A systematic methodology to assess the identity of plants in historical texts: A case study based on the Byzantine pharmacy text John the Physician's Therapeutics.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: In recent decades, the study of historical texts has attracted research interest, particularly in ethnopharmacology. All studies of the materia medica cited in ancient and medieval texts share a concern, however, as to the reliability of modern identifications of these substances. Previous studies of European or Mediterranean texts relied mostly on authoritative dictionaries or glossaries providing botanical identities for the historical plant names in question. Several identities they suggest, however, are questionable and real possibility of error exists. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aims to develop and document a novel and interdisciplinary methodology providing more objective assessment of the identity of the plants (and minerals) described in these resources. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We developed an iterative experimental approach, using the 13th century Byzantine recipe text John the Physician's Therapeutics in its Commentary version (JC) as a case study. The methodology has six stages and relies on comparative analyses including statistical evaluation of botanical descriptions and information about medicinal uses drawn from both historical and modern sources. Stages 1-4 create the dataset, stage 5 derives the primary outcomes to be reviewed by experts in stage 6. RESULTS: Using Disocorides' De Materia Medica (DMM) (1st century CE) as the culturally related reference text for the botanical descriptions of the plants cited in JC, allowed us to link the 194 plants used medicinally in JC with 252 plants cited in DMM. Our test sample for subsequent analyses consisted of the 50 JC plant names (corresponding to 61 DMM plants) for which DMM holds rich morphological information, and the 130 candidate species which have been suggested in the literature as potential botanical identities of those 50 JC plant names. Statistical evaluation of the comparative analyses revealed that in the majority of the cases, our method detected the candidate species having a higher likelihood of being the correct attribution from among the pool of suggested candidates. Final assessment and revision provided a list of the challenges associated with applying our methodology more widely and recommendations on how to address these issues. CONCLUSIONS: We offer this multidisciplinary approach to more evidence-based assessment of the identity of plants in historical texts providing a measure of confidence for each suggested identity. Despite the experimental nature of our methodology and its limitations, its application allowed us to draw conclusions about the validity of suggested candidate plants as well as to distinguish between alternative candidates of the same historical plant name. Fully documenting the methodology facilitates its application to historical texts of any kind of cultural or linguistic background.

Female naturalists and the patterns of suppression of women scientists in history: the example of Maria Sibylla Merian and her contributions about useful plants.

BACKGROUND: This work reunites many women naturalists who registered knowledge about native flora in scientific expeditions around the globe between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. Since male naturalists are more recognized in this period of time, we aimed to list female naturalists that published plant descriptions and observations, focusing on the work of Maria Sibylla Merian and to analyze her trajectory as an example to discuss the patterns of the suppression of women scientists. A second aim was to inventory the useful plants described in Maria Sibylla's Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium and find pharmacological evidence about the traditional uses described for those plants cited as medicinal and toxic. METHODS: A survey of female naturalists was carried out by searching information in Pubmed, Scielo, Google Scholar and Virtual Health Library. Once Maria Sibylla published her book Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium by her own, without male co-authors, and also this book is one of the only to have text and illustrations altogether and there are reports indicating information on useful plants in this work, she and her book were chosen as subject of this research. All the information was tabulated by dividing the plants into food, medicinal, toxic, aromatic or other uses. Finally, with the combinations of the scientific name of medicinal and toxic plants with information about their popular uses, a search was carried out in databases in order to indicate current pharmacological studies that reported evidences about the traditional uses described. RESULTS: We found 28 women naturalists who participated in scientific expeditions or trips, or in a curiosity cabinet, or who were collectors of Natural History between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. All these women illustrated botanical species and/or recorded their everyday or medicinal use or reported their observations in the form of a published work, letters or diaries. Also, the trajectory of Maria Sibylla Merian revealed that her scientific relevance has been neglected from the eighteenth century by mechanisms of suppression, most of the time by male depreciation, which can be seen as a pattern for suppression of women in science. However, Maria Sibyllas' contributions have been valued again in the twenty-first century. In Maria Sibylla's work, 54 plants were identified, 26 of them used for food, 4 of them aromatic, 8 medicinal, 4 toxic and 9 other uses. CONCLUSION: This study evidences that there are female naturalists whose work could be an important source for ethnopharmacological studies. Researching about women scientists, talking about them and highlighting the gender bias present in the scientific academy about the way the history of science is told is essential for the construction of a more diverse and richer scientific academy. The traditional use of 7 of 8 medicinal plants and 3 of 4 toxic plants reported was correlated with pharmacological studies, highlighting the importance of this historical record and its potential to direct strategic research in traditional medicine.

The name to remember: Flexibility and contextuality of preliterate folk plant categorization from the 1830s, in Pernau, Livonia, historical region on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Research on the folk categorization of nature in preliterate societies in Europe is complicated due to the fragmentation of the information available and is rarely undertaken. Yet the data is valuable and may provide, in certain circumstances, important insights, if not into novel medicines, then into the historical logic of selection and memorisation of plants useful from a medicinal perspective. AIMS OF THE STUDY: We aim to understand the ethnobotany of a preliterate society by analysing the emic (derived from people) perspective on nature-related culture of one of Europe's smaller nations, whose written language and culture was shaped in the 18th-19th centuries by other, larger nations of Europe, and thus from the etic (academic) perspective. We attempt to identify how folk categorization is reflected in the relationships between plant names and uses and to map the structure of those relationships. DATA AND METHODS: We base our analysis on one of the oldest ethnobotanical manuscripts and herbaria of the Baltic governorates, compiled in 1831 by an amateur botanist, Baltic German Pastor Johann Heinrich Rosenplänter (1782-1846), which was derived from conversations with his parishioners from the tiny Pärnu parish. The historical dataset was critically analysed from an ethnobotanical perspective in light of recent identifications of the herbarium specimens. RESULTS: Although the Rosenplänter collection is fragmentary, the logic of plant categorization by non-literate peasants at that time is clearly seen in the data. Plants preserved in the herbarium were predominantly used for ethno-medicinal, food or ethno-veterinary purposes, such as treating chronic skin and joint diseases as well as severe acute diseases in humans and animals. Among 129 folk taxa analysed, more than one third had apparent purpose-related plant names providing clear links to their use, whereas a few multifunctional plants had several names reflecting diverse uses. For example, Hypericum spp., which was used in three different ways, had three semantically distinct names. However, among the plants that Rosenplänter collected, there were also some that were simply named and described by people but lacked any usability data (e.g., Trollius europaeus), meaning that use as such was not the primary criterion for recognising a plant. The web-like structure of preliterate thinking in plant-related knowledge reveals a deep relationship with the environment and the interpretation of new elements through familiar natural objects. CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrate that historical ethnobotanical data, if thoughtfully analysed, can be used not only for comparative purposes, but also for understanding the logic of preliterate thinking. We encourage future in-depth studies of historical ethnobotanical data in Europe in order to understand the relationship between nature and culture of native European populations.

Analysis of historical changes in traditional Chinese medicine based on an Indonesian collection of Chinese materia medica from c. 1870.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Traditional Chinese Medicine is subject to changes over time: product names, botanical ingredients, processing methods and uses have varied throughout the course of history. Historic collections of Chinese materia medica (CMM) are of great value for research on the evolvement, development and variability of Chinese herbal medicine over time. These changes may have a significant influence on the safety and efficiency of nowadays' clinical practice. Here we investigate a historic collection of Chinese medicinal products purchased in Indonesia in c. 1870, containing about 395 specimens. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study compares the specimens contained in late 19th century collection of CMM with contemporary marketed materials by investigating changes in vernacular names, botanical identity and processing methods which are important aspects for safety and clinical practice today. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The contents and associated documentation of the CMM collection of Dr. C.H.A. Westhoff (University Museum Utrecht) were revised by means of morphological identification and study of the associated historic documentation. We compared this Westhoff collection with contemporary CMM, information from literature and various quality standards, including the official Chinese pharmacopoeia. RESULTS: The Westhoff collection represents a unique, well preserved collection of Chinese materia medica, with original uniform bottles, Chinese labels and a partly intact handwritten catalogue. Among the 395 specimens (bottles) of CMM surveyed, there are 387 contain a single component drug, while eight contain multiple components drugs. A total of 293 of the 395 specimens are mentioned in the modern Chinese pharmacopoeia. Ca. 25% of the specimens had been processed, such as stir-fried with or without adjuvants. Our analysis of local Chinese names, botanical content and processing methods indicate that this collection originates from southern part of China, possibly including in the region of Taiwan and was meant as a showcase for pharmaceutical education and/or as curiosity object. CONCLUSION: Differences in vernacular names, plant parts and processing methods between the Westhoff collection and the current Chinese pharmacopoeia illustrate the regional variety of CMM and changes in CMM in the course of time. This work contributes to the understanding of the evolvement of CMM from a historic perspective.

Historical ethnobotanical review of medicinal plants used to treat children diseases in Romania (1860s-1970s).

BACKGROUND: Romanian ethnopediatrics has a long history of medicinal plant use. The main objective of the present review was to identify, collect, systematize, and prioritize the available bibliographical data related to medicinal plants traditionally used to treat various pediatric diseases in Romania during the 1860s-1970s. METHODS: Information was mainly obtained by manual systematic search in various relevant historical works focused on the traditional use of medicinal plants in Romania (1860s-1970s), found in the Archives of Romanian Academy Library and National Romanian Library. RESULTS: A total of 153 medicinal plants belonging to 52 families were identified as having ethnopediatric significance. The plant traditional indications, targeted body systems, parts used, and way of administration were provided. We have also proposed one index (expressed as percentage) in order to assess the ethnopediatric applicability area of species: ethnopediatric relative therapeutic versatility (ERTV), which was calculated on the basis of the number of distinct uses mentioned for a species. The species identified to have the highest ERTV scores were Dryopteris filix-mas (100%), Gratiola officinalis (85.71%), Allium sativum (71.42%), Eryngium planum (71.42%), Juglans regia (71.42%), Matricaria chamomilla (71.42%), Plantago major (71.42%). CONCLUSIONS: The present study exposed for the first time to the international scientific community important ethnopediatric information contained in several local Romanian bibliographical resources that could guide the local and international researchers towards new directions of plant valorization.

Inventing a herbal tradition: The complex roots of the current popularity of Epilobium angustifolium in Eastern Europe.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Currently various scientific and popular sources provide a wide spectrum of ethnopharmacological information on many plants, yet the sources of that information, as well as the information itself, are often not clear, potentially resulting in the erroneous use of plants among lay people or even in official medicine. Our field studies in seven countries on the Eastern edge of Europe have revealed an unusual increase in the medicinal use of Epilobium angustifolium L., especially in Estonia, where the majority of uses were specifically related to "men's problems". THE AIM OF THE CURRENT WORK IS: to understand the recent and sudden increase in the interest in the use of E. angustifolium in Estonia; to evaluate the extent of documented traditional use of E. angustifolium among sources of knowledge considered traditional; to track different sources describing (or attributed as describing) the benefits of E. angustifolium; and to detect direct and indirect influences of the written sources on the currently documented local uses of E. angustifolium on the Eastern edge of Europe. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study we used a variety of methods: semi-structured interviews with 599 people in 7 countries, historical data analysis and historical ethnopharmacological source analysis. We researched historical and archival sources, and academic and popular literature published on the medicinal use of E. angustifolium in the regions of our field sites as well as internationally, paying close attention to the literature that might have directly or indirectly contributed to the popularity of E. angustifolium at different times in history. RESULTS: Our results show that the sudden and recent popularity in the medical use of E. angustifolium in Estonia has been caused by local popular authors with academic medical backgrounds, relying simultaneously on "western" and Russian sources. While Russian sources have propagated (partially unpublished) results from the 1930s, "western" sources are scientific insights derived from the popularization of other Epilobium species by Austrian herbalist Maria Treben. The information Treben disseminated could have been originated from a previous peak in popularity of E. angustifolium in USA in the second half of the 19th century, caused in turn by misinterpretation of ancient herbals. The traditional uses of E. angustifolium were related to wounds and skin diseases, fever, pain (headache, sore throat, childbirth), and abdominal-related problems (constipation, stomach ache) and intestinal bleeding. Few more uses were based on the similarity principle. The main theme, however, is the fragmentation of use and its lack of consistency apart from wounds and skin diseases. CONCLUSIONS: Historical ethnobotanical investigations could help to avoid creating repeating waves of popularity of plants that have already been tried for certain diseases and later abandoned as not fully effective. There is, of course, a chance that E. angustifolium could also finally be proven to be clinically safe and cost-effective for treating benign prostatic hyperplasia, but this has not yet happened despite recent intensive research. Documented traditional use would suggest investigating the dermatological, intestinal anti-hemorrhagic and pain inhibiting properties of this plant, if any.

Ethnopharmacology - A journal, a definition and a society.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Historical development of the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, the International Society of Ethnopharmacology, and the first definition of ethnopharmacology. AIM OF THE STUDY: To present the background to, and the people involved, in the foundation of the journal and the society. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Personal recollections, archival documents and photographs. RESULTS: A concise review of the early years of the JEP and the ISE, and the development of the first definition of ethnopharmacology. CONCLUSIONS: The definition of ethnopharmacology as an interdisciplinary science, and its establishment as a journal and a society was timely, filled a need, and opened up publication and meeting possibilities for scientists from various academic fields. Most important has been, and continues to be, the bridges created between people from all cultures and all countries.

Historical ethnopharmacology of the herbalists from Krummhübel in the Sudety Mountains (seventeenth to nineteenth century), Silesia.

BACKGROUND: Krummhübel (after 1945, Karpacz) in the Sudety Mountains (now SW Poland) was called "the village of pharmacists". At the end of the seventeenth century, there were 57 households, of which about 40 were inhabited by herbalists. Krummhübel herbalists were the first in the Sudety region who applied medicinal mixtures for the treatment of various diseases (using, among others, plants, oils, minerals and even viper venom) in contrast to previous herbalists who only indicated the use of individual plant species for specific diseases. Riesengebirge (in Polish Karkonosze) potions were sold in Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Russia, and some of them could even be purchased in Scandinavia and England. The purpose of this paper is an ethnopharmacological analysis of historical texts of herbalists from Krummhübel. Based on their recipes, we analysed the use reports of drugs. Recently, research on ethnobotany and ethnopharmacological analyses of historical materials or egodocuments related to formulations used in folk medicine have become an important source of acquiring knowledge about new medicines. METHODS: Based on 46 recipes of Krummhübel herbalists re-written by Reitzig (1943), we analysed the use reports of drugs which included plant taxa and other constituents such as animal formulations, fungi, inorganic and organic substances and minerals as well as tinctures (with alcohol/spirit) and elixirs (without alcohol/spirit). For each usage mentioned in the text, we recorded (i) the putative botanical identity of the taxon; (ii) the plant family or origin of other than the plant constituent; (iii) the reported plant part; (iv) the number of the recipe; (v) the name of the recipe; (vi) the vernacular name of ingredient; (vii) the described symptom, ailment or specific use; (viii) our modern (viz. biomedical) interpretation of the described symptom or ailment; (ix) the mode of administration; and (x) the category of use under which we filed the specific use. We also cross-checked the medicinal plants of Krummhübel herbalists with the species described in old manuscripts and regional surveys and compared their use with contemporary plant use. RESULTS: The paper introduces the generated database comprising 348 use reports of 46 drugs based on 70 plant taxa and other constituents. Besides, we address patterns such as the frequent recommendation of Fabaceae herbs for respiratory system issue and gynaecology and Asteraceae for respiratory system and cardiovascular problems. Gastrointestinal use reports are based on Asphodelaceae, Burseraceae and Rosaceae species. CONCLUSIONS: Remedies that lost importance over time as well as drugs used for diseases now controlled by conventional medicine may be interesting starting points for research on herbal medicine and drug discovery. It seems to be important to attempt to reproduce therapeutic mixtures from the preserved recipes of Krummhübel herbalists, which offers an opportunity to learn more about the real effects of the former medicines and their therapeutic activity. The obtained data can also be used to search for new drugs.

Medicinal plants of the Caatinga, northeastern Brazil: Ethnopharmacopeia (1980-1990) of the late professor Francisco José de Abreu Matos.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE: The Caatinga (semi-arid region), is an exclusively Brazilian biome. Considering the scarcity of ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological studies in this region before the year 2000, this study presents data from ethnobotanical expeditions carried out between 1980 and 1990, by the late professor Francisco José de Abreu Matos (1924-2008). The information revealed in this present work are valuable and remained unpublished until now. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The objective was to organize, systematize and analyze ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological data using ethnobotanical analytical techniques. The most cited native species in each use category were selected for literature review of the pharmacological studies related to their ethnomedicinal uses. RESULTS: Revision of the botanical nomenclature led to the botanical confirmation of 272 plants, of which 84 (30.9%) were reclassified. These represented 71 families and 220 genera that were cited 1957 times. 153 (56.3%) of these plant species are native to Brazil, of which 36 (23.4%) are endemic to the Caatinga. The use reports (RU) associated with these plants, according to the body systems (ICPC-2) in decreasing order of UR and the ICF values were respiratory system (93 species, 407 UR, ICF 0.77), digestive system (119 species, 373 UR, ICF 0.68), general and nonspecific symptoms (95 species, 219 UR, ICF 0.58), female genital system (60 species, 184 UR, ICF 0.68), skin (71 species, 156 UR, ICF 0.55), cardiovascular (50 species, 99 UR, ICF 0.50), blood and immune system diseases (46 species, 96 UR, ICF 0.53), urological (44 species, 88 UR, ICF 0.51), musculoskeletal (33 species, 80 UR, ICF 0.60), psychological (21 species, 71 UR, ICF 0.60), while others represent less than 10.0% of the UR. The most cited plants in the disease categories were Dysphania ambrosioides (28), Pombalia calceolaria (28) Hymenaea courbaril (26), Myracrodruon urundeuva (50), Brassica juncea subsp. integrifolia (16), Scoparia dulcis (22), Phyllanthus niruri (14), Egletes viscosa (25), Lippia alba (16), Erythroxylum vacciniifolium (9) and Salvia rosmarinus (21). The most prominent clades of the medicinal plants based on cluster analysis were the Lamiids (Euasterids)-497 UR and the Fabids (Eurosids I) - 468 UR. Association between certain phylogenetic clades and use-category were also observed and discussed. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated a new approach in ethnopharmacology by mapping plant usages to diseases prevalent in a community from old ethnobotanical travel reports. In addition to revealing the therapeutic potential of Caatinga species using cluster analysis.

Bodies of the plant and Animal Kingdom: An illustrated manuscript on materia medica in the Netherlands (ca. 1800).

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Around 1800, Amsterdam was a global trade hub for materia medica of Dutch, European and exotic origin. Contemporary knowledge on medicinal plants in academic circles has been well documented in local pharmacopoeia, illustrated herbals and catalogues of botanic gardens. Until the end of the ancient regime, physicians, surgeons and apothecaries were trained how to use plants in their specific guild or Collegium Medicum. Little is known, however, on how the plant collectors and merchants that provided the pharmaceutical substances to apothecaries learnt to recognise the variety of medicinal products. AIM OF THE STUDY: To analyse the content, origin, purpose and scientific importance of an anonymous, undated, hand-written Dutch manuscript on materia medica, entitled Corpora ex Regno Vegetabili/Animali (Bodies of the Plant/Animal kingdom) kept by the Artis Library of the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We digitised the entire manuscript and dated the paper by means of its watermark. We identified the plant and animal species using the historic Dutch and Latin names, the illustrations and historic literature. We compared the plant properties and uses to contemporary literature to check whether the information in the manuscript was original or copied from another source. RESULTS: The paper was produced between 1759 and 1816 in Zaandam, the Netherlands. The manuscript contains 19 substances of animal origin, one mineral and 273 plants and plant-derived products, which belong to ca. 260 species. While most plants are native or cultivated in the Netherlands, 111 plant entries (105 spp.) represent exotic products, imported from as far as Madagascar and Australia. A total of 134 illustrations were cut out from a 1549 Dutch edition of the New Herbal by Leonhard Fuchs (1543), but only 69% correspond to the correct species. The manuscript contains detailed descriptions on growth locations, field characteristics, flowering season, provenance and quality of the medicinal products, including methods to detect forgery. The author mostly described humoral properties of the plants rather than listing medicinal recipes. We did not find evidence that he copied his texts from other sources, but the Dutch and Latin names correspond largely with the Amsterdam pharmacopoeia from 1795. CONCLUSIONS: The author's extensive knowledge on trade names, quality and origin of materia medica and his refrain from using literature suggests he could have been a merchant, an intermediary between herb cultivators, overseas traders and apothecaries. This manuscript offers a unique insight in the global trade in medicinal products and the circulation of knowledge in non-academic circles around 1800.

Medicinal plants brought by Indian indentured immigrants: A comparative review of ethnopharmacological uses between Mauritius and India.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Mauritius is famous for its floricultural diversity and traditions practiced across the island by various ethnic groups. During the British rule in the 1835s, Indian indentured labourers migrated to Mauritius and played a very important role in shaping the Mauritian culture. They brought along their high heritage of traditional knowledge of certain medicinal herbs and spices. Nonetheless, there has been no comparative study to investigate whether these past traditional knowledge are still preserved in Mauritius and India. AIM OF THE STUDY: To document and compare the traditional uses of medicinal herbs and spices brought by Indian indentured labourers with their current uses in Mauritius and India, and to review pharmacological studies of such plants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Locally published textbooks, research dissertations, and relevant records from the 'Mauritiana' section of the University of Mauritius library were scrutinised for possible early records of such herbs and spices brought by Indian indentured immigrants. Field trips and site visits to Mauritius Herbarium and The National Folk Museum were conducted to gather data on their traditional uses as practiced by the Indian indentured immigrants. A literature search was performed to gather the current ethnomedicinal uses of these plants in Mauritius and India using key databases such as ScienceDirect and PubMed, as well as thesis from local university website. Pharmacological studies on these plants were also reviewed in an attempt to compare the ethnomedicinal uses against reported ailments. RESULTS: Indian labourers brought 18 medicinal plants for medicinal purposes as documented at the folk museum of Indian Immigration. Piper betle L., Azadirachta indica A. Juss., and Curcuma longa L. were common plants used by Indian indentured immigrants against a wide range of ailments. Data obtained from recent ethnomedicinal surveys revealed that A. indica and C. longa were the most traditionally used plants in India, while in Mauritius, C. longa was the most popular plant followed by Allium sativum L. and Ocimum tenuiflorum L. It was also found that all these plants are currently being used against a wide range of diseases in both countries. In addition, several studies have highlighted the pharmacological properties such as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, anti-pyretic, and anti-diabetic for some plants. CONCLUSION: This investigation can be considered as a first attempt to document and compare traditional knowledge of medicinal plants brought by Indian immigrants. We observed that some of these knowledge are preserved and still practiced in Mauritius. It is anticipated that this study will revive the interest in safeguarding and promoting the ancestral knowledge on the uses of such plants.

Ethnopharmacological study of Sephardic remedies in the 19th century: The "Livro de Milizinas".

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The Sephardic or Judeo-Spanish communities kept a cultural heritage extremely relevant which is recognizable through the peculiar form of their language and practices. Medicine was one of the main professional activities among Jews of Spain before their expulsion in 1492. We expected to find ingredients and recipes in the Sephardic traditional medicine related to classical medicine and to modern ethnopharmacology of Spain, but also influenced by the host countries. Recipes for specific diseases could be compared with modern ethnopharmacology. Although the basic language of the recipes is Judeo-Spanish, it presents local variants and names which are not only dialectal Spanish, but also Turkish, Hebrew or Bosnian. METHODS: The main source of information for Sephardic folk medicine are the specimens of the "Livro de Milizinas" printed in Thessaloniki and Smyrna (Izmir) during the 19th century. Others are some documents on pharmacy conserved in Bosnia associated to the Papo family of Sephardic Aktars or Attars (Ottoman herbalists) and the oral tradition in the Sephardic communities of Asia, Europe and the Americas. In order to analyze these formularies, we have studied the recipes in eleven different sources systematized in an Excel® 2010 book. We focused on formulas that are not merely rituals instead contain specific ingredients and pathologies. Specific dictionaries were generated in Excel® 2010, to standardize names of ingredients and pathologies. RESULTS: In the 502 complete recipes and variants studied, 107 pathologies and 154 different ingredients appear. Among ingredients, 93 are plants, 38 animals and 23 mineral substances. The most common pathologies in the recipes correspond to infectious diseases, headache, epistaxis, parasites and the "espanto". These ingredients received 397 different vernacular names, being prevalent those in Spanish (303) followed by those in Turkish. Preparations recorded are simple, easily made at home, not requiring special tools or hardware. In studies dated 1845 in Bulgaria the forms of preparation and administration are similar. Topic preparations externally applied are prevalent in numbers doubling the oral administration on the contrary of modern ethnopharmacology studies in Thessaloniki where dominate internal uses over external ones. The books of medicines of Smyrna and Thessaloniki are very similar, if not almost identical. The "Livro de Milizinas" constitute a peculiar Sephardic text within the Ottoman style of medicine. The proximity in the analyses with Ottoman sources (Ottoman pharmacopoeias, Turkish Aktar shops and Medieval Cairo Jewish pharmacopoeia) is due to the high proportion of ingredients in common. After excluding animal and mineral ingredients of the analyses, modern ethnobotanical records from Greece and Turkey appear closer to the Sephardic main sources. The rest of Sephardic sources with notably smaller lists of ingredients represent fragments of mostly oral transmitted tradition and treat pathologies such as evil eye or "espanto". The recipes of the Sephardic of Bosnia comprise pathologies such as plague, cholera, typhus or gastroenteritis. Ingredients, largely of plant origin, to 93, are still in use in phytotherapy and/or local medical-pharmaceutical ethnobotany in Turkey or Greece. CONCLUSIONS: The Sephardic materia medica presented in the "Livro de Milizinas" is eclectic, adapted to an urban environment and to the prevalent pathologies of the second half of the 19th century, within the main cultural framework of the Ottoman Empire but with peculiarities characteristic of Sephardic Culture. These can be traced back to the period immediately after the expulsion of Sephardic from Spain. Their relationships with other modern sources are scarce, even in terms of pathologies.

Cannabis sativa: A comprehensive ethnopharmacological review of a medicinal plant with a long history.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Cannabis sativa L. (C. sativa) is an annual dioecious plant, which shares its origins with the inception of the first agricultural human societies in Asia. Over the course of time different parts of the plant have been utilized for therapeutic and recreational purposes, for instance, extraction of healing oils from seed, or the use of inflorescences for their psychoactive effects. The key psychoactive constituent in C. sativa is called Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (D9-THC). The endocannabinoid system seems to be phylogenetically ancient, as it was present in the most primitive vertebrates with a neuronal network. N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) are the main endocannabinoids ligands present in the animal kingdom, and the main endocannabinoid receptors are cannabinoid type-1 (CB1) receptor and cannabinoid type-2 (CB2) receptor. AIM OF THE STUDY: The review aims to provide a critical and comprehensive evaluation, from the ancient times to our days, of the ethnological, botanical, chemical and pharmacological aspects of C. sativa, with a vision for promoting further pharmaceutical research to explore its complete potential as a therapeutic agent. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was performed by reviewing in extensive details the studies on historical significance and ethnopharmacological applications of C. sativa by using international scientific databases, books, Master's and Ph.D. dissertations and government reports. In addition, we also try to gather relevant information from large regional as well as global unpublished resources. In addition, the plant taxonomy was validated using certified databases such as Medicinal Plant Names Services (MPNS) and The Plant List. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: A detailed comparative analysis of the available resources for C. sativa confirmed its origin and traditional spiritual, household and therapeutic uses and most importantly its popularity as a recreational drug. The result of several studies suggested a deeper involvement of phytocannabinoids (the key compounds in C. sativa) in several others central and peripheral pathophysiological mechanisms such as food intake, inflammation, pain, colitis, sleep disorders, neurological and psychiatric illness. However, despite their numerous medicinal benefits, they are still considered as a menace to the society and banned throughout the world, except for few countries. We believe that this review will help lay the foundation for promoting exhaustive pharmacological and pharmaceutical studies in order to better understand the clinical relevance and applications of non-psychoactive cannabinoids in the prevention and treatment of life-threatening diseases and help to improve the legal status of C. sativa.

Tangled history of the European uses of Sphagnum moss and sphagnol.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Sphagnum mosses and peat could have been utilized as wound dressings for centuries, however reliable data on this subject are ambiguous; sometimes even no distinction between peat moss (Sphagnum spp.) and peat is made or these terms become confused. The first scientific account on surgical use of peat comes from 1882: a peat digger who successfully, by himself and in the way unknown to the then medicine, cured an open fracture of his forearm with peat. The peat, and very soon the peat moss itself (which is the major constituent of peat) drew attention of the 19th-century surgeons. AIMS OF THE WORK: We search for reliable information on: (1) inspirations for Sphagnum usage for medical purposes and its beginnings in the 19th century, (2) substances or products named sphagnol and their connections with (1); (3) on the origin of this name, (4) and on the occurrence of this name in medical sources. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We have identified and studied published sources on the uses of peat-based and Sphagnum-based preparations and products of any processing level (including herbal stock, distillate, isolated pure or impure active principle, or a mixture of such) in surgery, pharmacy or cosmetics. A special attention was paid to the name sphagnol, which appeared many a time, in more than one context since 1899. Source publications were critically analysed from the taxonomical, pharmacognostical and ethnopharmacological points of view. Gathered data were cross-checked with the modern knowledge of the biologically active principles of Sphagnum and the prospects of their medical use. RESULTS: The application of peat in surgery started 1882. The use of peat moss as dressings was developed in the 1880's. It returned to surgical practice during WW1. The name sphagnol has two meanings: (1) A chemical substance isolated from the cell walls of Sphagnum mosses in 1899. A post-1950 research showed it to be a mixture of phenols dominated by sphagnum acid. (2) A product of dry distillation of peat contains solid and liquid fractions and was applied in skin diseases due to antiseptic properties. It was added to ointments and medicated soaps manufactured up to the late 1960's. Today none of these two sphagnols is in use. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical application of peat had an ethnopharmacological origin: a case of wound treatment with peat as a remedy rather than a dressing (1880, published 1882) shortly shifted the surgeons' attention to peat moss as an absorptive dressing. The 1880's tests of antiseptic properties of peat and peat moss failed, the sterilization methods overrode the physiological effects of Sphagnum dressings. Sphagnan, a polysaccharide from Sphagnum cell walls, discovered 1983, inhibits microbial growth, tans the collagen and removes ammonia from microbial environments. Portions of raw peat could be sterile. The isolation of sphagnol (1899) from Sphagnum cell walls was not inspired by old surgery. Main component of sphagnol, the sphagnic acid, was used clinically during WW2, but was proved a weak antimicrobial agent. A homonymous name sphagnol appeared independently for a product of dry distillation of peat, introduced commercially probably about 1899, too, which gave rise to confusions: a) the commercial, "distilled" sphagnol was not the crystalline principle of Sphagnum cell walls. 2) the "distilled" sphagnol was hardly defined technologically or pharmacologically, never standardized in terms of the substrate (a variety of peat rather than Sphagnum herb) and the production process. This sphagnol, resembling pitch or tar, was an additive to medicated soaps and ointments for skin treatment and care. It must have been a low-scale product although advertised worldwide. Neither sphagnum acid nor sphagnan are used medicinally today.

Ethnopharmacological approach to the herbal medicines of the "Elements Alpha to Delta" in Nikolaos Myrepsos׳ Dynameron. Part II.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Dynameron is a Byzantine medical compendium, divided into 24 sections, the "Elements", containing 2667 recipes, most of which inherited by previous physicians of the classic ancient Greek and Hellenistic, and imperial Roman periods. AIM OF THE STUDY: In continuation to our previous study concerning the first and largest chapter of the "Element Alpha" of Nikolaos Myrepsos׳ Dynameron (Valiakos et al., 2015), this paper focuses on the plants quoted in the recipes of the eight following chapters entitled "About Salts", "About Honeypacks" and "About Spreads", all belonging to the same "Element Alpha"; "About Antitussives" and "About Suppositories" belonging to the "Element Beta"; "About women's Cathartics" belonging to the "Element Gamma"; "About Drossaton" and "About Diachrisma", both belonging to the "Element Delta". MATERIALS AND METHODS: Our main primary source material was the codex kept in the National Library of France (in Paris) under the number grec. 2243, which is the older and larger codex of Dynameron (Valiakos et al., 2015). RESULTS: The present study led us to the interpretation of 277 plants under different names, among which we recognized 57 medicinal plants listed by the European Medicines Agency, one of them with negative monograph (i.e. Chelidonium majus). In addition, there are identified taxa related to those quoted by EMA as herbal medicines. The plants appearing in the examined Elements belong to various families of which the most frequent are: Apiaceae 10.11%; Lamiaceae 7.22%; Asteraceae 6.86%; Rosaceae 6.5% and Fabaceae 6.14%. CONCLUSIONS: A total of 277 species have been catalogued, most of which are referred in our previous publication (Valiakos et al., 2015). Among them, 56 plants still play a very important role in medical practice, as they are used as traditional herbal medicines (www.ema.eu). This evidence is a proof that the use of medicinal plants remains valuable from the ancient times until today. The recipes, in contrast to older medical compendia, contain precise measurements of ingredients and dosages for every drug, which seem to reflect empirical logic.

Medicinal plant uses and names from the herbarium of Francesc Bolòs (1773-1844).

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Ethnobotany takes into account past uses to be projected into the present and future. Most current ethnobotanical research is focused, especially in industrialised countries, on obtaining information of plant uses from elderly people. Historical ethnobotany is less cultivated, although papers have demonstrated its interest. Particularly poor, but potentially very relevant, is the attention paid to historical herbaria as a source of data on useful plants. AIMS OF THE STUDY: Bearing this in mind, we studied the herbarium of the Catalan pharmacist and naturalist Francesc Bolòs (1773-1844), which contains information on medicinal uses and folk names, with the aim of establishing a catalogue of plants and uses and tracing them through old and contemporary literature. METHODOLOGY: The ca. 6000 plant specimens of this herbarium were investigated to assess those including plant uses and names. These taxa have been thoroughly revised. The data have been tabulated, their biogeographic profile, possible endemic or threatened status, or invasive behaviour have been assessed, and the content regarding medicinal uses, as well as folk names, has been studied. The medicinal terms used have been interpreted as per current days' medicine. The popular names and uses have been compared with those appearing in a certain number of works published from 11th to 20th centuries in the territories covered by the herbarium and with all the data collected in 20th and 21st centuries in an extensive database on Catalan ethnobotany. RESULTS: A total of 385 plant specimens (381 taxa) have been detected bearing medicinal use and folk names information. We collected data on 1107 reports of plant medicinal properties (in Latin), 32 indications of toxicity, nine reports of food use, and 123, 302 and 318 popular plant names in Catalan, Spanish and French, respectively. The most quoted systems are digestive, skin and subcutaneous tissue (plus traumatic troubles) and genitourinary. Relatively high degrees of coincidence of plant names and uses in the herbarium and the literature comparison set have been found. Of the taxa contained in this medicinal herbarium, 294 were native to the Iberian Peninsula, and 86 were alien. Neither endemic nor threatened taxa have been detected, whereas a considerable portion of the alien taxa shows invasive behaviour at present. CONCLUSIONS: Our analyses indicate a certain degree of consistency between the medicinal uses of plants recorded in this 18th and 19th century herbarium and the records found in the literature and in recent ethnobotanical datasets, accounting for the robustness of pharmaceutical ethnobotanical knowledge in the area considered. Data appearing on the specimen labels are numerous, pointing out the herbarium as a relevant source of ethnopharmacological information. Special attention should be paid to some original uses contained in the herbarium's labels for further investigation on plant properties and drug design.

Comparison of Lamiaceae medicinal uses in eastern Morocco and eastern Andalusia and in Ibn al-Baytar's Compendium of Simple Medicaments (13th century CE).

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Transmission of traditional knowledge over time and across culturally and historically related territories is an important topic in ethnopharmacology. Here, we contribute to this knowledge by analysing data on medicinal uses in two neighbouring areas of the Western Mediterranean in relation to a historical text that has been scarcely mentioned in historical studies despite its interest. AIM OF THE STUDY: This paper discusses the sharing of popular knowledge on the medicinal uses of plants between eastern Morocco and eastern Andalusia (Spain), focusing on one of the most useful plant families in the Mediterranean area: Lamiaceae. Moreover, we used the classical work of Ibn al-Baytar (13th century CE) The Compendium of Simple Medicaments and Foods as a basis to contrast the possible link of this information, analysing the influence of this historical text on current popular tradition of medicinal plant use in both territories. MATERIALS AND METHODS: For data collection, we performed ethnobotanical field research in the eastern part of Morocco, recording current medicinal uses for the Lamiaceae. In addition, we systematically reviewed the ethnobotanical literature from eastern Andalusia, developing a database. We investigated the possible historical link of the shared uses and included in this database the information from Ibn al-Baytar's Compendium. To compare the similarity and diversity of the data, we used Jaccard's similarity index. RESULTS: Our field work provided ethnobotanical information for 14 Lamiaceae species with 95 medicinal uses, serving to treat 13 different pathological groups. Of the total uses recorded in Morocco, 30.5% were shared by eastern Andalusia and found in Ibn al-Baytar's work. There was a higher similarity when comparing current uses of the geographically close territories of eastern Morocco and eastern Andalucía (64%) than for eastern Morocco and this historical text (43%). On the other hand, coincidences between current uses in eastern Andalusia and the ones related in the Compendium are lower, 28%. CONCLUSIONS: The coincidence of the current ethnobotanical knowledge in the two territories is high for the Lamiaceae. Probably the shared historical background, recent exchanges, information flow, and the influence of the historical herbal texts have influenced this coincidence. In this sense, there is a high plant-use overlap between Ibn al-Baytar's text and both territories: nearly half of the uses currently shared by eastern Morocco and eastern Andalusia were included in the Compendium and are related to this period of Islamic medicine, indicating a high level of preservation in the knowledge of plant usage. The study of 14 species of Lamiaceae suggests that this classical codex, which includes a high number of medicinal plants and uses, constitutes a valuable bibliographical source for comparing ancient and modern applications of plants.

Antibacterial activity of medicinal plants from The Physicians of Myddvai, a 14th century Welsh medical manuscript.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Antimicrobial drug resistance is a growing threat to global public health. Historical records and herbal texts relating to traditional Celtic medicine indicate an extensive pharmacopeia of plants for treating infections likely caused by microbes. However, a major barrier for successful integration of these remedies into mainstream practice is the current lack of accurate interpretation and scientific validation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We investigated the flora of the Isle of Arran, Scotland, via in situ targeted screening of 83 out of 138 plants identified in Meddygion Myddvai (a 14th century Welsh manuscript) to treat conditions related to microbial infections, and an additional 18 plants from modern ethnobotanical knowledge on the island (Scottish School of Herbal Medicine). In a follow-up proof-of-concept study, bioassay-guided fractionation was performed to identify bioactive constituents from two high scoring hits that inhibited Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive) and Escherichia coli (Gram-negative) bacterial growth. RESULTS: 67 historical plants (80.7%) and 14 modern plants (77.8%) were found to have detectable levels of antimicrobial activity when tested using Mobile Discovery kits, with human saliva as a source of bacteria for screening. Sabinene, a natural bicyclic monoterpene from juniper "berries" (Juniperus communis L.) and alliin, a natural sulfoxide from garlic cloves (Allium sativum L.), were isolated and confirmed as primary antibacterial leads. CONCLUSION: Using historical medical sources such as those associated with traditional Celtic medicine to guide rigorous, evidence-based scientific investigation, provides additional leads for new and alternative bioactive molecules for combating bacterial diseases.

Traditional Mediterranean and European herbal medicines.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Written history allows tracing back Mediterranean and European medical traditions to Greek antiquity. The epidemiological shift triggered by the rise of modern medicine and industrialization is reflected in contemporary reliance and preferences for certain herbal medicines. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We sketch the development and transmission of written herbal medicine through Mediterranean and European history and point out the opportunity to connect with modern traditions. RESULTS: An ethnopharmacological database linking past and modern medical traditions could serve as a tool for crosschecking contemporary ethnopharmacological field-data as well as a repository for data mining. Considering that the diachronic picture emerging from such a database has an epidemiological base this could lead to new hypotheses related to evolutionary medicine. CONCLUSION: The advent of systems pharmacology and network pharmacology opens new perspectives for studying past and current herbal medicine. Since a large part of modern drugs has its roots in ancient traditions one may expect new leads for drug development from novel systemic studies, as well as evidence for the activity of certain herbal preparations.