Plants and mental disorders: the case of Catalan linguistic area.

Introduction: Mental disorders are among the leading causes of ill-health and disability worldwide. Despite the disease burden they cause, including significant direct and indirect impacts on individual's health and major social and economic consequences in all countries of the world, it is still one of the most neglected areas of public health. In such a context, the medicinal plants traditionally used to pale these pathologies are presented as a promising tool for future drug development for the management of mental health disorders. The aim of the present study is to analyze the information about plant species used to treat mental disorders in the Catalan linguistic area (CLA) and compare these traditional uses with pharmacological literature in order to evaluate the most quoted taxa and their uses and to provide a basis for further research. Methods: Data have been recovered from the "Etnobotànica dels Països Catalans" webpage (https://etnobotanica.iec.cat/) and the meta-analytic work carried out in the present study covers 27 prospections performed in different territories between 1990 and 2019. Descriptive statistics and quantitative ethnobotany were carried out and some ethnobotanical indices were calculated. Results and Discussion: The number of use reports analysed to treat mental disorders in CLA is 2,544 spread over 183 taxa belonging to 64 families, being the most cited the Malvaceae (29.36% of use reports), Lamiaceae (16.71%), Caprifoliaceae (7.94%), Rutaceae (7.47%) and Papaveraceae (6.01%). The most used taxa to treat or alleviate the mental disorders have been Tilia platyphyllos Scop. (24.53%), Valeriana officinalis L. (7.47%), Salvia officinalis L. (5.07%), Sambucus nigra L. (4.28%), and Ruta chalepensis L. (3.89%). The flowers or inflorescences (47.68%), followed by aerial part (23.49%), have been the most used plant parts, and tisane the most commonly used pharmaceutical form (78.03%). The most reported use is as sedative with 40.92%, followed by anticephalalgic (21. 19%) and tranquilizer (20.01%). The informant consensus factor (FIC) was 0.93, and 3.72% was the ethnobotanicity index (EI) value. The information is coincidental with at least one of the comprehensive pharmacological literature sources checked for 73.68% of ethnobotanical uses.

Traditional knowledge 10 min far from Barcelona: ethnobotanical study in the Llobregat river delta (Catalonia, NE Iberian Peninsula), a heavily anthropized agricultural area.

BACKGROUND: The right floodplain at the Llobregat river delta (Catalonia, NE Iberian Peninsula) constitutes an agricultural periurban area adjacent to Barcelona, which has remained ethnobotanically unexplored until now. This area comprises a very heavily anthropized mosaic of soil uses-urban, industrial, natural, agricultural-including the Agricultural Park of Baix Llobregat. The main aim of this work has been to collect and analyze the ethnoflora of this area in order to fill a gap in the ethnobotanical knowledge in industrialized areas. METHODS: The followed methodology has been based on semi-structured interviews. The obtained data have been qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed and compared with other studies. RESULTS: Data have been gathered from 83 informants. The interviewed informants referred 1965 use reports from 292 taxa, including both non-cultivated and cultivated species, from 85 botanical families. Among those, 451 were referred to medicinal uses, 1247 to food uses and 267 to other uses. In the present study, 779 vernacular names have been reported for 287 taxa. In addition to medicinal and food uses, this study significantly enhances our understanding of some agrosilvopastoral uses of plants, artistic use of plants and insights into folk functional foods. In this regard, we propose a novel quantitative ethnobotany index (the folk functional food index) to assess the relative significance of taxa employed as folk functional foods. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study highlight the enduring presence of ethnobotanical knowledge in this periurban agricultural region and underscore the significance of its preservation.

Parallel anagenetic patterns in endemic Artemisia species from three Macaronesian archipelagos.

Anagenetic speciation is an important mode of evolution in oceanic islands, yet relatively understudied compared to adaptive radiation. In the Macaronesian region, three closely related species of Artemisia (i.e. A. argentea, A. thuscula and A. gorgonum) are each endemic from a single archipelago (i.e. Madeira, Canary Islands and Cape Verde, respectively), representing a perfect opportunity to study three similar but independent anagenetic speciation processes. By analysing plastid and nuclear DNA sequences, as well as nuclear DNA amount data, generated from a comprehensive sampling in all the islands and archipelagos where these species are currently distributed, we intend to find common evolutionary patterns that help us explain the limited taxonomic diversification experienced by endemic Macaronesian Artemisia. Our time-calibrated phylogenetic reconstruction suggested that divergence among the three lineages occurred in a coincidental short period of time during the Pleistocene. Haplotype and genetic differentiation analyses showed similar diversity values among A. argentea, A. thuscula and A. gorgonum. Clear phylogeographic patterns-showing comparable genetic structuring among groups of islands-were also found within the three archipelagos. Even from the cytogenetic point of view, the three species presented similarly lower genome size values compared to the mainland closely related species A. arborescens. We hypothesize that the limited speciation experienced by the endemic Artemisia in Madeira, Canary Islands and Cape Verde archipelagos could be related to their recent parallel evolutionary histories as independent lineages, combined with certain shared characteristics of seed dispersal, pollen transport and type of habitat.

Novel Insights into the Nature of Intraspecific Genome Size Diversity in Cannabis sativa L.

Cannabis sativa has been used for millennia in traditional medicine for ritual purposes and for the production of food and fibres, thus, providing important and versatile services to humans. The species, which currently has a worldwide distribution, strikes out for displaying a huge morphological and chemical diversity. Differences in Cannabis genome size have also been found, suggesting it could be a useful character to differentiate between accessions. We used flow cytometry to investigate the extent of genome size diversity across 483 individuals belonging to 84 accessions, with a wide range of wild/feral, landrace, and cultivated accessions. We also carried out sex determination using the MADC2 marker and investigated the potential of flow cytometry as a method for early sex determination. All individuals were diploid, with genome sizes ranging from 1.810 up to 2.152 pg/2C (1.189-fold variation), apart from a triploid, with 2.884 pg/2C. Our results suggest that the geographical expansion of Cannabis and its domestication had little impact on its overall genome size. We found significant differences between the genome size of male and female individuals. Unfortunately, differences were, however, too small to be discriminated using flow cytometry through the direct processing of combined male and female individuals.

Polarimetric observables for the enhanced visualization of plant diseases.

This paper highlights the potential of using polarimetric methods for the inspection of plant diseased tissues. We show how depolarizing observables are a suitable tool for the accurate discrimination between healthy and diseased tissues due to the pathogen infection of plant samples. The analysis is conducted on a set of different plant specimens showing various disease symptoms and infection stages. By means of a complete image Mueller polarimeter, we measure the experimental Mueller matrices of the samples, from which we calculate a set of metrics analyzing the depolarization content of the inspected leaves. From calculated metrics, we demonstrate, in a qualitative and quantitative way, how depolarizing information of vegetal tissues leads to the enhancement of image contrast between healthy and diseased tissues, as well as to the revelation of wounded regions which cannot be detected by means of regular visual inspections. Moreover, we also propose a pseudo-colored image method, based on the depolarizing metrics, capable to further enhance the visual image contrast between healthy and diseased regions in plants. The ability of proposed methods to characterize plant diseases (even at early stages of infection) may be of interest for preventing yield losses due to different plant pathogens.

Gastrointestinal, metabolic, and nutritional disorders: A plant-based ethnoveterinary meta-analysis in the Catalan linguistic area.

Veterinary care is fundamental for animal wellbeing, and so is achieving a comprehensive understanding of traditional ethnoveterinary applications. However, little attention has been paid to it so far in industrialized countries, and in particular in Western Europe. In this context, the present work aims to make a contribution to this issue in the Catalan linguistic area, focusing on the study of plants used, at a popular level, to treat and deal with gastrointestinal, metabolic, and nutritional disorders, which are among the most important issues that affect animals. Data obtained in this study come from the popular knowledge about plants for veterinary purposes from 599 informants, who jointly provided 1,405 reports of use from 148 plant taxa. The most cited species have been Tanacetum parthenium (L.) Sch.Bip. (9.04%), Olea europaea L. subsp. europaea var. europaea (6.26%), and Euphorbia lathyris L. (6.26%). At higher taxonomic levels, the botanical families with more ethnoveterinary applications were Asteraceae (24.48%), Euphorbiaceae (8.33%), and Oleaceae (7.12%). Among the total use reports, 95.02% refer to disorders of the gastrointestinal system, 4.34% to nutritional disorders, and 0.64% to metabolic disorders. Antidiarrheal (18.01%), digestive (16.51%), and laxative (15.80%) have been the most reported veterinary uses. The most used plant parts have been the aerial part (40.50%), the fruit or the infructescence (18.65%), and the flower or inflorescence (16.01%). The main preparation and administration forms reported were tisane (58.69%), followed by direct use (without any specific pharmaceutical form; 21.77%). The global corpus of ethnoveterinary knowledge for the gastrointestinal system disorders in the territory of study is diverse, with some species having a very high cultural value, as indicated by an informant consensus factor very close to 1. Some reported uses were also confirmed after consultation of encyclopedic pharmacological works, although few of these works are specifically devoted to veterinary uses. The results of this study are relevant to preserve the ethnoveterinary knowledge, but also represent an important contribution to be taken into account in research for future development of new plant-based drugs for animals.

Cancer and Traditional Plant Knowledge, an Interesting Field to Explore: Data from the Catalan Linguistic Area.

Cancer is the second cause of death in the world and is foreseen to be responsible for about 16 million deaths in 2040. Approximately, 60% of the drugs used to treat cancer are of natural origin. Besides the extensive use of some of these drugs in therapies, such as those derived from the genus Taxus, a significant number of plants have revealed themselves as useful against cancer in recent years. The field of ethnobotany focuses on documenting traditional knowledge associated with plants, constituting a starting point to uncover the potential of new plant-based drugs to treat or prevent, in this case, tumour diseases and side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. From a series of extensive ethnobotanical prospections across the Catalan linguistic area (CLA), we have recorded uses for 41 taxa with antitumour effects. The two most quoted botanical families are Asteraceae and Ranunculaceae, and the most frequently reported species is Ranunculus parnassifolius, a high-mountain species, which is widely collected for this purpose. The reported species have been used to treat an important number of cancer types, focusing on preventive, palliative, and curative uses, as well as to deal with the side effects of conventional treatments. Comparing our results in CLA with previous data available in the most comprehensive databases of pharmacology and a review of cytotoxicity assays revealed that for the several species reported here, there was no previous evidence of traditional uses against cancer. Despite the need for further analyses to experimentally validate the information presented here, combining traditional uses and phylogenetically-informed strategies to phytochemical and pharmacological research would represent new avenues to establish more integrative approaches, hence improving the ability to select new candidate taxa in cancer research.

Genome Size Variation Assessment in Vitis vinifera L. Landraces in Ibiza and Formentera (Balearic Islands).

Plant genome size has many applications in different biological fields including ecology and plant breeding. The 2C value for Vitis vinifera L. has not been widely studied; furthermore, to date, no data from local landraces in the Pityusic Islands (the two smaller inhabited Balearic Islands, Ibiza, and Formentera) have been reported. This research aims to contribute to this knowledge and investigate whether there are variations between different grape landraces cultivated in Ibiza and Formentera and also among the same landraces on each island. To this end, 36 accessions of 15 cultivars and 6 landraces, identified with SSR markers, were assessed using flow cytometry. The results revealed that 2C values ranged from 1.09 pg to 1.28 pg. There were statistically significant differences in 'AG1' and 'AG2' landraces and 'Santa Magdalena', 'Garnatxa', 'Danugue', and 'Valencí tinto/Grumier' cultivars. No statistically significant differences were found in terms of the genome size content between islands. Statistically significant differences were found in accessions within 'AG2' landrace group and 'Beba' cultivar. The results presented here constitute the first-ever reported information on genome size in the genus Vitis vinifera in Pityusic, Balearic, and, in general, Spanish accessions, and they are one of the largest prospections in this field for this species anywhere. Further research should be conducted to explain the differences in nuclear DNA content found between landraces and cultivars studied here with others cultivated in different islands or countries to understand whether genome size varies in modern cultivars compared with local landraces. Additionally, it would be interesting to investigate whether there is a relationship between genome size and adaptations to diverse climatology conditions, crop management, and ripening characteristics.

The Use of Cannabis sativa L. for Pest Control: From the Ethnobotanical Knowledge to a Systematic Review of Experimental Studies.

Background: Despite the benefits that synthetic pesticides have provided in terms of pest and disease control, they cause serious long-term consequences for both the environment and living organisms. Interest in eco-friendly products has subsequently increased in recent years. Methods: This article briefly analyzes the available ethnobotanical evidence regarding the use of Cannabis sativa as a pesticide and offers a systematic review of experimental studies. Results: Our findings indicate that both ethnobotanical and experimental procedures support the use of C. sativa as a pesticide, as remarkable toxicity has been observed against pest organisms. The results included in the systematic review of experimental studies (n=30) show a high degree of heterogeneity, but certain conclusions can be extracted to guide further research. For instance, promising pesticide properties were reported for most of the groups of species tested, especially Arachnida and Insecta; the efficacy of C. sativa as a pesticide can be derived from a wide variety of compounds that it contains and possible synergistic effects; it is crucial to standardize the phytochemical profile of C. sativa plants used as well as to obtain easily reproducible results; appropriate extraction methods should be explored; and upper inflorescences of the plant may be preferred for the production of the essential oil, but further studies should explore better other parts of the plant. Conclusion: In the coming years, as new findings are produced, the promising potential of C. sativa as a pesticide will be elucidated, and reviews such as the present one constitute useful basic tools to make these processes easier.

The Role of Traditional Plant Knowledge in the Fight Against Infectious Diseases: A Meta-Analytic Study in the Catalan Linguistic Area.

Infectious diseases represent, as a group, the main cause of mortality in the world. The most important reasons are multidrug-resistant pathogens, the rapid spread of emerging diseases aggravated by globalization, and the extended reach of tropical and vector-borne diseases resulting from continued climate change. Given the increase in these diseases and the limited effectiveness of antibiotics, traditional knowledge can constitute a useful tool to address these new health challenges. The aim of this work is to analyze extensively the available ethnobotanical data linked to infections and infestations in the Catalan linguistic area, with the intention of depicting the panorama of the folk use of herbal products to address the quoted ailments, preserving the popular plant knowledge and management data. The meta-analytic work performed in the present study covers 29 research studies belonging to different regions throughout the Catalan linguistic area. The medicinal ethnoflora to treat infections and infestations in the Catalan linguistic area includes 326 taxa belonging to 78 botanical families of vascular plants. The informant consensus factor (FIC) was 0.92, and the ethnobotanicity index (EI) was 7.26%. Artemisia absinthium (10.98%; 0.37) and Thymus vulgaris (8.06%; 0.27) are the most quoted taxa and have the highest values of the cultural importance index. The most reported use was antihelminthic (30.15%), followed by internal antiseptic (19.43%) and antipyretic (13.69%). The medicinal importance index shows the relevance of the antihelminthic use (14.23) and also the use against measles (10.19). The information is coincidental with at least one of the comprehensive pharmacological literature sources checked for 47.42% of ethnobotanical uses. These results, centered on the plants used to treat infection and infestation diseases, are the first step toward selecting some of the most interesting species to develop phytochemical and pharmacological studies and suggesting an alternative regarding how to face the health emergency involving the expansion of infectious diseases, based on local and traditional knowledge.

Detecting Introgressed Populations in the Iberian Endemic Centaurea podospermifolia through Genome Size.

Based on results from previous studies, populations of the Iberian endemic Centaurea podospermifolia north of the Ebro River are considered genetically pure, while those southward are introgressed, with genetic input from C. cephalariifolia. This phenomenon is particularly relevant, especially given both the endangered and protected status for the species, which can have consequences in how to best apply conservation strategies to maintain genetic resources in the species. The main goal of this study was to evaluate whether genome size assessments using flow cytometry can help distinguishing between pure, hybrid and introgressed populations, and hence become a powerful and cost-effective tool to complement comprehensive population genetic surveys. The results indicate that there are significant genome size differences between populations of C. podospermifolia, which are coincident with previous considerations of pure and introgressed populations. Given the simplicity and reproducibility of this technique, flow cytometry could become an effective tool for monitoring pure populations of this species and, indeed, become an integral part of the management plans that are mandatory for listed taxa.

Traditional uses of Cannabis: An analysis of the CANNUSE database.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Cannabis is one of the most versatile genera in terms of plant use and has been exploited by humans for millennia. Nowadays, Cannabis is the centre of many scientific studies, most of them focusing on chemical composition and medicinal values. While new and varied applications are continuously being developed, the knowledge surrounding less common uses of the plant is slowly disappearing. AIM OF THE REVIEW: We have analysed diversity of global data of Cannabis traditional uses, to investigate if certain plant parts are significantly associated with particular Cannabis use. We wanted to uncover potential associations between the plant parts used for the treatment of different body systems and ailments. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We have analysed the extensive database of Cannabis traditional uses (CANNUSE). This database contains 2330 data entries of Cannabis ethnobotanical uses from over 40 countries across the world. The dataset was divided into five general groups based on the type of use: medicinal, alimentary, psychoactive, fibre and other uses. Given the abundance of human medicinal uses, detailed analysis was done on the subset of 1167 data entries. We analysed the relationship between 16 body system categories and ailments treated with Cannabis plant parts. We used a Pearson's chi-square and Fisher's exact test, to determine which Cannabis parts are characteristic of treatment for specific ailments. RESULTS: In this dataset, the majority of reports were represented by medicinal (75.41%), followed by psychoactive (8.35%) and alimentary (7.29%) use. The most commonly used plant parts were leaf (50.51%), seed (15.38%) and inflorescence (11.35%). We found that different Cannabis plant parts were significantly associated with different uses; the leaf was typically used for medicinal, seed for alimentary and inflorescence for psychoactive use. Regarding the human medicinal uses, most common were reports for treatments of the digestive system and nutritional disorders (17.66%), nervous system and mental disorders (16.24%), followed by pain and inflammations (12.21%). We found a significant relationship between the use of certain Cannabis parts and treatment of ailments and body systems categories; leaf was significantly associated with treatment of two categories: skin and subcutaneous tissue disorders and circulatory system and blood disorders; seed use was associated with musculoskeletal system disorders and traumas; while inflorescence use shows a statistical support for treatment of nervous system and mental disorders. CONCLUSION: Several pharmaceutical companies are intensely working on developing new drugs with isolated chemical compounds or crude extracts, almost exclusively from Cannabis inflorescences. However, our review revealed that use of leaf or seed in traditional medicine is often more important than use of inflorescence for the treatment of certain ailments. A review of traditional medicine provides a body of knowledge and an initial pathway to identify landraces and plant parts that could have an important role in future medicinal research. We are confident that traditional medicine still has a large potential for modern medicine. As more information on Cannabis diversity (genetics, biochemistry, and clinical studies) becomes available, ethnobotanical data are poised to be of much greater significance.

CANNUSE, a database of traditional Cannabis uses-an opportunity for new research.

Cannabis is one of the most versatile genera in terms of plant uses and has been exploited by humans for millennia due to its medicinal properties, strong fibres, nutritious seeds and psychoactive resin. Nowadays, Cannabis is the centre of many scientific studies, which mainly focus on its chemical composition and medicinal properties. Unfortunately, while new applications of this plant are continuously being developed, some of its traditional uses are becoming rare and even disappearing altogether. Information on traditional uses of Cannabis is vast, but it is scattered across many publication sources in different formats, so synthesis and standardization of these data are increasingly important. The CANNUSE database provides an organized information source for scientists and general public interested in different aspects of Cannabis use. It contains over 2300 entries from 649 publications related to medicinal, alimentary, fibre and other uses from different geographical areas and cultures around the world. We believe this database will serve as a starting point for new research and development strategies based on the traditional knowledge. Database URL: http://cannusedb.csic.es.

Polarimetric imaging microscopy for advanced inspection of vegetal tissues.

Optical microscopy techniques for plant inspection benefit from the fact that at least one of the multiple properties of light (intensity, phase, wavelength, polarization) may be modified by vegetal tissues. Paradoxically, polarimetric microscopy although being a mature technique in biophotonics, is not so commonly used in botany. Importantly, only specific polarimetric observables, as birefringence or dichroism, have some presence in botany studies, and other relevant metrics, as those based on depolarization, are underused. We present a versatile method, based on a representative selection of polarimetric observables, to obtain and to analyse images of plants which bring significant information about their structure and/or the spatial organization of their constituents (cells, organelles, among other structures). We provide a thorough analysis of polarimetric microscopy images of sections of plant leaves which are compared with those obtained by other commonly used microscopy techniques in plant biology. Our results show the interest of polarimetric microscopy for plant inspection, as it is non-destructive technique, highly competitive in economical and time consumption, and providing advantages compared to standard non-polarizing techniques.

The Role of Botanical Families in Medicinal Ethnobotany: A Phylogenetic Perspective.

Studies suggesting that medicinal plants are not chosen at random are becoming more common. The goal of this work is to shed light on the role of botanical families in ethnobotany, depicting in a molecular phylogenetic frame the relationships between families and medicinal uses of vascular plants in several Catalan-speaking territories. The simple quantitative analyses for ailments categories and the construction of families and disorders matrix were carried out in this study. A Bayesian approach was used to estimate the over- and underused families in the medicinal flora. Phylogenetically informed analyses were carried out to identify lineages in which there is an overrepresentation of families in a given category of use, i.e., hot nodes. The ethnobotanicity index, at a specific level, was calculated and also adapted to the family level. Two diversity indices to measure the richness of reported taxa within each family were calculated. A total of 47,630 use reports were analysed. These uses are grouped in 120 botanical families. The ethnobotanicity index for this area is 14.44% and the ethnobotanicity index at the family level is 68.21%. The most-reported families are Lamiaceae and Asteraceae and the most reported troubles are disorders of the digestive and nutritional system. Based on the meta-analytic results, indicating hot nodes of useful plants at the phylogenetic level, specific ethnopharmacological research may be suggested, including a phytochemical approach of particularly interesting taxa.

Catalan ethnoflora: a meta-analytic approach to life forms and geographic territories.

BACKGROUND: Catalonia (in the north east of the Iberian Peninsula) is among the most prospected territories in Europe, from the ethnobotanical point of view. The aim of the present paper is to undertake a global analysis in the area considered, including plants, plant life forms, and ethnobotanical data within a physiographic and geographic framework. METHODS: Data from 21 ethnobotanical prospection areas in Catalonia were collected, analyzed, and compared, with the focus on plant life forms and geographic divisions. RESULTS: A total of 824 taxa constitute the Catalan ethnoflora, and 316 of them are shared by the six physiographic zones recognized in Catalonia. When three major geographic areas are considered (Pyrenean, inland, and littoral), 394 taxa have been reported in only one out of the three areas. Concerning life forms, phanerophytes and chamaephytes together, i.e., those taxa present all through the year, are the most cited (37.12%). CONCLUSIONS: This first study constitutes a new approach to ethnobotanical data analysis. The results show the particular importance of plants with a large distribution area and plants with available biomass throughout the year. Apart from this, other kind of plants, e.g., those present in only one territory, are of interest for its originality and sometimes for the local significance.

Phenolic Compounds Content and Genetic Diversity at Population Level across the Natural Distribution Range of Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Ericaceae) in the Iberian Peninsula.

Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) is a medicinal plant traditionally employed for the treatment of urinary tract infections due to high contents of arbutin (hydroquinone ß-D-glucoside), which is now mainly used as a natural skin-whitening agent in cosmetics. Bearberry has also been proposed as a natural antioxidant additive due to the high contents of phenolic compounds in leaves. We studied the variation on phenolic compounds in 42 wild populations of bearberry, aiming to elucidate if intrinsic biological, climatic, and/or geographic factors affect phenolic contents across its natural distribution in the Iberian Peninsula. Bearberry leaves were collected during autumn over a three-year period (2014-2016) in populations across a latitude and altitude gradient. Methanolic extracts showed a wide range of variation in total phenols content, and different phenolic profiles regarding arbutin (levels of this major constituent varied from 87 to 232 mg/g dr wt), but also catechin and myricetin contents, which were affected by geographic and climatic factors. Moderate levels of variation on genome size-assessed by flow cytometry-and on two plastid DNA regions were also detected among populations. Genetic and cytogenetic differentiation of populations was weakly but significantly associated to phytochemical diversity. Elite bearberry genotypes with higher antioxidant capacity were subsequently identified.

Filling the gaps: ethnobotanical study of the Garrigues district, an arid zone in Catalonia (NE Iberian Peninsula).

BACKGROUND: This study has focused on the Garrigues district, one of the most arid regions in Catalonia (NE Iberian Peninsula), which, in general terms, has remained unexplored from the ethnobotanical point of view. This area, of 22,243 inhabitants, comprises 33 municipalities distributed across 1123.12 km2. The natural vegetation is dominated by holm oak forests and maquis called 'garriga', the latter giving its name to the district. During the last few decades, this landscape has been transformed by agricultural activities, nowadays in recession. The main aim of this work was to collect and analyse the ethnoflora of this area in order to fill a gap in the ethnobotanical knowledge in Catalonia. METHODS: The followed methodology was based on semi-structured interviews. The obtained data have been qualitatively and quantitatively analysed and compared with other available ones. RESULTS: Data were gathered from 68 interviews involving 101 informants, whose ages range from 24 to 94, the mean being 73.07. The number of taxa reported in this study was 420, belonging to 99 botanical families. The interviewed informants referred 4715 use reports (UR) of 346 useful taxa, 1741 (36.93) of them corresponding to medicinal uses, 1705 (36.16%) to food uses, and 1269 (26.91%) to other uses. This study has inventoried, apart from individual plant uses, 260 plant mixtures, of which 98 are medicinal and 162 food. In the present study, 849 vernacular names with 116 phonetic variants have been collected, as well, for 410 taxa. The informant consensus factor (FIC) obtained for our interviewees is 0.93, and the ethnobotanicity index is 23.47% for the studied area. Apart from plants belonging to the typical Catalan, Iberian or European ethnofloras, the present work contributes information on some plants from semiarid or arid regions, such as Artemisia herba-alba and Plantago albicans, much rarer in the ethnobotany of the quoted areas. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study reveal the persistence of ethnobotanical knowledge in the prospected area and the importance of filling the existing gaps in the ethnofloristic sampling of the Catalan territories. The almost complete dataset, now including some arid territories, will allow us to carry out a global analysis and to provide an accurate overview.

The Power of Wild Plants in Feeding Humanity: A Meta-Analytic Ethnobotanical Approach in the Catalan Linguistic Area.

Wild food plants (WFP) have always been present in our kitchen, although they have not always been given the same importance as crops. In the Catalan linguistic area (CLA), covered in this paper, WFP were of great importance as a subsistence food not only during the years of the Spanish civil war (1936-1939) and World War II (1939-1945), but also long before these periods and in the years thereafter. The CLA has been well studied at the level of traditional knowledge on plant biodiversity, and much of this information is collected in a database by the EtnoBioFiC research group. The aim of this work is to carry out a meta-analysis of the WFP dataset of he CLA (only regarding edible uses, drinks excluded) and to identify the most quoted plants, and the information associated with them. With data from 1659 informants, we recorded 10,078 use reports of 291 taxa (278 of which at specific or subspecific levels and 13 only determined at generic level) belonging to 67 families. The most reported taxa, also with highest cultural importance indexes, are Thymus vulgaris, Foeniculum vulgare subsp. piperitum, Laurus nobilis, Rubus ulmifolius and Mentha spicata. The ethnobotanicity index for food plants is 6.62% and the informant consensus factor, also for food uses, is a very high 0.97, supporting the robustness of the information. The results provided and discussed in this work concern a significant part of the edible resources in the territory considered, which is, often and mainly, underestimated and underutilised. Its consideration could be an opportunity to promote closer and more sustainable agriculture. From the state-of-the-art of this question, it is possible to propose old, in some cases forgotten foods that could be newly introduced onto the market, first, but not only, at a local level, which could be interesting for new crop development in the frame of a valorisation of territorial identity.

Genome size variation at constant chromosome number is not correlated with repetitive DNA dynamism in Anacyclus (Asteraceae).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Changes in the amount of repetitive DNA (dispersed and tandem repeats) are considered the main contributors to genome size variation across plant species in the absence of polyploidy. However, the study of repeatome dynamism in groups showing contrasting genomic features and complex evolutionary histories is needed to determine whether other processes underlying genome size variation may have been overlooked. The main aim here was to elucidate which mechanism best explains genome size evolution in Anacyclus (Asteraceae). METHODS: Using data from Illumina sequencing, we analysed the repetitive DNA in all species of Anacyclus, a genus with a reticulate evolutionary history, which displays significant genome size and karyotype diversity albeit presenting a stable chromosome number. KEY RESULTS: By reconstructing ancestral genome size values, we inferred independent episodes of genome size expansions and contractions during the evolution of the genus. However, analysis of the repeatome revealed a similar DNA repeat composition across species, both qualitative and quantitative. Using comparative methods to study repeatome dynamics in the genus, we found no evidence for repeat activity causing genome size variation among species. CONCLUSIONS: Our results, combined with previous cytogenetic data, suggest that genome size differences in Anacyclus are probably related to chromosome rearrangements involving losses or gains of chromosome fragments, possibly associated with homoploid hybridization. These could represent balanced rearrangements that do not disrupt gene dosage in merged genomes, for example via chromosome segment exchanges.