This review concerns three legume trees (family Fabaceae, subfamily Caesalpinioideae) from West Africa, namely Detarium microcarpum, Parkia biglobosa and Dialium guineense, and illustrates their ...nutritional value and therapeutic properties. These species are an important source of nutrition for West African populations, but their agricultural exploitation is still incomplete. The survey was conducted on Scopus, Web of Science, and Medline, using scientific and common English names of the species as keywords and then selecting papers related to nutritional and medicinal properties. Main food products are fruit pulp and seeds, though leaves can also be used. Most relevant dietary features are high protein, vitamin, and micronutrient contents. Various therapeutic and nutritional benefits of these plants have been documented by ethnobotanical and experimental studies, stimulating an interest for their possible use as functional food or drug sources. Most studied medicinal properties include antidiabetic and antimicrobial activities of D. microcarpum, cardiovascular protective and antidiabetic activities of P. biglobosa, and bilharzia-preventing molluscicidal activity of D. guineense. Phytochemical characterizations have revealed potential sources of active drugs, such as D. guineense saponins and D. microcarpum diterpenes. Scientific results support popular uses of these legume trees, indicating a prominent nutritional and health value.
•The genus Ferula (Apiaceae) consists of a large number of herbal species.•Essential oils (EOs), volatiles and extracts of Ferula exhibit diverse profiles.•Folkloric, biological and medicinal ...properties of Ferula species are discussed.•Many new secondary metabolites have been characterized in this genus plants.•This review is based on an exhaustive survey in Scopus database.
This study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the medicinal, folkloric and traditional culinary uses of Ferula species, related products and extracts in different countries together with the description of recently isolated new components and the related bioactivities. The phytochemical composition of the essential oils (EOs), oleo-gum-resin (OGR) and the non-volatile fractions obtained from several endemic and indigenous Ferula species is also reported. A special emphasis is placed on their unusual components, i.e. sulfur-containing volatiles from the EOs and the new phytochemicals with mixed biogenetic origins. More than 180 chemical constituents (excluding common essential oils components), including sulfur-containing metabolites, terpenoids, coumarins, sesquiterpene coumarins, etc., as both aglycones and glycosides, are reported, along with their occurrence and biological activities when available. A large number of new secondary metabolites, belonging to different classes of natural products possessing interesting biological activities, from the antiproliferative to the anti-inflammatory to the neuroprotective ones, among the others, have been recently found in the Ferula genus. Several of these phytochemicals are exclusive to this genus; therefore may be considered chemotaxonomic markers. All these aspects are extensively discussed in this review.
The indigenous communities of Shishikoh valley are often using various ferns taxa regularly. The current research work was intended for documenting the ethnomedicinal knowledge of ferns. A total of ...18 taxa were recorded that belonged to 9 genera and 6 families being used in the treatment of different ailments. Pteridaceae was the leading family with 6 taxa (33.33%), followed by Aspleniaceae with 4 taxa (22.22%), Athyriaceae and Equisetaceae each with 3 taxa (16.67%) followed by Dryopteridaceae and Marsileaceae each with 1 taxon (5.56%). The reported ferns taxa were used as anthelminthic, anti-rheumatic, astringent and wound healing agents and in the treatment of different ailments such as asthma, bronchitis, diarrhea, dysentery, gonorrhea, hepatitis, infertility, influenza, kidney disorders, measles, oral ulcer, oral thrush, pneumonia, pyelonephritis, pharyngitis, scorpion bite, sinusitis, tonsillitis and tuberculosis. Ethnomedicinal knowledge is a valuable source for the innovation of different allopathic, homeopathic and herbal drugs that are used for the treatment of different ailments. The fern species may be used commercially for medicinal purposes through sustainable way. Their proper cultivation and awareness about medicinal values among local community leads to discover new drugs.
Fadhilah RN, Koesdaryanto NS, Pribady TR, Restanta RAP, Nugroho GD, Yasa A, Sujarta P, Setyawan AD. 2023. Ethnomedicinal knowledge of traditional healers on medicinal plants in Sukoharjo District, ...Central Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 24: 4223-4234. Indonesia is blessed with the world's largest biological diversity, reflected in the tens of thousands of species of plants that occur in Indonesia. This privilege benefits the community by using it in everyday life, including in the health sector. Medicinal plants have various benefits, such as relieving cough, fever, wounds, and other body system problems. Sukoharjo District, Central Java, Indonesia, is known as a center of traditional herbal medicine (Jamu), and the people in this district have used medicinal plants in the traditional medicine practiced by various healers or shamans. However, this local wisdom has not been documented scientifically. This study aims to collect data on ethnomedicinal knowledge of traditional healers in Sukoharjo and relevant information regarding medicinal plants used by them, including the taste of the plant. The method used in this research was a combination of direct observation, field notes, and in-depth interviews with several traditional healers. The study documented that 75 species of medicinal plants belonged to 41 families dominated by the Zingiberaceae family. Most of the plant parts of the medicinal plants used are the leaf, mostly consumed by boiling, resulting in a bitter taste drink. Common diseases to cure with traditional medicinal plants include coughs, fever, flatulence, diarrhea, diabetes, menstrual pain, flu, toothache, and ulcers. The findings of this study highlight that even though modern medicine is available, people still trust traditional healers and utilize medicinal plants, which are important for preserving ethnomedicinal knowledge in a region.
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