Ethnobotany in the Nepal Himalaya

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Indigenous knowledge has become recognized worldwide not only because of its intrinsic value but also because it has a potential instrumental value to science and conservation. In Nepal, the indigenous knowledge of useful and medicinal plants has roots in the remote past.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The present study reviews the indigenous knowledge and use of plant resources of the Nepal Himalayas along the altitudinal and longitudinal gradient. A total of 264 studies focusing on ethnobotany, ethnomedicine and diversity of medicinal and aromatic plants, carried out between 1979 and 2006 were consulted for the present analysis. In order to cross check and verify the data, seven districts of west Nepal were visited in four field campaigns.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In contrast to an average of 21–28% ethnobotanically/ethnomedicinally important plants reported for Nepal, the present study found that up to about 55% of the flora of the study region had medicinal value. This indicates a vast amount of undocumented knowledge about important plant species that needs to be explored and documented. The richness of medicinal plants decreased with increasing altitude but the percentage of plants used as medicine steadily increased with increasing altitude. This was due to preferences given to herbal remedies in high altitude areas and a combination of having no alternative choices, poverty and trust in the effectiveness of folklore herbal remedies.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Indigenous knowledge systems are culturally valued and scientifically important. Strengthening the wise use and conservation of indigenous knowledge of useful plants may benefit and improve the living standard of poor people.</p

Indigenous Use and Ethnopharmacology of Medicinal Plants in Far-west Nepal

researchEthnopharmacological knowledge is common and import among tribal populations but much of the information is empirical at best lacking scientific validation. Despite widespread use of plant resources in traditional medicines, bioassay analysis of very few plant species have been conducted to investigate their medicinal properties, and to ascertain safety and efficacy of traditional remedies. The present study analyses indigenous uses of medicinal plants of far-west Nepal and compares with earlier ayurveda studies, phytochemical assessments and pharmacological actions. A field study was carried out in Baitadi and Darchula districts of far-west Nepal. Group discussions, informal meetings, questionnaire surveys and field observations were employed for primary data collection. Voucher specimens were collected with field notes and codes and deposited at Tribhuvan University Central Herbarium (TUCH), Kathmandu. Only 50% of species surveyed shared common uses with ayurvedic medicine. This implies that these herbal remedies are part of an independent health care system in the Nepal Himalaya, which is indigenous and influenced by ayurveda. The folk uses of some of the species were contradicting to those of ayurveda and phytochemical bioassays. A detailed phytochemical study on those species would be an important line of research

Genetic relationships among populations of Gibberella zeae from barley, wheat, potato, and sugar beet in the upper midwest of the United States

Gibberella zeae, a causal agent of Fusarium head blight (FHB) in wheat and barley, is one of the most economically harmful pathogens of cereals in the United States. In recent years, the known host range of G. zeae has also expanded to noncereal crops. However, there is a lack of information on the population genetic structure of G. zeae associated with noncereal crops and across wheat cultivars. To test the hypothesis that G. zeae populations sampled from barley, wheat, potato, and sugar beet in the Upper Midwest of the United States are not mixtures of species or G. zeae clades, we analyzed sequence data of G. zeae, and confirmed that all populations studied were present in the same clade of G. zeae. Ten variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) markers were used to determine the genetic structure of G. zeae from the four crop populations. To examine the effect of wheat cultivars on the pathogen populations, 227 strains were sampled from 10 subpopulations according to wheat cultivar types. The VNTR markers also were used to analyze the genetic structure of these subpopulations. In all populations, gene (H = 0.453 to 0.612) and genotype diversity (GD = >0.984) were high. There was little or no indication of linkage disequilibrium (LD) in all G. zeae populations and subpopulations. In addition, high gene flow (Nm) values were observed between cereal and noncereal populations (Nm = 10.69) and between FHB resistant and susceptible wheat cultivar subpopulations (Nm = 16.072), suggesting low population differentiation of G. zeae in this region. Analysis of molecular variance also revealed high genetic variation (>80%) among individuals within populations and subpopulations. However, low genetic variation (<5%) was observed between cereal and noncereal populations and between resistant and susceptible wheat subpopulations. Overall, these results suggest that the populations or subpopulations are likely a single large population of G. zeae affecting crops in the upper Midwest of the United States