditional medicine. Urinary tracts, kidney and abdominal complaints were the most frequent ailments traditionally healed. The source of medicinal plants was wild, (41. 66%), were cultivated (33. 34%) and (25%) were commercially bought from the market. Senna alexandrina was the most cited and important plant in the study area followed with Ziziphus spina-christi, Acacia nilotica, Solenostemma argel and Cymbopogon proximus. High informants consensus factor was indicated for Medicinal, furniture and food uses. Ziziphus spina Christi, Acacia senegal, Allium sativum and Cinnamomum verum have highest use-value ranging from (0. 062 to 0. 05). Cytotoxicity was evaluated using plants with a high relative frequency of citation. The results revealed that LC50 of water and ethanolic extracts of Acacia nilotica were more than 1000 µg/ml which considered not toxic and consequently safe at this dose. Whereas, water and ethanolic extracts of Senna alexandrina were less than LC 50 =256. 206 - 409. 6079 µg/ml. which is considered moderately toxic. Therefore, Senna extracts should be carefully used.

Ethnobotanical investigation on medicinal plants used against human ailments in Erkowit and Sinkat areas, Eastern Sudan

Adam M, Ahmed AA, Yagi A, Yagi S. 2020. Ethnobotanical investigation on medicinal plants used against human ailments in Erkowit and Sinkat areas, Eastern Sudan. Biodiversitas 21: 3255-3262. The present study provides ethnobotanical data for the traditionally used medicinal plants of Erkowit and Sinkat, Eastern Sudan. The survey data were collected from 53 traditional healers through a survey carried out in February-December 2018. Fifty-eight plant species represent 34 flowering families and one Parmeliaceae lichen that are used for therapeutic purposes in the selected area. The families of highest prevalence were Euphorbiaceae (8 species) followed by Leguminosae (7 species). To validate information on the use of plants,: Use Value (UV), Fidelity Level (FL), and Informants’ Consensus Factor (ICF) were applied. The most commonly used species was Adansonia digitata with a UV of 0.89. The majority of the informants agreed on the use of Oxalis anthelmintica to treat anemia and Psidium guajava in the treatment of tuberculosis and cough, with a very high FL (92% and 91% respectively). All informants agreed on the effectiveness of Withania somnifera in treating breast inflammation and cancer, with top ICF of 1. These medicinal plants play an important role in the available healthcare provision in the study area. This preliminary study should be further continued into scientific assessment of their therapeutic use and safety through different biological activity tests and toxicological properties.

Indigenous Knowledge and Practices on Medicinal Plants Used by Local Communities of Gambella Region, South West Ethiopia

Indigenous knowledge and practices on medicinal plants used by local communities of Gambella region, south west Ethiopia was conducted to investigate those potential and popular medicinal plants used for the treatment of various diseases in Gambella region. A total of 100 purposively selected inhabitants were employed in the study of which 84 were male and 16 were females. A traditional use of plants information was obtained by semi structured oral interviews from experienced rural elders, Focus group discussion and through questionnaire administered to traditional herbal medicine practitioners of the study area. 81 medicinal plants were identified for the traditional treatment of both human (25) and animal (16) disease. The highest numbers of medicinal plants for traditional uses utilized by this community were belonging to shrubs 30(37.03%) followed by trees (32.10%). The result reviled that 15.2% of the remedies are prepared from root part and squeezing accounts 17(20.99%) followed by chewing 14(17.28%). The major routs of administration of traditional medicines were reported oral 50(61.73%). Urine, placental retention and milk let down accounts higher informants’ consensus factor value (0.96). The findings showed that sheferaw and leele have higher fidelity level which is 100 and 92 respectively. Various factors were recorded as the main threats of medicinal plants in the study area. In conclusion, the community carries a vast knowledge of medicinal plants but this knowledge is also rapidly disappearing in this community. Such type of ethno-botanical studies will help in systematic documentation of ethno-botanical knowledge and availing to the scientific world plant therapies used as antivenin by the Gambella community and further research on plant species identification and chemical extraction is recommended.

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in Torul district, Turkey

This study is aimed at reporting some of the plants traditionally used in the treatment of diseases by the local people living in the centre of Torul district and its surrounding villages. A face-to-face two-part questionnaire survey was conducted with 82 local people. Identification of 29 taxa belonging to 18 families has been confirmed and their medicinal uses have been recorded. In addition, the usage patterns of plant parts andpurposes are recognized. Plants are mostly used in the treatment of cold and flu, stomach disorders, gynecological, cardiovascular, and respiratory diseases. The highest use value (UV) was recorded for Rosa canina (0.54) and Mentha longifolia subsp. longifolia (0.46) and the highest Informants Consensus Factor (FIC) was cited for cold and flu (0.83) followed by stomach disorders (0.75). New information for folklore medicines have been collected from the study area.