DNA Barcoding for the Identification and Authentication of Animal Species in Traditional Medicine

Animal-based traditional medicine not only plays a significant role in therapeutic practices worldwide but also provides a potential compound library for drug discovery. However, persistent hunting and illegal trade markedly threaten numerous medicinal animal species, and increasing demand further provokes the emergence of various adulterants. As the conventional methods are difficult and time-consuming to detect processed products or identify animal species with similar morphology, developing novel authentication methods for animal-based traditional medicine represents an urgent need. During the last decade, DNA barcoding offers an accurate and efficient strategy that can identify existing species and discover unknown species via analysis of sequence variation in a standardized region of DNA. Recent studies have shown that DNA barcoding as well as minibarcoding and metabarcoding is capable of identifying animal species and discriminating the authentics from the adulterants in various types of traditional medicines, including raw materials, processed products, and complex preparations. These techniques can also be used to detect the unlabelled and threatened animal species in traditional medicine. Here, we review the recent progress of DNA barcoding for the identification and authentication of animal species used in traditional medicine, which provides a reference for quality control and trade supervision of animal-based traditional medicine.

Ethno-medicinal Uses of Animals and Plants among the Migratory Tangbetons of Pokhara, Nepal

This paper attempts to study various uses of medicinal animals and plants among the migratory Tangbetons of Nepal who were migrated to Pokhara Sub-Metro Politian City from Tangbe Village in Mustang district. Direct observation, questionnaire survey and key informant interview were conducted during the study period. Information about the medicinal plants and animals were given mainly by the Amchi and their information was taken from the elder persons. Finally, this paper recorded 17 medicinal animal species and 60 widely used medicinal plant species for the treatment of various diseases.Journal of Institute of Science and Technology, 2014, 19(1): 145-149