Ewé: a web-based ethnobotanical database for storing and analysing data

Ethnobotanical databases serve as repositories of traditional knowledge (TK), either at international or local scales. By documenting plant species with traditional use, and most importantly, the applications and modes of use of such species, ethnobotanical databases play a role in the conservation of TK and also provide access to information that could improve hypothesis generation and testing in ethnobotanical studies. Brazil has a rich medicinal flora and a rich cultural landscape. Nevertheless, cultural change and ecological degradation can lead to loss of TK. Here, we present an online database developed with open-source tools with a capacity to include all medicinal flora of Brazil. We present test data for the Leguminosae comprising a total of 2078 records, referred to here as use reports, including data compiled from literature and herbarium sources. Unlike existing databases, Ewé provides tools for the visualization of large datasets, facilitating hypothesis generation and meta-analyses. The Ewé database is currently available at www.ewedb.com

Taxonomia e morfometria foliar de Tapura amazonica Poepp. & Endl. (Dichapetalaceae)

Dissertação (mestrado)—Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Botânica, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Botânica, 2012.Capítulo II A análise da morfometria foliar, feita pelo estudo das variações do contorno tem se mostrado uma ferramenta útil na distinção de grupos e separação de espécies. A família Dichapetalaceae de distribuição pantropical, tem a espécie Tapura amazonica, como sua principal representante no Bioma Cerrado, ocorrendo principalmente em Matas de Galeria, e com uma grande variação foliar. Duas variedades são aceitas atualmente, e se diferenciam por, além de diferenças em relação ao tamanho da planta e das folhas, pelo formato foliar. O contorno de folhas de 35 locais amostrados em parte de sua área de ocorrência foi obtido a partir dos coeficientes elípticos de Fourier. Uma análise de componentes principais, realizada na matriz de coeficientes obtida, resultou em cinco componentes principais, responsáveis por 95% da variação total. Uma análise de UPGMA e um gráfico de dispersão de PC1xPC2 indicaram a presença de 3 grupos foliares. Testes estatísticos de MANOVA, CVA e análise discriminante resultaram em diferenças significativas entre os grupos encontrados. Com as análises morfométricas, folhas pertencentes a variedade manausensis se mostraram como distintas da variedade amazonica, enquanto dentro desta última, dois grupos foram encontrados, com amostras geograficamente separadas, havendo no entanto uma pequena sobreposição entre eles. _______________________________________________________________________________________Capítulo III Variações foliares ou em outras estruturas das plantas podem estar associadas a variações condições ambientais diversas, causadas por exemplo por diferenças de altitudes associadas a diferenças de temperatura. No bioma Cerrado, as diferentes características de solo, disponibilidade de água entre outros fatores pode contribuir para uma plasticidade fenotípica de espécies com ampla distribuição. A espécie Tapura amazonica var amazonica apresenta uma grande distribuição, ocorrendo principalmente em matas de galeria, e possui uma grande variação foliar. Estudos da morfometria do contorno de folhas de Tapura amazonica var amazonica , com os coeficientes elípticos de Fourier, e a identificação de amostras de 35 localidades, presentes em três faixas altitudinais (0-500m, 500-900m e 900-1200m) identificadas como possíveis delimitadoras de centros de diversidade no Cerrado, resultaram em diferenças significativas entre os grupos, pelos testes de MANOVA, CVA e análise discriminante. Análise de correlação espacial mostrou como significativa a relação entre o formato do contorno foliar e a altitude. Uma Análise de componentes principais realizada na matriz de coeficientes obtida, resultou em 94% da variação total foliar, sendo a razão foliar (relação entre comprimento e largura das folhas) a principal responsável pela variação total, como encontrado também em estudos com as duas variedades da espécie. Amostras de menor altitude apresentaram dois grupos distintos em uma análise de UPGMA, sendo um grupo com uma menor razão foliar e outro com razão foliar maior, semelhante a amostras de elevada altitude, que apresentaram apenas folhas com razão foliar maior. Como em estudos anteriores, o grupo de menor altitude, e menor razão foliar é geograficamente separado dos demais, no entanto mais estudos são necessários para se verificar se este grupo pode ser considerado uma nova variedade. _______________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACTCapítulo II Leaf morphometric analysis, studied with the outline variation is a usefull tool to make distinction among group population or species. In the Dichapetalacea family, Tapura amazonica is the principal representant in the Cerrado biome, which occurs mainly on Matas de Galeria and shows a large leaf shape variation. Two varieties are currently accepted, and are distinguished by, in addition to differences in the size of the plant and leaves, the leaf shape. The leaf outline of 35 sites sampled in part of its range were obtained from the Elliptic Fourier Coeficients. A principal component analysis performed on the matrix of coefficients obtained, resulted in five main components and explained 95% of total variation. An analysis UPGMA and a scatter of PC1xPC2 indicated the presence of three leaf groups. Statistical tests of MANOVA, CVA and discriminant analysis resulted in significant differences between the groups. With morphometric analysis, the variety leaves belonging manausensis is shown as separate from the amazonica variety, whereas in the latter two groups were found with samples separated geographically, but there is little overlap between them. _______________________________________________________________________________________Capítulo III Leaf variations or variations on other plant structures may be associated with diverse environmental conditions, for example caused by differences in the altitudes or associated to temperature differences. In Cerrado, the different characteristics of soil, water availability and other factors may contribute to phenotypic plasticity of species with wide distribution. The species Tapura amazonica var amazonica has a wide distribution, occurring mainly in ‘Matas de Galeria’’, and shows a large leaf variation. Studies of the outline leaf shape of Tapura amazonica var amazonica, with elliptical Fourier coefficients, using samples from 35 sites present in three altitudinal zones (0- 500m, 500-900m and 900-1200m) resulted in significant differences between the groups when tested with MANOVA, CVA and discriminant analysis. Linear correlation analysis showed as significant the correlation between the contour shape of the leaf and altitude. A principal component analysis performed on the matrix of coefficients obtained, resulted in 94% of the total leaf variation, with the leaf width mainly responsible for leaf total variation, as showed previously in studies with the two varieties of the species. Samples of lower altitude showed two distinct groups in a UPGMA analysis, one group with wider leaves and other with narrower leaves, similar to the high altitude samples, only with narrower leaves. As in previous studies, the group of lower altitude, and wider leaves is geographically separated from the others, however further studies are needed to see if this group can be considered a new variety

Patterns amongst medicinally-used plants in Brazil

Documentations of patterns in traditional knowledge is of paramount importance if we are to fully understand the relationship between people and their local environment. Investigations of medicinal plant use also contribute to discoveries of new drugs, by highlighting taxa which might have bioactivity of interest, and preservation of traditional knowledge, by identifying species important to local communities and describing how traditional knowledge is transmitted to future generations. Increasingly methods borrowed from ecology and community phylogenetics are used to understand patterns in medicinal plant use and inform bioprospecting. These methods are best applied to information-rich, large data sets, yet despite the growth in ethnobotanical research, data are scattered. This thesis exploits traditional knowledge documented in literature and herbaria, using newly compiled data for Brazil to explore patterns in medicinal plant use, in documentation of ethnomedicinal species, pharmacological investigation and distribution of plant use. Comparison of data from literature and herbarium sources, based on 1400 use reports of medicinal use of species of the family Leguminosae, showed herbaria to be a valuable source of data for ethnobotanical research. Despite the lower proportion of herbarium records (compared to literature records) with information on therapeutic application, modes of use and parts used, herbarium records validated data in the literature and added new information. These and additional data were used to demonstrate Ewe, a web-based database developed here, with tools to store and visualise ethnobotanical data. Research questions relating to pharmacological investigation of Brazilian plants used in traditional medicine, and to the spatial distribution of traditional knowledge were addressed using these and other data sets compiled for this study. Phylogenetic methods were used to explore the diversity of Leguminosae species with medicinal use, revealing phylogenetic diversity of species used despite of lineages rich in species with medicinal use (hot nodes) accounting for 45% of the species used in local medicine. Hot nodes are better characterized pharmacologically. Finally, the spatial distribution of traditional knowledge in Brazil was investigated, using a novel generic-level phylogeny for the Brazilian flora and species-level herbarium data for Angiosperms in Brazil with medicinal uses. According to taxonomic and phylogenetic measures of beta diversity, spatial heterogeneity in medicinal plant use was identified, highlighting local adaptation of medicinal floras despite the preference for some plant groups revealed by clustering in deep nodes

Biodiversity as a complex clockwork/A biodiversidade como uma engrenagem complexa/La biodiversidad como un engranaje complejo

We discuss some ideas about the concepts of diversity and biodiversity, explaining the title of this text at the end, and how Heringeriana understands its role as a vehicle for the dissemination of new knowledge in these topics. Discutimos algumas ideias sobre os conceitos de diversidade e biodiversidade, explicando ao final o tí­tulo desse texto e como a Heringeriana entende seu papel de veí­culo para a disseminação de novos conhecimentos nesses tópicos. Discutimos algunas ideas sobre los conceptos de diversidad y biodiversidad, explicando al final el tí­tulo de este texto y cómo Heringeriana entiende su papel como vehí­culo para la difusión de nuevos conocimientos sobre estos temas

Biodiversity as a complex clockwork/A biodiversidade como uma engrenagem complexa/La biodiversidad como un engranaje complejo

We discuss some ideas about the concepts of diversity and biodiversity, explaining the title of this text at the end, and how Heringeriana understands its role as a vehicle for the dissemination of new knowledge in these topics. Discutimos algumas ideias sobre os conceitos de diversidade e biodiversidade, explicando ao final o tí­tulo desse texto e como a Heringeriana entende seu papel de veí­culo para a disseminação de novos conhecimentos nesses tópicos. Discutimos algunas ideas sobre los conceptos de diversidad y biodiversidad, explicando al final el tí­tulo de este texto y cómo Heringeriana entiende su papel como vehí­culo para la difusión de nuevos conocimientos sobre estos temas

Seminário de Dissertação (2024)

Página da disciplina de Seminário de Dissertação (MPPP, UFPE, 2022) Lista de participantes == https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1mrULe1y04yPxHUBaF50jhaM1OY8QYJ3zva4N4yvm198/edit#gid=