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Tchokponhoué DA, N’Danikou S, Fassinou Hotegni NV, Nyadanu D, Kahane R, Odindo AO, Achigan-Dako EG, Sibiya J. Use Patterns, Knowledge Diversity and Drivers for the Cultivation of the Miracle Plant [Synsepalum dulcificum (Schumach & Thonn.) Daniell] in Benin and Ghana. PLANTS 2021; 10:plants10112253. [PMID: 34834616 PMCID: PMC8620124 DOI: 10.3390/plants10112253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Revised: 09/25/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Despite the growing interest in the miracle plant worldwide due to its numerous applications, the threats and the wild harvest of the species hamper its sustainable utilisation. Moreover, traditional knowledge so far documented on the species is limited to a narrow geographical coverage of its natural distribution range, which is West and Central Africa. This study analysed the use variation and knowledge acquisition pattern of the miracle plant among West African sociolinguistic groups and deciphered the drivers of populations’ willingness and readiness to engage in cultivating the species. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 510 respondents purposively selected from nine sociolinguistic groups in Benin and Ghana using the snowball sampling approach. Information was collected on respondents’ socio-demographic profile, miracle plant ownership, plant parts used and preparation methods, knowledge of the species bioecology, perceived threats on the species, willingness to cultivate, maximum acreage to allocate to the species and maximum price to pay for a seedling. Descriptive statistics, generalized linear models, classification and regression tree models were used for data analysis. The miracle plant ownership mode depended on the age category. Sociolinguistic affiliation, level of schooling, migratory status and religion significantly affected the number of trees owned. We recorded 76 uses belonging to six use categories. The overall use-value of the miracle plant significantly varied according to the respondent sociolinguistic affiliation, main activity and religion. Men were the main source of knowledge and knowledge is mainly acquired along the family line. Knowledge related to food and social uses was mostly acquired from parents and people of the same generation, while magico-therapeutic and medicinal use-related knowledge were inherited from parents and grandparents. Sociolinguistic affiliation, awareness of taboos and market availability were the most important drivers of respondent willingness to cultivate the miracle plant. While the respondent’s level of schooling and perception of plant growth rate determined the maximum acreage they were willing to allocate to the species in cultivation schemes, their main activity, sociolinguistic affiliation and knowledge of the species time to fruiting drove the maximum purchase price they were willing to offer for a seedling of the species. Our findings provide key information for the promotion of miracle plant cultivation in the study area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dèdéou Apocalypse Tchokponhoué
- School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa; (A.O.O.); (J.S.)
- Laboratory of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science (GBioS), School of Plant Sciences, University of Abomey-Calavi, Abomey-Calavi 01 BP 526, Benin; (S.N.); (N.V.F.H.); (E.G.A.-D.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +229-97176987 or +27-822546987
| | - Sognigbé N’Danikou
- Laboratory of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science (GBioS), School of Plant Sciences, University of Abomey-Calavi, Abomey-Calavi 01 BP 526, Benin; (S.N.); (N.V.F.H.); (E.G.A.-D.)
- World Vegetable Centre, East and Southern Africa, Duluti, Arusha P.O. Box 10, Tanzania
- Ecole d’Horticulture et d’Aménagement des Espaces Verts, Université Nationale d’Agriculture, Kétou BP 43, Benin
| | - Nicodème Vodjo Fassinou Hotegni
- Laboratory of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science (GBioS), School of Plant Sciences, University of Abomey-Calavi, Abomey-Calavi 01 BP 526, Benin; (S.N.); (N.V.F.H.); (E.G.A.-D.)
| | - Daniel Nyadanu
- Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG), Akim Tafo P.O. Box 8, Ghana;
| | - Rémi Kahane
- Research Unit HortSys, Department Persyst, CIRAD, Campus de Baillarguet, CEDEX 5, 34398 Montpellier, France;
| | - Alfred Oduor Odindo
- School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa; (A.O.O.); (J.S.)
| | - Enoch Gbènato Achigan-Dako
- Laboratory of Genetics, Biotechnology and Seed Science (GBioS), School of Plant Sciences, University of Abomey-Calavi, Abomey-Calavi 01 BP 526, Benin; (S.N.); (N.V.F.H.); (E.G.A.-D.)
| | - Julia Sibiya
- School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa; (A.O.O.); (J.S.)
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Adebiyi O, Ajayi O, Olopade F. Neurotoxicity and Behavioral Alterations Following Subchronic Administration of Aqueous Extract of Erythrophleum Ivorense Stem Bark in Mice. Basic Clin Neurosci 2021; 12:629-638. [PMID: 35173917 PMCID: PMC8818113 DOI: 10.32598/bcn.2021.1057.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2019] [Revised: 07/25/2020] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction: Erythrophleum Ivorense (EI) is a tree found across tropical Africa. The bark of EI is widely used as hunting poisons for animals and ordeal poison in humans. Eating this plant causes paralysis, respiratory distress, and amnesia. In folklore, these behavioral changes have been attributed to guilt in victims; nonetheless, no scientific evidence supports this claim. Thus, the mechanism of neurotoxicity and behavioral alteration of this plant should be investigated. Methods: A total of 48 BALB/c male mice were randomly divided into four groups. The three experimental groups were administered an aqueous extract of EI in a single daily dose of 5, 10, and 15 mg/kg bodyweight for 28 days, while the control group received distilled water. Afterward, the motor coordination, learning, memory, and grip strength of the mice were accessed with wire grip, Morris water maze, and inverted wire mesh grid grip tests. Histological staining of brain sections was also carried out. Results: At all tested doses, the aqueous extract of EI caused a significant reduction in hanging latency, significantly increased escape latency, and decreased duration of the target platform in the Morris water maze test compared to control. Reduced grip strength was also observed in the test groups compared to the control. Histology revealed dysmorphic and disoriented Purkinje cells and loss of this cell layer of the cerebellum. Conclusion: Erythrophleum ivorense administration altered motor coordination, learning and memory, and grip strength in mice dose-dependently. It also caused disruption of granule cells layer, loss of Purkinje cells, and altered cerebellar anatomy leading to motor deficits in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olamide Adebiyi
- Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Oluwasina Ajayi
- Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Funmilayo Olopade
- Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
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Kibr G. A Narrative Review of Nutritional Malpractices, Motivational Drivers, and Consequences in Pregnant Women: Evidence from Recent Literature and Program Implications in Ethiopia. ScientificWorldJournal 2021; 2021:5580039. [PMID: 34248425 PMCID: PMC8236338 DOI: 10.1155/2021/5580039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2021] [Revised: 05/27/2021] [Accepted: 06/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Maternal nutrition is very important for the wellbeing of pregnant women, childbirth, and lactating women, which are crucial and meant for the wellbeing of a mother and newborn baby. This narrative review discusses nutritional malpractices, motivational drivers, and their consequences typically from Ethiopian pregnant women's context. Different studies (regarding less of study design and type) done among pregnant women (aged 15-49 years) by considering pregnancy-related outcomes and timing of nutritional malpractices were included mostly. Accordingly, taboos of healthy diets, craving for unhealthy foods (sweet, fat, raw, and salty/spicy foods), and nonfood items (soil, coffee residue, stone, and ash) were practiced majorly by the women. The birth difficulty, fetal head plastering, fetus discoloration, fetus burns, abortion, and abdominal cramp are the primary drivers of taboos of healthy diets. Hormonal change and social and nutrient-seeking behavior are the most prevalent drivers to the consumption of unhealthy foods. Additionally, personal interest, flavor, and color of items are important motivators to practice pica. Such pica practice hurts nutrient intake, absorption of iron/zinc, abdominal health, and diarrhea occurrence. Food taboos are high predictors of health disorders, such as intrauterine growth restriction, infection, bleeding, preeclampsia, stillbirth, early birth, low birth weight, retarded development of cognitive, and anemia. Craving and eating unhealthy foods were interconnected with chronic disease development (hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer), discomforts, preterm labor, preeclampsia, and intrauterine growth restriction in women. Additionally, it is also associated with stillbirth, low birth weight, obesity, birth defect/deficit, hypertension, cancer, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, renal disease, decreased fetal growth, behavioral change, heart failure, and poor cognitive development in the infant. Overall, these nutritional malpractices are significantly associated with many argumentative pregnancies as well as developmental consequences leading to the direction of infant and maternal mortality and morbidity. Therefore, urgent implementation of health and nutrition education programs considering food misconceptions and beliefs regarding pregnancy and use of ground-breaking ways to play down the negative and maximize potential positive dietary effects designed by the government of Ethiopia could also serve as a long-term solution to the problem.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gesessew Kibr
- Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Shambu Campus, Wollega University, P. O. Box: 38, Shambu, Ethiopia
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Nijhawan S, Mihu A. Relations of Blood: Hunting Taboos and Wildlife Conservation in the Idu Mishmi of Northeast India. J ETHNOBIOL 2020. [DOI: 10.2993/0278-0771-40.2.149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sahil Nijhawan
- Department of Anthropology, University College London (UCL), 14 Taviton Street, London WC1H 0BW, U.K
| | - Achili Mihu
- Anini, Dibang Valley District, Arunachal Pradesh, India
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Shared but Threatened: The Heritage of Wild Food Plant Gathering among Different Linguistic and Religious Groups in the Ishkoman and Yasin Valleys, North Pakistan. Foods 2020; 9:foods9050601. [PMID: 32397112 PMCID: PMC7278586 DOI: 10.3390/foods9050601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2020] [Revised: 05/03/2020] [Accepted: 05/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
A wild food ethnobotanical field study was conducted in the Ishkoman and Yasin valleys, located in the Hindukush Mountain Range of Gilgit-Baltistan, northern Pakistan. These valleys are inhabited by diverse, often marginalized, linguistic and religious groups. The field survey was conducted via one hundred and eighty semistructured interviews to record data in nine villages. Forty gathered wild food botanical and mycological taxa were recorded and identified. Comparative analysis among the different linguistic and religious groups revealed that the gathered wild food plants were homogenously used. This may be attributed to the sociocultural context of the study area, where most of the population professes the Ismaili Shia Islamic faith, and to the historical stratifications of different populations along the centuries, which may have determined complex adaptation processes and exchange of possibly distinct pre-existing food customs. A few wild plants had very rarely or never been previously reported as food resources in Pakistan, including Artemisia annua, Hedysarum falconeri, Iris hookeriana, Lepidium didymium and Saussurea lappa. Additionally, the recorded local knowledge is under threat and we analyzed possible factors that have caused this change. The recorded biocultural heritage could, however, represent a crucial driver, if properly revitalized, for assuring the food security of the local communities and also for further developing ecotourism and associated sustainable gastronomic initiatives in the area.
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Kafoutchoni KM, Idohou R, Egeru A, Salako KV, Agbangla C, Adomou AC, Assogbadjo AE. Species richness, cultural importance, and prioritization of wild spices for conservation in the Sudano-Guinean zone of Benin (West Africa). JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY AND ETHNOMEDICINE 2018; 14:67. [PMID: 30442169 PMCID: PMC6238395 DOI: 10.1186/s13002-018-0267-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2018] [Accepted: 10/29/2018] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Spices have always been used for their flavor-enhancement characteristics and for their medicinal properties. In Benin, scientific research on spices is scarce, despite their importance in the local population's daily needs. This study investigated the diversity of wild spices and documented the associated traditional knowledge that can be used for their valuation, domestication, and sustainable management in the Sudano-Guinean Zone of Benin. METHODS Data were collected during field expeditions using semi-structured interviews in ten localities across the three phytodistricts of the zone. Species richness and Shannon's diversity index were estimated using species accumulation curves. Use report (UR), cultural importance, use value (UV) index, and informant consensus factor (Fic) were used to assess traditional knowledge on wild species, their local importance, and informants' agreement among sociolinguistic groups. Priority wild spices were finally identified using an approach combining eight criteria (native status, economic value, ethnobotanical value, global distribution, national distribution, in-situ and ex-situ conservation status, legislation, and threats assessment) in four prioritization methods (point scoring procedure, point scoring procedure with weighting, compound ranking system, and binomial ranking system). RESULTS A total of 14 species, belonging to 12 genera and 9 families, were inventoried. The most prominent families were Zingiberaceae (21.43%), Annonaceae (21.43%), and Rutaceae (14.29%). More than 200 specific uses were reported, with the Tchabè people holding the greatest level of knowledge (70 uses; UR = 5.70 ± 0.33). The culturally most important spices differed among sociolinguistic groups. Most of the informants agree on the use of the species among (Fic = 0.72-0.98) and across the considered use categories (Fic = 0.88-0.99). The highest UV were registered for Aframomum alboviolaceum (UV = 0.93), Lippia multiflora (UV = 0.76), and Aframomum angustifolium (UV = 0.18). Overall, people perceived wild spices as declining due to agriculture, grazing, and drought. Five species, A. alboviolaceum, L. multiflora, Monodora tenuifolia, Xylopia aethiopica, and Z. zanthoxyloides, were the most prioritized for conservation. CONCLUSIONS This study provides information relevant for the implementation of conservation and domestication actions of wild spices in Benin. Priority species could be integrated into traditional agroforestry systems (e.g., home gardens). However, for this to be effective, further research should be undertaken on morphological and genetic diversity and propagation methods of priority wild spices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Konoutan Médard Kafoutchoni
- Laboratoire de Génétique Moléculaire et d’Analyse des Génomes (LGMAG), Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, BP 142, Abomey-Calavi, Bénin
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimations Forestières (LABEF), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
- Laboratoire d’Ecologie Appliquée (LEA), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP 526, Tri postal, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Rodrigue Idohou
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimations Forestières (LABEF), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
- Laboratoire d’Ecologie Appliquée (LEA), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP 526, Tri postal, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Anthony Egeru
- Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM), P.O. Box 16811, Wandegeya, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Kolawolé Valère Salako
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimations Forestières (LABEF), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Clément Agbangla
- Laboratoire de Génétique Moléculaire et d’Analyse des Génomes (LGMAG), Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, BP 142, Abomey-Calavi, Bénin
| | - Aristide Cossi Adomou
- Laboratoire d’Ecologie Appliquée (LEA), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP 526, Tri postal, Cotonou, Bénin
- Herbier National, Département de Biologie végétale, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP 4521, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Achille Ephrem Assogbadjo
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimations Forestières (LABEF), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
- Laboratoire d’Ecologie Appliquée (LEA), Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP 526, Tri postal, Cotonou, Bénin
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Salako KV, Moreira F, Gbedomon RC, Tovissodé F, Assogbadjo AE, Glèlè Kakaï RL. Traditional knowledge and cultural importance of Borassus aethiopum Mart. in Benin: interacting effects of socio-demographic attributes and multi-scale abundance. JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY AND ETHNOMEDICINE 2018; 14:36. [PMID: 29764465 PMCID: PMC5952639 DOI: 10.1186/s13002-018-0233-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2017] [Accepted: 04/27/2018] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Eliciting factors affecting distribution of traditional knowledge (TK) and cultural importance of plant resources is central in ethnobiology. Socio-demographic attributes and ecological apparency hypothesis (EAH) have been widely documented as drivers of TK distribution, but their synergistic effect is poorly documented. Here, we focused on Borassus aethiopum, a socio-economic important agroforestry palm in Africa, analyzing relationships between the number of use-reports and cultural importance on one hand, and informant socio-demographic attributes (age category and gender) on the other hand, considering the EAH at multi-scale contexts. Our hypothesis is that effects of socio-demographic attributes on use-reports and cultural importance are shaped by both local (village level) and regional (chorological region level) apparency of study species. We expected so because distribution of knowledge on a resource in a community correlates to the versatility in the resource utilization but also connections among communities within a region. METHODS Nine hundred ninety-two face-to-face individual semi-structured interviews were conducted in six villages of low versus high local abundance of B. aethiopum spanning three chorological regions (humid, sub-humid and semi-arid) also underlying a gradient of increasing distribution and abundance of B. aethiopum. Number of use-reports and score of importance of uses of B. aethiopum were recorded in six use-categories including medicine, food, handcraft, construction, firewood, and ceremonies and rituals. Data were analyzed using Poisson and ordered logistic models. RESULTS Informants listed 121 uses for B. aethiopum: medicine (66 uses), handcraft (16 uses), food (16 uses), construction (12 uses), firewood (6 uses), and ceremonies and rituals (5 uses); but food use was the most culturally important use (2.45 ± 0.03), followed by construction (0.61 ± 0.03), medicinal (0.57 ± 0.03) and handcraft (0.56 ± 0.03), firewood (0.29 ± 0.02), and ceremonies and rituals (0.03 ± 0.01). Food use was the most important for women who were specialized in hypocotyls and fruits collection for commercialization. Men valued more the species for handcrafting, construction, and medicine. The number of use-reports was significantly dependent on age category and gender, and differences between age categories (young, adult, and old) in particular were dependent upon local and regional apparency. In particular, discrepancies among age categories were higher in areas of low abundance and distribution, which may be linked to different speed in the process of knowledge acquisition. In areas of low abundance, the species past abundance was also found instrumental in understanding current knowledge distribution. CONCLUSION Findings suggest that studies aiming at understanding relationship between current TK and cultural importance of a resource on one hand and socio-demographic attributes on the other hand should consider the resource current local and regional apparency but further its local past abundance. The study also confirms that B. aethiopum is a socio-economic important species in Benin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kolawolé Valère Salako
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimation Forestières, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Francisco Moreira
- REN Biodiversity Chair, CIBIO/InBIO – Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, 4485-601 Vairão, Portugal
- CEABN/InBIO – Centro de Ecologia Aplicada “Professor Baeta Neves”, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, 1349-017 Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Rodrigue Castro Gbedomon
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimation Forestières, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Frédéric Tovissodé
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimation Forestières, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Achille Ephrem Assogbadjo
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimation Forestières, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
- Laboratoire d’Ecologie Appliquée, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 03 BP 1974, Cotonou, Bénin
| | - Romain Lucas Glèlè Kakaï
- Laboratoire de Biomathématiques et d’Estimation Forestières, Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 04 BP 1525, Cotonou, Bénin
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de la Estrella M, Forest F, Klitgård B, Lewis GP, Mackinder BA, de Queiroz LP, Wieringa JJ, Bruneau A. A new phylogeny-based tribal classification of subfamily Detarioideae, an early branching clade of florally diverse tropical arborescent legumes. Sci Rep 2018; 8:6884. [PMID: 29720687 PMCID: PMC5932001 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-24687-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2017] [Accepted: 03/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Detarioideae (81 genera, c. 760 species) is one of the six Leguminosae subfamilies recently reinstated by the Legume Phylogeny Working Group. This subfamily displays high morphological variability and is one of the early branching clades in the evolution of legumes. Using previously published and newly generated sequences from four loci (matK-trnK, rpL16, trnG-trnG2G and ITS), we develop a new densely sampled phylogeny to assess generic relationships and tribal delimitations within Detarioideae. The ITS phylogenetic trees are poorly resolved, but the plastid data recover several strongly supported clades, which also are supported in a concatenated plastid + ITS sequence analysis. We propose a new phylogeny-based tribal classification for Detarioideae that includes six tribes: re-circumscribed Detarieae and Amherstieae, and the four new tribes Afzelieae, Barnebydendreae, Saraceae and Schotieae. An identification key and descriptions for each of the tribes are also provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuel de la Estrella
- Comparative Plant and Fungal Biology Department, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3DS, UK. .,Departamento de Botánica, Ecología y Fisiología Vegetal, Facultad de Ciencias, Campus de Rabanales, Universidad de Córdoba, 14071, Córdoba, Spain.
| | - Félix Forest
- Comparative Plant and Fungal Biology Department, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3DS, UK
| | - Bente Klitgård
- Department for Identification and Naming, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3AE, UK
| | - Gwilym P Lewis
- Comparative Plant and Fungal Biology Department, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3DS, UK
| | - Barbara A Mackinder
- Comparative Plant and Fungal Biology Department, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3DS, UK.,Tropical Diversity, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 20ª Inverleith Row, EH3 5LR, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Luciano P de Queiroz
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana, Av. Transnordestina s.n., Novo Horizonte, 44036-900, Feira de Santana, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Jan J Wieringa
- Naturalis Biodiversity Centre, National Herbarium of the Netherlands, Darwinweg 2, 2333 CR, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Anne Bruneau
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale and Département de Sciences biologiques, Université de Montréal, 4101 Sherbrooke est, Montréal, H1X 2B2, Canada
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Quiroz D, van Andel T. The Cultural Importance of Plants in Western African Religions. ECONOMIC BOTANY 2018; 72:251-262. [PMID: 30573919 PMCID: PMC6267723 DOI: 10.1007/s12231-018-9410-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2017] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
This paper explores the importance of elements of the natural world, and particularly plants, among people of different religious affiliations in western Africa. Plants play an overriding role in African folk religions, which in turn are closely associated with health practices and influence management decisions concerning natural resources. In spite of the extensive literature documenting ritual plant use, the cultural importance of plants in this context has not been systematically assessed. Our objective was to see whether the importance of plants was reflected in people's conceptions of global (i.e., Christianity, Islam) and folk religions (i.e., Vodoun and Bwiti) in Benin (West Africa) and Gabon (Central Africa). By performing a cultural domain analysis (CDA) with 96 individuals, we found that, regardless of the religious affiliation of informants, plants and other elements of the natural world were more present in people's notions of folk religions than in global religions. We conclude by reflecting on the potentials and limitations of the data presented here as a starting point to explore the topic of cultural keystone species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana Quiroz
- Hamburg University (Biocentre Klein Flottbek and Botanical Garden), Ohnhorststr. 18, 22609 Hamburg, Germany
- Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (Instituto de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas y Sustentabilidad), 58190 Morelia, Michoacán Mexico
| | - Tinde van Andel
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands
- Wageningen University, Biosystematics Group, P.O. Box 647, 6700 AP Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Riang’a RM, Broerse J, Nangulu AK. Food beliefs and practices among the Kalenjin pregnant women in rural Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY AND ETHNOMEDICINE 2017; 13:29. [PMID: 28545533 PMCID: PMC5445501 DOI: 10.1186/s13002-017-0157-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2016] [Accepted: 05/08/2017] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding food beliefs and practices is critical to the development of dietary recommendations, nutritional programmes, and educational messages. This study aimed to understand the pregnancy food beliefs and practices and the underlying reasons for these among the contemporary rural Kalenjin communities of Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. METHODS Through semi-structured interviews, data was collected from 154 pregnant and post-natal Kalenjin women about restricted and recommended foods, and why they are restricted or recommended during pregnancy. Respondents were purposively selected (based on diversity) from those attending Maternal and Child Health (MCH) care in 23 rural public health facilities. Key informant interviews (n = 9) with traditional Birth Attendants (TBA) who were also herbalists, community health workers, and nursing officers in charge of MCH were also conducted. Quantitative data was analysed using SPSS software. Data from respondents who gave consent to be tape recorded (n = 42) was transcribed and qualitatively analysed using MAXQDA software. RESULTS The restriction of animal organs specifically the tongue, heart, udder and male reproductive organs, meat and eggs, and the recommendation of traditional green vegetables and milk was reported by more than 60% of the respondents. Recommendation of fruits, traditional herbs, ugali (a dish made of maize flour, millet flour, or Sorghum flour, sometimes mixed with cassava flour), porridge and liver, and restriction of avocadoes and oily food were reported by more than 20% of the respondents. The reasons for observing these dietary precautions were mainly fears of: big foetuses, less blood, lack of strength during birth, miscarriages or stillbirths, and maternal deaths as well as child's colic and poor skin conditions after birth. CONCLUSION Pregnancy food beliefs were widely known and practised mainly to protect the health of the mother and child, and ensuring successful pregnancy outcome. Given the deep-rooted nature of the beliefs, it is advisable that when nutritious foods are restricted, nutritional interventions should rather search for alternative sources of nutrition which are available and considered to be appropriate for pregnancy. On the other hand, nutritional advice that does not address these health concerns and assumptions that underlie successful pregnancy and delivery is unlikely to be effective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roselyter Monchari Riang’a
- Moi University, School of Arts and Social Sciences, P.O. Box 3900-30100, Eldoret, Kenya
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1085, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jacqueline Broerse
- Athena Institute, Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1085, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Anne Kisaka Nangulu
- Moi University, School of Arts and Social Sciences, P.O. Box 3900-30100, Eldoret, Kenya
- Commission for University Education, Red Hill Road, off Limuru Road, Gigiri, P.O. Box 54999 – 00200, Nairobi Kenya
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Zerfu TA, Umeta M, Baye K. Dietary habits, food taboos, and perceptions towards weight gain during pregnancy in Arsi, rural central Ethiopia: a qualitative cross-sectional study. JOURNAL OF HEALTH, POPULATION, AND NUTRITION 2016; 35:22. [PMID: 27456151 PMCID: PMC5025964 DOI: 10.1186/s41043-016-0059-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2015] [Accepted: 07/19/2016] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The nutritional status of women before and during pregnancy can be determined by maternal knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions towards certain foods. The present study aimed to explore maternal dietary habits, food taboos, and cultural beliefs that can affect nutrition during pregnancy in rural Arsi, central Ethiopia. METHODS A qualitative, cross-sectional study, involving 38 key informant in-depth interviews and eight focus group discussions, was conducted among purposefully selected pregnant women and their husbands, elderly people, community leaders, health workers, and agriculture office experts. Participants were selected purposefully from all the major agro-ecologic areas of the study site. Data was analyzed manually using the thematic framework analyses method. RESULTS The pregnant women reported that they did not change the amount and type of foods consumed to take into account their increased nutritional need during pregnancy. The consumption of meat, fish, fruits, and some vegetables during pregnancy remained as low as the pre-pregnancy state, irrespective of the women's income and educational status. Although not practiced by all, a number of taboos related to the intake of certain food items and misconceptions that can adversely affect nutritional status during pregnancy were identified. The most common taboos were related to the consumption of green leafy vegetables, yogurt, cheese, sugar cane, and green pepper. However, the frequency and extent of the practice varied by maternal age, family composition, and literacy level. Older mothers, from rural villages, and those with no formal education were more likely to practice the taboos than younger and educated ones. Almost all of the participants disfavored weight gain during pregnancy in fear of obstetric complications associated with the delivery of a bigger infant. CONCLUSIONS Misconceptions about weight gain during pregnancy and food taboos were widespread, particularly among older and illiterate rural communities. Thus, future nutrition programs should promote diversification of both the agricultural production and consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taddese Alemu Zerfu
- Center for Food Science and Nutrition, Addis Ababa University, College of Natural Sciences, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
| | - Melaku Umeta
- Department of Medical Biochemistry, Addis Ababa University, College of Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Kaleab Baye
- Center for Food Science and Nutrition, Addis Ababa University, College of Natural Sciences, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
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Quiroz D, Sosef M, van Andel T. Why ritual plant use has ethnopharmacological relevance. JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY 2016; 188:48-56. [PMID: 27157629 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2016.05.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2015] [Revised: 05/02/2016] [Accepted: 05/04/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Although ritual plant use is now recognised both for its socio-cultural importance and for its contribution to nature conservation, its potential pharmacological effects remain overlooked. AIM OF THE STUDY Our objective was to see whether ritual plant use could have ethnopharmacological relevance through practices that involve direct physical contact with the human body. We hypothesise that ritual practices reflect traditional knowledge on biological activities of plant species, even if plants are used in a symbolic way. MATERIALS AND METHODS Data were collected in collaboration with traditional healers and ritual plant vendors and harvesters in Benin (West Africa) and Gabon (Central Africa). Both ritual and medicinal uses of plants were recorded. Voucher specimens were collected and identified. We documented different administration routes of ritual plants and selected those whose uses involved direct contact with the human body. Based on our quantitative market surveys and field inventories, we identified 24 commercially or otherwise culturally important species and compared their ritual uses with proven biological activity from the literature. RESULTS We recorded 573 plant species with 667 ritual uses, of which ca. 75% (442 species and 499 uses) implied direct contact with the human body. The most common route of administration for ritual treatments was baths, followed by oral ingestion and skin rubbing. One third (186 species) of all ritual plants doubled as medicine for physical ailments. In contrast to previous research that explained the effectiveness of ritual plant use to be a matter of belief, our results hint at the potential medicinal properties of these plants. Ritual treatment of madness caused by evil spirits by the consumption of Rauvolfia vomitoria roots, for example, may be based on the species' proven anticonvulsant properties. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION We discuss some of the possible implications of ritual plant use for public health and conclude by suggesting that ritual plant uses that do not involve contact with the human body may also be vehicles for the transmission of traditional medicinal knowledge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana Quiroz
- Wageningen University (Biosystematics Group), P.O. Box 647, 6700 AP Wageningen, The Netherlands; Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Marc Sosef
- National Botanic Garden of Belgium, Nieuwelaan 38, 1860 Meise, Belgium.
| | - Tinde van Andel
- Wageningen University (Biosystematics Group), P.O. Box 647, 6700 AP Wageningen, The Netherlands; Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands.
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Frazão-Moreira A. The symbolic efficacy of medicinal plants: practices, knowledge, and religious beliefs amongst the Nalu healers of Guinea-Bissau. JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY AND ETHNOMEDICINE 2016; 12:24. [PMID: 27316468 PMCID: PMC4912713 DOI: 10.1186/s13002-016-0095-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2016] [Accepted: 05/19/2016] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In attempting to understand how the use of medicinal plants is symbolically valued and transformed according to specific cosmologies, we gain valuable insight into the ethnopharmacologial practices, in terms of the major role played by healers, as custodians of local ethnobotanical knowledge, but also as ritual masters. Thus, the goal of this paper is to understand how medicinal plants are used differently depending on a combination between the healers' field of expertise and personal history on the one hand, and the diversified religious and symbolical frameworks on the other. METHODS This essay is based on intense ethnographical research carried out amongst the Nalu people of Guinea-Bissau. Methods included participant observation and semi-directed interviews with six locally-renown healers (four men and two women). The progress of their work and the changes operated within the sets of beliefs associated with ethnopharmacological practices were registered by means of repeated field visits. RESULTS A total of 98 species and 147 uses are accounted for, as well as a description of the plant parts that were used, as well as the methods of preparation and application according to the different healers' specialized practices. At the same time, this research describes those processes based on pre-Islamic and Muslim cosmologies through which medicinal plants are accorded their value, and treatments are granted their symbolic efficiency. CONCLUSIONS Medicinal plants are valued differently in the pre-Islamic medicine and in the medicine practiced by Islamic masters. The increasing relevance of Islam within this context has affected the symbolic framework of ethnopharmacological practices. Nevertheless, the endurance of those processes by which symbolic efficiency is attributed to local treatments based on plants is explained not only by the syncretic nature of African Islam, but also by the fact that patients adopt different therapeutic pathways simultaneously.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amélia Frazão-Moreira
- Centre for Research in Anthropology, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.
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van Andel T, van Onselen S, Myren B, Towns A, Quiroz D. "The medicine from behind": The frequent use of enemas in western African traditional medicine. JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY 2015; 174:637-43. [PMID: 26133063 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2015.06.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2015] [Revised: 06/17/2015] [Accepted: 06/19/2015] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Purgative enemas form an integral part of African traditional medicine. Besides possible benefits, serious health risks of rectal herbal therapy have been described in literature. To design appropriate health education programs, it is essential to understand traditional herbal practices and local perceptions of health and illness. Little is known about the herbal ingredients of enemas in Sub-Saharan Africa and consumers' personal reasons to use them. AIM OF THE STUDY To analyze the importance of enema use with regard to plant species used and illnesses treated in West and Central Africa, to understand the local health beliefs that underlie frequent enema use and to evaluate which recipes and practices could be beneficial or harmful. MATERIALS AND METHODS We extracted data from 266 ethnobotanical questionnaires on medicinal (in particular women's health and childcare) and ritual plant use in Ghana, Benin and Gabon. Plants mentioned during interviews were vouchered and identified in herbaria. Health issues treated by means of enemas were ranked according to the number of plant species used for a specific illness. We compared our results with findings of medical research on benefits and risks of enema use in Sub-Saharan Africa. RESULTS We recorded ca. 213 different plant species used in hundreds of recipes for rectal insertions, mostly in Ghana and Gabon. Stomachache, abdominal pain, female infertility and birth facilitation were treated with the highest number of plants species. Cleansing the intestines of young children to promote their health by getting rid of 'dirt', instead of treating constipation, was an important cultural practice that required the rectal application of herbal medicine, as well as other cultural bound health issues like stimulating children to walk at an early age. Tradition, the bitter taste of herbal medicine and the rapid effect of enemas were frequently mentioned reasons for enema use. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Literature indicates that although enemas can help to improve the hygienic conditions of a household with young infants, frequent enema use can pose serious risks like direct toxicity caused by harmful ingredients, mechanical injury and infections. In Africa, enemas containing herbal medicine are common methods of administering herbal medicine for a variety of diseases, rather than just medicinal treatments for constipation as previously thought. Health professionals should be aware of the extent of, and motivation behind enema use to develop culturally appropriate education programs, especially targeted at vulnerable groups such as elderly people, parents of young infants and pregnant women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tinde van Andel
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands; Wageningen University, Department of Biosystematics, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
| | | | - Britt Myren
- Leiden University, P.O. Box 9500, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Alexandra Towns
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden University, P.O. Box 9500, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Diana Quiroz
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands; Wageningen University, Department of Biosystematics, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
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Local plant names reveal that enslaved Africans recognized substantial parts of the New World flora. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:E5346-53. [PMID: 25453066 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1418836111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
How did the forced migration of nearly 11 million enslaved Africans to the Americas influence their knowledge of plants? Vernacular plant names give insight into the process of species recognition, acquisition of new knowledge, and replacement of African species with American ones. This study traces the origin of 2,350 Afro-Surinamese (Sranantongo and Maroon) plant names to those plant names used by local Amerindians, Europeans, and related groups in West and Central Africa. We compared vernacular names from herbarium collections, literature, and recent ethnobotanical fieldwork in Suriname, Ghana, Benin, and Gabon. A strong correspondence in sound, structure, and meaning among Afro-Surinamese vernaculars and their equivalents in other languages for botanically related taxa was considered as evidence for a shared origin. Although 65% of the Afro-Surinamese plant names contained European lexical items, enslaved Africans have recognized a substantial part of the neotropical flora. Twenty percent of the Sranantongo and 43% of the Maroon plant names strongly resemble names currently used in diverse African languages for related taxa, represent translations of African ones, or directly refer to an Old World origin. The acquisition of new ethnobotanical knowledge is captured in vernaculars derived from Amerindian languages and the invention of new names for neotropical plants from African lexical terms. Plant names that combine African, Amerindian, and European words reflect a creolization process that merged ethnobotanical skills from diverse geographical and cultural sources into new Afro-American knowledge systems. Our study confirms the role of Africans as significant agents of environmental knowledge in the New World.
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