Uso e diversidade de plantas medicinais da Caatinga na comunidade rural de Laginhas, município de Caicó, Rio Grande do Norte (Nordeste do Brasil) / Use and diversity of medicinal plants from Caatinga in the rural community of Laginhas, Caicó Municipality, Rio Grande do Norte State (Northeast of Brazil)

O presente trabalho teve como objetivo identificar as formas de uso de plantas medicinais nativas do bioma Caatinga, em comunidade rural no município de Caicó, Rio Grande do Norte (Nordeste do Brasil). Utilizaram-se entrevistas semi-estruturadas e estruturadas buscando informações, junto a especialistas locais, sobre o uso das plantas. São descritos os usos medicinais de 62 espécies, reportadas por 12 informantes (mateiros, rezadeiras, raizeiros, agricultores e donas-de-casa) com idade superior a 35 anos. As famílias com maior representatividade na consulta foram Fabaceae (13 spp.), Euphorbiaceae (6 spp.) Cactaceae (3 spp.) e Lamiaceae (3 spp.). Para revelar as espécies mais importantes foi considerado o grau de consenso entre as respostas dos informantes. A aroeira (Myracrodruon urundeuva Allemão) e o cumaru (Amburana cearensis (Allemão) A. C. Sm.) destacaram-se como as espécies com o maior número de citações, sendo estas também as que obtiveram o maior número de indicações de usos terapêuticos. As cascas e as raízes foram as partes predominantemente consumidas. Os dados levantados por esta pesquisa evidenciaram uma diversidade de espécies da flora seridoense com potencial medicinal e reforçam a importância que a biodiversidade tem sobre as comunidades rurais, viabilizando o início do estudo de manejo da vegetação local.

The present study aimed to identify the different uses of medicinal plants native to Caatinga biome in a rural community from Caicó Municipality, Rio Grande do Norte State, Brazil. Semi-structured and structured interviews with local specialists were used to collect information about the use of such plants. The medicinal uses of 62 species were described by 12 informants (woodsmen, faith healers, herb doctors, farmers and housewives) older than 35 years. The most representative families reported in the survey were Fabaceae (13 spp), Euphorbiaceae (6 spp.), Cactaceae (3 spp.), and Lamiaceae (3 spp.). The degree of consensus among responses was adopted to determine the most important species. The species "aroeira" (Myracrodruon urundeuva Allemão) and "cumaru" (Amburana cearensis (Allemão) A. C. Sm.) were most frequently mentioned and indicated for therapeutic uses. Barks and roots were the most consumed parts. The data obtained in this study indicated a diversity of flora species with medicinal potential in Seridó region (Rio Grande do Norte State) and reinforced the importance of biodiversity in rural communities, starting the study on the local vegetation management.

Vertical stratification and development aspects of phlebotomine sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in an area of Atlantic Forest tree species in a metropolitan region in northeastern Brazil.

In the state of Rio Grande do Norte in northeast Brazil, cases of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) occur mainly in the periurban areas of the city of Natal. Lutzomyia longipalpis Lutz & Neiva 1912 (Diptera: Psychodidae), a vector of Leishmania chagasi (Protozoa: Trypanosomatidae) to humans, is found throughout the state. Flora and fauna influence the distribution of sand fly species, whose horizontal or vertical stratification can be used as a parameter for identifying potential vectors, considering the presence of vertebrate hosts in the area. The purpose of this study was to obtain information about the vertical stratification of phlebotomine sand flies in an endemic area of leishmaniasis in Rio Grande do Norte, and associate it with the presence of other animals in the peridomiciliary environment as well as to analyze, under laboratory conditions, aspects of L. longipalpis reproduction in wild females. The sand flies were captured with light traps hung at different heights in species of Atlantic Forest trees and in a peridomiciliary environment in animal shelters. The traps were placed between 17:30 and 6:00 of the following day, in a peridomiciliary and extradomiciliary area of a forest fragment in both dry and rainy months. In the extradomiciliary environment, the traps were installed at 1, 3 and 5 m above the ground. The biological cycle of L. longipalpis was followed from the eggs of 200 wild females. Specimens of L. lenti, L. walkeri, and L. migonei were captured. The comparison and statistical analysis showed that L. longipalpis is more abundant at a height of 3 m and L. evandroi at 1 m. In the animal shelters (chickens, horses, and armadillos), we captured mainly specimens of L. longipalpis and L. evandroi. The duration of the biological cycle of L. longipalpis was approximately 38 days at a temperature of 28 degrees C.