scholarly journals What Factors Guide the Selection of Medicinal Plants in a Local Pharmacopoeia? A Case Study in a Rural Community from a Historically Transformed Atlantic Forest Landscape

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taline Cristina da Silva ◽  
Josilene Marinho da Silva ◽  
Marcelo Alves Ramos
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Forest Landscape ◽  
Herbaceous Species ◽  
Shrub Species ◽  
Trees And Shrubs ◽  
Selection Of

The criteria that local people use for selecting medicinal plants have been a recurrent topic in pharmacology and ethnobotany. Two of the current hypotheses regarding this phenomenon, ecological apparency and diversification, attempt to explain the inclusion of “apparent” and “non-apparent” and native and exotic taxa, respectively, in local pharmacopoeia. This study addresses the following questions: Do “apparent” and “non-apparent” medicinal plants have the same importance in local pharmacopoeia? Do “non-apparent” plants occupy more local categories of diseases than “apparent” plants? Do native and exotic medicinal plants have the same importance? Do exotic and native plants occupy different local categories of diseases? This study was conducted with householders of a community from Northeastern Brazil. Out of the 66 plant species cited, most were herbs (39 species), followed by trees and shrubs (27). Herbaceous species also occupied more local categories of diseases (51) than tree and shrub species (28). Furthermore, most of the species cited by the informants were exotic (42). Out of the 94 therapeutic applications cited in this research, 65 were treated with exotic species and 29 with native species, distributed among 13 body systems. These results support both the hypotheses of ecological apparency and diversification.

Application of large- and medium-scale aerial photographs to forest vegetation management: A case study

2000 ◽  
Vol 76 (6) ◽  
pp. 903-913 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas G. Pitt ◽  
Ulf Runesson ◽  
F. Wayne Bell
Keyword(s):  
Life Forms ◽  
Vegetation Management ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Herbaceous Species ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Forest Classification ◽  
Vegetation Complexes ◽  
Product Verification ◽  
Selection Of

Five experimental conifer release treatments applied to each of four, three- to seven- year-old spruce plantations resulted in a mosaic of woody and herbaceous vegetation complexes after two growing seasons. A combination of 1:5000-scale overview and 1:500-scale sample photographs were evaluated as a means of mapping and quantifying cover in each of eight vegetation and two non-vegetation categories. On 23-cm format, 1:5000-scale photographs, blocks were stereoscopically stratified into areas (> 25 m2) of uniform vegetation. A random selection of eighty 70-mm format, 1:500 photo samples were then used as "training sites" to calibrate strata assessment on the 1:5000 photographs. Remaining sample plots were used to verify the accuracy of the final map product. Verification plots suggested that principle vegetation components such as tall, mid, and low shrub, grass, and herbaceous species were estimated to within 5–10% cover, at least 70% of the time. Errors for lesser components, such as dead shrub, conifer, bare ground and slash were 2–5% cover. Ferns could not be discerned at the 1:5000 scale and there was evidence of occasional confusion between herbaceous species and other life forms, including mid shrub, low shrub, and grass categories. Operational applications of the methodology are discussed. Key words: remote sensing, digitized aerial photographs, vegetation management, forest classification

Use Categories and Local Perception of Decline in Plant Populations: a Case Study of Woody Medicinal Plants in Northeastern Brazil

2020 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 356-362
Author(s):  
Edgar Caliento Barbosa ◽  
Ramon Salgueiro Cruz ◽  
Gabriela Maria Cota dos Santos ◽  
Rafael Ricardo Vasconcelos da Silva ◽  
Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Plant Populations ◽  
Local Perception ◽  
Use Categories

scholarly journals A Menstruating Taboo is Structuring and Shaping the Human Behavior in the Harvesting of Medicinal Plants in a Semiarid Landscape in Brazil

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Izaquiel Alves de Siqueira ◽  
Jorge Izaquiel Alves de Siqueira ◽  
Luci de Senna-Valle ◽  
Edna Maria Ferreira Chaves ◽  
Jesus Rodrigues Lemos
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Great Influence ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Traditional Practice ◽  
Research Participants ◽  
Home Remedies ◽  
The Social

Abstract BackgroundThis article presents, from a biocultural perspective, a menstruating taboo related to the touching, harvesting and preparation of home remedies based on the use of medicinal plants in a rural community located in a semiarid landscape of Cocal municipality, Piauí state, Northeastern Brazil. MethodsMethods used include participant observation and semi-structured interviews performed with 27 local people (21 female and six male) that recognized a taboo regarding the menstruating cycle and the harvesting of medicinal plants in Franco rural community, Cocal, Piauí, Northeastern Brazil. Semi-structured interviews were used to document data regarding the profile of research participants, their perceptions about the taboo documented, as well as the social and biocultural implications of the execution of this traditional practice of prohibition. Participant observation was conducted in order to grasp a better understanding of the social and biocultural implications of the taboo. Additionally, a photographic record was kept during this stage.ResultsIt was verified in Franco rural community that female adolescents and/or women in their menstruating period were prohibited from touching, harvesting and/or preparing home remedies based on the use of medicinal plants. Research participants believed that this can cause the death of medicinal plants, or that they lose their medicinal properties. This taboo has serious social and biocultural implications locally, and can be structured firstly as maladaptive of cultural information at the individual level, as it inhibits the ability of menstruating women to take care of themselves and the health of their families, and secondly as an adaptative strategy at the group level among its users (promotes the transmission of knowledge and cooperation among its users). This traditional practice has serious positive implications for maintaining local bioculturality, sustainability of local medical systems and women's health.ConclusionThis taboo documented within the Franco community is an important informal institution with great influence on human biocultural behavior. The inclusion of these perspectives on taboos in biocultural studies offers opportunities for a greater understanding of biocultural attitudes related to interactions between the human species/biota and the environment in a complex knowledge system.

scholarly journals Vegetation structure and floristic composition (Case study: Mala Galeh Protected area, Fars Province, Iran)

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 533-544
Author(s):  
Leila Leiili Moradipour ◽  
Hasan Pourbabaei ◽  
Ahmad Hatami
Keyword(s):  
Protected Area ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Fars Province ◽  
Herbaceous Species ◽  
Shrub Species ◽  
Stick Model ◽  
Quercus Brantii ◽  
Asteraceae Family ◽  
Sampling Plot

Identifying flora of each region is fundamental for accomplishing other pure and applied researches in biology. Especially, in the ecological conditions of protected area of Male Gale. Data were collected in 96 sampling plots using systematic­_ random method. The size of sampling plot was 20 m × 50 m for the tree and shrub species, and 8 m × 8 m for herbaceous species. In this study area, 162 species, 122 genera and 43 families were identified. The largest families were Asteraceae (26 species) and Fabaceae (25 species). The frequency of Asteraceae may be due to grazing in some areas of the region. The life form spectrum includes: Hemichryptophytes (14/01 %), Therophytes (65/4 %), Cryptophytes (76/9 %), Chamaephytes (7.1 %) and Phanerophytes (5.8 %). The abundance of Therophytes and Asteraceae family is refered to destruction of forests in the study area. The highest value of the SIV tree and shrub species layer belong to Quercus brantii species and ZIziphus Mummularia. The highest value of the FIV herbaceous layer belong to Asteraceae family. The Species Important Value (SIV) of vegetation cover indicated that tree, shrubs species and herbaceous species had geometric distribution, broken stick model and lognormal distribution in this area.

scholarly journals Intracultural Variation in the Knowledge of Medicinal Plants in an Urban-Rural Community in the Atlantic Forest from Northeastern Brazil

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecília de Fátima Castelo Branco Rangel de Almeida ◽  
Marcelo Alves Ramos ◽  
Rafael Ricardo Vasconcelos Silva ◽  
Joabe Gomes de Melo ◽  
Maria Franco Trindade Medeiros ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Forest Fragment ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Urban Rural ◽  
Plant Families ◽  
Number Of Citations ◽  
General Community

This study assessed the intracultural knowledge of the use of medicinal plants in an urban-rural community in an Atlantic forest fragment in northeastern Brazil. We examined the importance of native and exotic species and the effects of gender and age on that knowledge. We also compared data obtained from different groups of informants (local experts and general community). We conducted 194 interviews between June 2007 and January 2008, using the freelist technique and semistructured forms to collect ethnobotanical data. Information obtained from the community was compared with that from six local experts who participated in a survey in 2003. From a total of 209 ethnospecies, exotic and herbaceous plants presented higher richness. With respect to the number of citations, women and older informants were shown to know a higher number of medicinal plants. Comparing knowledge of local experts with that of the general community, we noted that experts know a similar wealth of plant families and therapeutic indications, but the community knows a greater species richness. These results indicate that local experts may provide useful information for studies that search for a quick diagnosis of the knowledge of a given community.

Sustainable sewerage servicing options for peri-urban areas with failing septic systems

2010 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 570-585 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. K. Sharma ◽  
G. Tjandraatmadja ◽  
A. L. Grant ◽  
T. Grant ◽  
F. Pamminger
Keyword(s):  
Rural Community ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Septic Systems ◽  
Environmental Implications ◽  
Sustainable Solutions ◽  
Fit For Purpose ◽  
Water And Wastewater ◽  
Reuse Options ◽  
Selection Of

The provision of water and wastewater services to peri-urban areas faces very different challenges to providing services to cities. Sustainable solutions for such areas are increasingly being sought, in order to solve the environmental and health risks posed by failing septic systems. These solutions should have the capability to reduce potable water demand, provide fit for purpose reuse options, and minimise impacts on the local and global environment. A methodology for the selection of sustainable sewerage servicing systems and technologies is presented in this paper. This paper describes the outcomes of applying this methodology to a case study in rural community near Melbourne, Australia, and describes the economic and environmental implications of various sewerage servicing options. Applying this methodology has found that it is possible to deliver environmental improvements at a lower community cost, by choosing servicing configurations not historically used by urban water utilities. The selected solution is currently being implemented, with the aim being to generate further transferable learnings for the water industry.

scholarly journals Taste and chemical composition as drives for utilitarian redundancy and equivalence: a case study in local medical systems in Northeastern Brazil

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
RAFAEL CORRÊA PROTA DOS SANTOS REINALDO ◽  
Flávia Rosa Santoro ◽  
ULYSSES PAULINO ALBUQUERQUE ◽  
PATRÍCIA MUNIZ MEDEIROS
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Medical Systems ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Organoleptic Characteristics ◽  
Therapeutic Function ◽  
Equivalence Model ◽  
Selection Of

Abstract Background We aimed to verify whether the taste and chemical composition influence the selection of plants in each medicinal category, whether within a socio-ecological system or between different socio-ecological systems. To this end, we use the theoretical bases of the Utilitarian Redundancy Model and the Utilitarian Equivalence Model. We studied the local medical systems of four rural communities in northeastern Brazil, used as models to test our assumptions. Methods The data on medicinal plants and local therapeutic function were obtained from semi-structured interviews associated with the free-listing method, allowing to generate indexes of similarity of therapeutic use between the plants cited in each region. During the interviews, each informer was also asked to report the tastes of the plants cited. Subsequently, we classified each plant in each region according to the most cited taste. The data about the chemical composition of each plant were obtained from a systematic review, using Web of Knowledge and Scopus databases. Results Pairs of plants with similar tastes are 1.46 times more likely to have the same therapeutic function within a local medical system (redundancy), but not between medical systems (equivalence). We also find that chemical compounds are not primarily responsible for utilitarian redundancy and equivalence. However, there was a tendency for alkaloids to be doubly present with greater expressiveness in pairs of equivalent plants. Conclusions The results indicate that each social group can create its means of using the organoleptic characteristics as clues to select new species as medicinal. Furthermore, this study corroborates the main prediction of the Utilitarian Equivalence Model, that people in different environments choose plants with traits in common for the same functions.

scholarly journals Does Climatic Seasonality of the Caatinga Influence the Composition of the Free lists of Medicinal Plants? A Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-54
Author(s):  
Ernani Machado de Freitas Lins Neto ◽  
Silvana Vieira dos Santos ◽  
Washington Soares Ferreira Júnior
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Data Collection Tool ◽  
Dry Period ◽  
Northeast Region ◽  
Rainy Period ◽  
Free List ◽  
Dry Seasons

The free list is a key data collection tool in ethnobotanical studies. For this reason, it is currently receiving a great deal of attention regarding possible methodological limitations. To this end, we aim to investigate the influence of climatic seasonality of the Caatinga ecosystem on the composition of free lists of medicinal plants provided by people from a rural community located in the northeast region of Brazil. People were asked the same trigger question (which medicinal plants do you know?), during the rainy and dry seasons. Comparing the plant lists described during both periods (68 plants), respondent salience in the rainy period was significantly higher than the dry period. However, similarities can be observed between the two lists, especially with respect to their composition and the continued importance of hortelã (Mentha sp.) and alecrim (Lippia sp.), which maintained prominent positions during the rainy and dry seasons. The general analysis of the free lists revealed that there were no significant differences due to temporality, especially in relation to plants with a higher salience value. Since these plants are found mainly in homegardens, it is possible to deduce that the daily conduct of activities in these environments is stimulating and keeping plants in homegardens active in people’s memory. However, much still needs to be investigated about the free list technique in ethnobotanical data collection, especially with regard to the influence of seasonality on stimulating seasonal diseases.

scholarly journals Can the Apparency Hypothesis explain the selection of medicinal plants in an area of caatinga vegetation? A chemical perspective

2009 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 911-911 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nélson Leal Alencar ◽  
Thiago Antonio de Sousa Araújo ◽  
Elba Lúcia Cavalcanti de Amorim ◽  
Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque
Keyword(s):  
Medicinal Plants ◽  
Rural Community ◽  
Scientific Note ◽  
Caatinga Vegetation ◽  
Selection Of

This scientific note examines the ability of the apparency hypothesis to explain the selection of medicinal plants by members of a rural community located in the Caatinga dryland region of Pernambuco state. A total of 61 plants considered to be medicinal were examined phytochemically to test the premises of this hypothesis. It was concluded that apparency does not completely explain our findings.

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