Ethnobotany of Medicinal Plants Used by Rakhine Indigenous Communities in Patuakhali and Barguna District of Southern Bangladesh.

An extensive study has been made to identify, document, and investigate the ethnomedicinal plants used by Rakhine ethnic minorities in Patuakhali and Barguna District of southern Bangladesh for the term of April 2018 to June 2019. In this article, we have focused on the Rakhine population trends, management concerns, and some actions for conserving the Rakhine population diversity in the study area. In this study, we have identified the locations where Rakhine population lives in Patuakhali and Barguna districts. A total of 86 plant species belonging to 71 genera and 43 families were reported to be used for treating more than 57 various physical ailments under 14 illness categories from the study area. For each of the species, the botanic name, common name, Rakhine name, family, habit, parts used and traditional medicinal uses of the plant species have been presented. The maximum numbers of ethnomedicinal plant species were utilized to treat gastrointestinal complaints (43) taken after by the treatment of dermatological issues (36). The highly cited (75.60%) plant species were found to be Ananas comosus and Aegle marmelos used for gastro-intestinal (Stomach pain, indigestion, and dysentery) digestive disorders and subsequently followed by Colocasia esculenta (70.73%) used for cut, bleeding and wound healing. The results of this study have shown that Rakhine indigenous communities still depend on conventional plant-based medication to remedy various diseases and therapeutic purposes in the study area. Our findings have also shown that despite there have adequate phytodiversity in the natural habitat of the study area but the number of Rakhine population has been declining significantly day-by-day. As an ultimate result, we have lost the plant-based traditional medicinal knowledge of Rakhine indigenous communities in Bangladesh. As a rich source of traditional knowledge and cultural diversity, it calls for urgent initiatives to conserve the cultural heritage of the Rakhine community as well as the diversity of Rakhine ethnic group.

New Insight into Mycochemical Profiles and Antioxidant Potential of Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms: A Review.

Unhealthy foods, lifestyle, environmental factors, ultraviolet radiation, and other factors are responsible for overoxidation, which generates free radicals and leads to oxidative stress, cell damage, and eventually various chronic diseases. Edible and medicinal mushrooms contain large amounts of mycochemicals that possess antioxidant properties and play important roles in preventing and treating those chronic diseases. Edible and medicinal mushrooms have a strong free radical scavenging ability and are involved in various bioactivities and health-promoting benefits. The antioxidant-rich mycochemicals obtained from mushrooms make them attractive alternative and complementary medicines. Many in vitro and in vivo studies have shown, through the use of various analytical methods, that edible and medicinal mushrooms possess antioxidant-rich mycochemicals. Enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidant compounds such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, glutathione S-transferase, ascorbate peroxidase, vitamin C, vitamin E, and glutathione play vital roles in neutralizing oxygen species and thereby protecting cells from damage. Hence, this review summarizes the phytochemical profiles and antioxidant potential of edible and medicinal mushrooms.

Comparative studies on phenolic profiles, antioxidant capacities and carotenoid contents of red goji berry (Lycium barbarum) and black goji berry (Lycium ruthenicum).

BACKGROUND: The study on phytochemical difference between red and black goji berry is limited. METHODS: Antioxidant activities and phenolic profiles in terms of total phenol content, total flavonoid contents, condensed tannin content, monomeric anthocyanin content, and total carotenoid content of red goji berry (Lycium barbarum) and black goji berry (L. ruthenicum) were compared using colorimetric assays. RESULTS: All goji berries were rich in phenolics. Black goji berry had the highest phenolic, condensed tannin content and monomeric anthocyanin content. Black goji berry samples possessed higher antioxidant capacities than red goji berry, while the red goji berry had the highest carotenoid content. Goji berries exhibited a positive linear correlation between phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacities. The average value of carotenoid content in red goji berry was 233.04 µg/g. CONCLUSION: The phenolics and antioxidant capacities are much higher in black goji berry than red goji berry, while carotenoid content is much higher in red than black.