Berry Fruits Grown in Duzce and Its Neighborhood: Their Medical Applications

WOS: 000418549100003Berry fruits possess many positive effects on human health because of their phytochemical contents like phenolic compounds, antioxidants and anthocyanins, and they have also an important place among the functional foods. From the varieties of Isabella grape and Bursa-2 blackberry cultivated in Duzce and its neighborhood, aging-retardant cream, vinegar (cyme) which aids in the weight loss and alleviates the stomach discomfort, and grape and blackberry juice are produced. Besides, other berry fruits are also used but only in the form of folk medicine. Thus, further studies about the berry fruits grown in the region may increase the potential medical usages of those plants

Subjective Effects of Lemon Seed, Rose and Lavender Essential Oils onHumans: A Case Study from Two Different Age Groups

Plant volatile oils have been used for different purposes for years, especially in the scientific and commercial areas. Among the major areas of their uses were the cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industries, and the aroma/phyto therapeutic applications. The lemon seed, rose and lavender oils were the most commonly used oils and their effects on humans also differed individually. In this study, effects of these essential (volatile) oils on two age groups, 17-24 and 25-40 were thus investigated. The study was conducted on 80 people for one hour and the effects were evaluated using questionnaires. We used SPSS method for statics. In 17-25 age group, lavender oil caused drowsiness and weakness in 60% and 50% of respondents respectively, and also some mild giddiness, nausea, headache and dizziness. In 25-40 age group it caused giddiness and weakness in 40% respondents, and also gave mild vigor and tranquility. Lemon seed oil caused drowsiness in 85%, weakness and headache in 50%, and clear sensation in 55% of the respondents from 17-24 age group, while in 25-40 age group it caused clear sensation in 80% of respondents, and gave the mood of tranquility in 70% and happiness in 60%. However, rose oil demonstrated more intense effects on people, causing drowsiness and nausea in 55%, weakness and headache in 50%, and also giddiness, face flush and palpitation in 17-24 age-group-respondents. In 25-40 age group it caused drowsiness and nausea in 40% while it gave happiness and tranquility in 60% of respondents. Study results indicated that effects of different types of volatile oils on humans vary based on the age groups. So, the preference of essential oils in our daily lives is implied to have great importance. Therefore, further studies on the subject should be conducted to better emphasize the choice and use of these oils based on the age groups

Awareness of medical and aromatic plants in the western black sea region

In our research, the level of awareness about medicinal and aromatic plants in different professions groups (farmers, civilservants, workers, retired, students and unemployed) and education levels were examined through direct interviews inWestern Black Sea Region (Düzce, Sakarya, Zonguldak, Bartın). By using the Neyman method, 77 people wereinvestigated, based on the Likert scale to measure awareness levels, and the results were evaluated by SPSS method.As a result of our research, 24.7% of them prefer medicinal and aromatic plants when they are sick, while 81.8% thinkthat medicinal and aromatic plants are organic. 66.2 %agree that organic certification is required for medicinal andaromatic plants. 63.6% of inadequate education is remarkable when the problems are expressed. At the rate of 5.2% is TVand 15.6% is for newspapers are used for information acquisition. According to the study, it was concluded that the levelof awareness of the medicinal and aromatic plants in the Western Black Sea region is not sufficient, and starting fromschool programs, it is necessary to raise awareness of the public by means of non-formal education, magazines andcourses besides TVand newspaper

Assessment of genetic variations of silver lime (Tilia tomentosa Moench.) by RAPD markers in urban and forest ecosystems

Filiz, Ertugrul/0000-0001-9636-6389; Ozyigit, Ibrahim Ilker/0000-0002-0825-5951WOS: 000356960300004In the present study, the genetic diversity analysis of Tilia tomentosa plants was performed by using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) primers. Twenty eight plant samples, collected from urban (25 members) and forest (3 members) ecosystems, were used in this study. A total of 53 bands were obtained from eight RAPD primers, of which 48 (90.6%) were polymorphic. The percentage of polymorphic loci (P) was found to be 94.29%, the observed number of alleles (Na) was 1.94, the effective number of alleles (Ne) was 1.60, Nei's gene diversity (h) was 0.34 and Shannon's information index (I) was 0.50. Unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) cluster analysis revealed two major groups. Members of the urban and forest ecosystems showed high genetic similarity (28%-92%) and they did not separate from each other in UPGMA tree. Furthermore, urban and forest genotypes clustered together in principal component analysis.Scientific Research Projects of Duzce UniversityDuzce University [2012.23.01.116]; Marmara UniversityMarmara University [FEN-D-140115-0014]Scientific Research Projects of Duzce University [grant number 2012.23.01.116]; Marmara University [grant number FEN-D-140115-0014]