Traditional medicines have been playing significant role in livestock health care management since long especially in remote area. This paper is based on a field survey conducted to collect information for curing different ailments utilized by local people and tribals in the Hamirpur district, Himachal Pradesh. Total 541 households were interviewed involved as informants with fully prepared questionnaires; proper interaction along with group discussion. Information were collected from the selected sites regarding way to cure different ailments of animals which was further analyzed for the authenticity of data through different statistical quantitative indices. We found total 121 plant species belonging to 61 families that have been documented to be of common use for curing 78 different types of livestock. Total ailments were categorized into fifteen major categories based on the body organ systems of livestock. The highest number of ethno-medicinal plants were recorded from family Fabaceae followed by Asteraceae and other families. Leaves were the most commonly used part of the plant for the preparation of ethno-medicinal medicines followed by other plant parts. Achyranthes aspera, Acorus calamus, Pogostemon benghalensis are the most important plants used to cure different ailments on the basis of use value index. On the basis of Informant Consensus factor (FIC), diseases related to digestive system, reproductive system, respiratory and fever were considered as major ailments in the livestock. In conclusion, we found in this study that most of the plants are widely used to cure different ailments as reported previously by different workers. However, on the first hand, many new findings to cure different ailments of livestock have been found during this survey indicating need for conducting more studies to get valuable information from the local community which are not documented yet. It was also found that indigenous people have excellent information with respect to ethnoecological aspect. There is an urgent need to study and document the traditional uses before they are disappeared from the society or community and further study must be integrated with qualitative and quantatitative data to assess importance of plants for ethno-veterinery purposes.
Kamala tree (Mallotus philippensis) is traditionally used by different ethnic groups to treat a variety of diseases and health ailments. However, these traditional uses need to be scientifically investigated and validated in order to develop drugs from this tree. Therefore, the present article is aimed to review the scientifically validated knowledge on the pharmacology and phytochemistry of the tree. To accomplish this, we extensively surveyed the available databases like Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, NCBI including PubMed and PubChem, etc. by using keywords ‘Mallotus philippensis’, ‘Mallotus phillippinensis’ and ‘Mallotus philippinensis’. Our results indicated that the tree possesses more than 50 different types of important phytochemicals of natural origin. The wide array of phytochemicals possesses fascinating biological activities like anthelmintic, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-cancerous, anti-tuberculosis, anti-parasitic, analgesic, anti-urolithiatic and anti-viral activities. Thus, pharmacological activities and isolation of active phytochemicals make the tree a promising candidate for drug discovery. However, pharmacological activities such as antibacterial and anti-oxidant activities are often tested with crude extracts and in vitro rudimentary methods that can be sometimes misleading and non-specific. Thus, more sophisticated techniques may be applied for the isolation of active chemicals and elucidating their mechanism of actions.
Despite advances in biomedical technology, many communities and local people are still dependent on natural and herbal medications. A large number of different ethnic groups like the Tharu, Kani, Garo and other local inhabitants thrive in the Indian subcontinent and other parts of the world. These indigenous people traditionally use Mallotus philippensis (Lam.) Müll. Arg. (Euphorbiaceae) for a variety of medicinal (ethnoveterinary and ethnomedicines), ritual and economic purposes. Therefore, the present article aims to assess how many various types of disorders are being treated by the ethnic groups using formulations prepared from this tree. In addition, we aim to identify the gaps in knowledge and recommend future investigations based upon them. The present analysis based on 83 articles indicated that different ethnic groups are utilising the tree to treat about 142 health ailments that can be broadly categorised into 11 types of disorders. Among these disorder categories, helminthic infestations, dermatological and digestive disorders are most frequently treated with formulations prepared from this tree. Among plant parts, fruits are the most exclusively used component followed by leaves and bark. The usage of fruits as an anthelminthic is widespread and highly cited for both animals and human beings. Thus, the tree can serve as a promising ethnomedicine to treat helminthic infestations, dermatological and digestive problems. Therefore, the cultivation of this medicinal plant should be encouraged in order to promote the conservation of this species.
Background: Indigenous people of any particular region use various wild plants for their food, medicines, and other economic products. Many of these wild plants have been documented for their utilization as future foods and medicines based on these people's information. However, information about the nutrient components of many wild edible plants has yet to be scientifically tested. Therefore, this study evaluated the nutrient components of selected wild edible plants.Methods: A total of 21 species were selected for nutrient and mineral analyses from a total of 90 wild edible plants reported during the survey of 1720 households. Based on the reported edible use, different plant parts of each species were evaluated for their carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamin, and mineral contents. The obtained data were then analyzed using various quantitative indices to assess the selected wild edible plant's efficacy. Results: It was found that nutrient content considerably varied among all the selected species. Among the selected plant species, Digera muricata has the richest protein content, the tuber of Dioscorea sp. has plenty of carbohydrate content, and Dioscorea bulbifera has the highest fat content. Similarly, Spondias pinnata and Boerhavia diffusa were rich sources of vitamin C and vitamin E, respectively. Digera muricata was found to be promising future food based on overall nutrient composition. Conclusions: Several traditionally used wild edible plants can have surprisingly higher nutritional contents. These plants can offer a basis for developing dietary supplements and nutraceuticals on a commercial scale. Thus, scientific evaluation and validation of such underutilized plants and their products may prove an alternative future food for malnutrition people.
BackgroundIndigenous people of any particular region use various wild plants for their food, medicines, and other economic products. Many of these wild plants have been documented for their utilization as future foods and medicines based on these people's information. However, information about the nutrient components of many wild edible plants has yet to be scienti cally tested. Therefore, this study evaluated the nutrient components of selected wild edible plants. MethodsA total of 21 species were selected for nutrient and mineral analyses from a total of 90 wild edible plants reported during the survey of 1720 households. Based on the reported edible use, different plant parts of each species were evaluated for their carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamin, and mineral contents. The obtained data were then analyzed using various quantitative indices to assess the selected wild edible plant's e cacy. ResultsIt was found that nutrient content considerably varied among all the selected species. Among the selected plant species, Digera muricata has the richest protein content, the tuber of Dioscorea sp. has plenty of carbohydrate content, and Dioscorea bulbifera has the highest fat content. Similarly, Spondias pinnata and Boerhavia diffusa were rich sources of vitamin C and vitamin E, respectively. Digera muricata was found to be promising future food based on overall nutrient composition. ConclusionsSeveral traditionally used wild edible plants can have surprisingly higher nutritional contents. These plants can offer a basis for developing dietary supplements and nutraceuticals on a commercial scale.We are thankful to the local people and administration of Hamirpur district of Himachal Pradesh for providing necessary facilities and kind cooperation during the eldwork. Thanks are due to the
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