Volume 184, 26 May 2016, Pages 208–218
Abstract
Ethnopharmacological relevance
New
documentation of the uses of plants in the popular medicine of the
Mainarde Mountain, a protected area of the central-southern Apennine
characterised by a high floristic richness, is here reported.
Materials and methods
Field
data were collected through semi-structured and open interviews with
native People between 2011 and 2014. The plants were identified and
vouchers specimens were scanned to create a Virtual Herbarium. The
Ethnobotanicity Index (EI), the Relative Importance Index (RI) and the
Fidelity Level Index (FL) were calculated. The plant uses surveyed in
the study area were compared with those described in medical and
ethnobotanical literature.
Results
Seventy-one
interviews were conducted, the age range of the informants was between
21 and 98 years. The inventory included 106 taxa belonging to 45
families; among these, 87 were wild species and 20 were cultivated
species. The uses recorded were 429, among these, 69.1% of the uses
concerned internal applications to treat digestive system disorders,
infections and respiratory system disorders mainly, while 31.9%
concerned external applications, especially to treat skin/subcutaneous
cellular tissue disorders and injuries. In particular, 17 new uses and
16 unusual and rarely mentioned plants are documented.
Conclusion
The
data collected support evidence on traditional uses for plant in the
Apennine. Findings from medical flora and from new or rare medical uses
reinforce the usefulness of such research efforts.
Graphical abstract
Keywords
- Italy;
- Ethnobotany;
- Traditional knowledge;
- Medicinal plants
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