Plants used by a Quilombola group in Brazil with potential central nervous system effects

Abstract

This study focused on an ethnopharmacological survey among a group of Brazilian Quilombolas (descended from runaway slaves living in hideouts up-country) whose therapeutic practices involve a combination of healing ceremonies and prescription of medicinal plants consisting of the use of, at least, 48 plants with possible effect on the central nervous system (CNS), cited in 53 formulas prescribed for 17 therapeutic indications, the main ones being: to fortify the brain, for insomnia, as a sedative, for insanity, weight loss, and rejuvenation. The formulas consist of one to ten plants, and each plant may be recommended for up to seven different therapeutic indications, with evidence of non-specificity in the use of plants in this culture. Of these 48 plants, only 31 could be identified to the species level as belonging to 20 taxonomic families, with the Asteraceae, Malpighiaceae, Cyperaceae, and Myrtaceae as the most important families. Only eleven of these species have been previously studied and appear in scientific literature. Some of these plants are at present under study in the Department of Psychobiology of the Federal University of Sao Paulo.

Brazilian plants with possible action on the Central Nervous System: a study of historical sources from the 16th to 19th century

“…In a review focused on plants possibly acting/having effect on CSN indicated by 26 native Brazilian ethnicities , it was observed that families with the highest frequency of reporting were Fabaceae, Asteraceae, Rubiaceae and Solanaceae, among others. Two other ethnopharmacological studies with the same focus as this review verified that the Fabaceae, Sterculiaceae, Asteraceae and Rubiaceae families Giorgetti et al are also present among reports given by members of the Krahô tribe (Rodrigues & Carlini, 2005); while Asteraceae is dominant among the Sesmaria MataCavalos quilombola (Rodrigues & Carlini, 2004). In a review study on psychoactive plants used by Mexican indian tribes (Díaz, 1977), it was also observed that among the most frequently mentioned families, the Solanaceae, Asteraceae and Fabaceae families were to be found.…”

Saúde e comunidades quilombolas: uma revisão da literatura

“…O conhecimento e o respeito às noções de saúde que cada comunidade possui são necessários, uma vez que muitas vezes estas não concordam com os paradigmas da medicina ocidental, mas regem a vida das comunidades e possuem sua própria eficácia. Ao agir com esta consciência, a nação verá de fato o controle social do SUS e, conseqüen-temente, um melhor resultado em suas abordagens do aspecto inclusivo 9,30,[34][35][36] . A Fonoaudiologia vem buscando sua inserção definitiva e plena junto às várias diretrizes estabelecidas pós SUS, onde intenciona participar dos processos preventivos e curativos desde sua origem.…”

Synthetic and Plant Derived Thyroid Hormone Analogs

“…In two studies conducted in the state of Rio de Janeiro, one in Rio city (Azevedo & Silva) and one in the reservation of Mangaratiba (Medeiros et al, 2005), the Asteraceae and Lamiaceae family of plants were the most frequently cited, the same happening in Conceição Açú-MT (Pasa et al, 2005). Species from the Asteraceae family were also the most frequently noted for medicinal use in a survey done in Ingaí-MG (Botrel et al, 2006) and by a "quilombola"(community of people descended from former Brazilian slaves), among the plants with possible action in the central nervous system (Rodrigues & Carlini, 2004). These data suggest that the Asteraceae and Lamiaceae family have excellent pharmacological potential on different kinds of diseases and they are currently being investigate in many clinical studies.…”